Journey Home

by Deborah Taylor

Part IV

We headed up to Blue Lake stopping briefly to take a picture of a large pipe.  I think it comes from the damn at the lake.  I remember as a child, I was impressed by the vast amount of water that shot out the end of it.

river opening into Silver Bay	water pipe

After our brief look at the lake, we headed back down the mountain.  I stopped once more and looked out over the river that spills into Silver Bay. I think to myself that this may be the last time I see this grand place.

Slowly driving along Sawmill Creek Road, I spot Shotgun Alley and turn down it.  I am surprised how many new homes are located on this road now.  I can’t blame them for choosing this place for a home.  The view here is breathtaking. There are many small boats docked at their moorings in the bay and looking across the Easter Channel you can see Mt. Edgecumbe.  I feel a sense of tranquility and wonder why I ever left this little piece of heaven that many call the “Rock.”  

We head back into town and I decide to drive up Geodetic Way and see if the old seismic center is still there and it is.  I use to play on the lawn and steps of the center with a friend of mine when I was young.  I had my first mouth puckering experience with crabapples there also.

seismic center	Swan Lake

Once again I had to stop and take a picture.  This time it was of Swan Lake.  I was saddened to see it had shrunk in size.  The lily pads seem to be claiming it.  I can recall in the winter, we would all anxiously wait for the fire department to measure the thickness of the ice and give us an all clear to skate on the lake over the local radio station, KIFW.

Time was getting away from us.  Arriving at the apartment, we decided to go out to the local Moose Club for dinner. My parents met us there.   I called a friend, Ron Pratt, and asked him to meet me there.

When we arrived at the Moose Club, I was surprised to see many familiar faces from my past.  Anna Hill was tending bar.  Larry Pierce, my dad’s old pool buddy was having a drink at the bar.  Ethel Williams was playing pool.  There were many others, but I had trouble remembering their names.  Kids, chemotherapy and age will do that to a person’s memory. 

After dinner I went to the old Kiksadi Club, with Ron to have a drink and catch up on old times.  We enjoyed reminiscing but decided not to stay too long.  Ron had to catch an early flight and I had to meet another friend for breakfast at the Shee-Atika Hotel.

Heather & me (Deborah)

The next morning I met with Brian Weddel and his baby girl.  The food was good and the company even better.  After finishing our meal, we took a long stroll through Totem Park. We had fun talking about school days.  Soon it was time for us to part.  Brian was going to a family reunion and I had to pick Heather up to go to a picnic and see my brother, Larry, and his new wife and stepson at Old Sitka.

looking across channel	Larry, mom (Lucille) and Heather

When we arrived at the picnic site, my parents, Larry and his new family were already there.  After a brief introduction to Larry’s wife, Leona, and her son, Kit, the kids decided to explore the campgrounds and nearby beach. They spent some time looking in tide-pools and collecting small shells. 

I spotted Heather standing out on a rock and told her to come back in before she was trapped by the incoming tide.  We went back to our picnic spot and sifted through their beach treasures.  I tried my best to enjoy the afternoon, but the brisk wind seemed to cut through my clothes and was almost unbearable.  The temperature was about 52 degrees.   Funny when I actually lived here it didn’t seem to bother me at all.  Following our cookout of hamburgers, we all said our good-byes and went separate ways. 

picnic visitor	Heather and large tree root
Heather	Heather & Kit beachcombing

The next day Heather and I went to the parade and were pleasantly surprised that we didn’t get rained on which is quite common for Sitka.  The locals call it liquid sunshine. Regretfully, I left my camera behind.  Following the parade we walked down to the school grounds to find many small booths set up with vendors selling a menagerie of items.  We found a couple of stuffed fish with big bulging eyes in one booth and couldn’t resist the temptation to buy them.

Tomorrow we head back home but tonight we get to go see fireworks out over the channel between Japonski Island and Baranof Island.  I dressed much warmer for the evening after the deep chill I experienced yesterday and I remembered to bring my camera.  I was pleasantly surprised to get a couple of good pictures of the fireworks.

oooh	aaah

Back at the apartment, I made sure that Heather and I had everything packed for our return trip home. We both tried to sleep but didn’t get much rest.  The next morning Merrylee made sure that we had some snack food for the long ferry ride and packed us and our belongings into her car and drove us to the ferry terminal.  My parents met us just in time to get on the ship at last call.  I was beginning to worry if they were going to make it.  We all said good-bye to Merrylee and Jamie Lynn and walked onto the ferry for the first leg of our long journey back home.

Fishing vessel passing by	view off the stern of ferry

 On the ferry I began to ponder my situation.  I thought I had taken this trip to go back home.  My old home town was the same and yet it wasn’t the same.  People had come and gone, as well as new homes and businesses being built and old being torn down or closed.  I remembered many of my favorite places:  Mabel’s Drive-In and her famous What-A-Burger, Revards, Staton’s Steak House where I had my first date with my husband, Moose Lanes, Coliseum Theater and The Rock.  All are gone except for the theater and bowling lanes, which have new names.  I smiled to myself.  Those were indeed great places and I’m glad that I got to share in the experience of them.  Things change.  It’s time to move on.  It is time to make new memories. 

seaplane taking off	another ferry passing

On the ferry from Sitka to Wrangell we are lucky enough to get a cabin that has more room than the one we had coming to Sitka.  We were not fortunate enough however, to get a ferry to take us straight through to Prince Rupert, BC.  We have to get off in Wrangell and we will have about a ten hour layover. 

Heather snoozing	relaxing in the cabin on the ferry

Upon disembarking in Wrangell we decide to explore the town which is within walking distance.  We have lunch at a small café that also has convenience items and candy for sale.  Heather and I discover that they have Jelly Bellies and stock up on buttered-popcorn flavored jelly beans for the drive home. 

On our way back to the ferry terminal, Heather decides to do some beach combing.  She actually found a quarter among all the old driftwood.

Heather among the driftwood on beach

My dad decided he would take a nap while we waited for the ferry.  He chooses an unusual place to take a nap, on a picnic table.  Heather finds this quite amusing when he begins to snore and she whips out the movie camera to catch him in the act. 

Our ferry finally arrives and we are on our way again.  Once again we are lucky and get a cabin.  This cabin seems to be even larger than the last cabin. 

Can you guess what he's doing?

After stowing all our belongings, I pull out a special treat, a kite, for Heather.  We decide to go out on the deck to fly it.  We didn’t have much luck.  It definitely seemed easier when I did this as a kid coming back from bible camp in Juneau.  It wasn’t long before we had many curious lookers.  Soon a young man approached us and asked if he could try.  He did a much better job and it flew for quite awhile.

up, up and away	kite pilot

We soon turned in for the night knowing we had a long drive ahead of us tomorrow.  Heather had a bed buddy for the night, one of the stuffed fish. 

a larger cabin overlooking bow	Heather & stuffed fish

Upon reaching Prince Rupert, we disembarked and dad went to get the car from storage.  We had so much more stuff going home and it wouldn’t all fit in the trunk.  We had to tie some of it to the trunk lid including the two stuffed fish.  Finally we were ready to roll. 

On the road again

We took Canadian highway 16 and followed the railroad alongside of the Skeena River much of the way to Prince George.  We then headed south to the Canadian/USA border.  Crossing the border at Blaine, WA and traveling south on I-5 to Seattle, changing to I-90 traveling east to Vantage, WA.

We had many people start to pass us on the highway only to slow down when they saw the fish tied to the trunk staring at them. As they continued around us, they would smile and wave or honk.  

As we drove near Vantage, we could see what looked to be wild horses on the top of a bluff.  As we got closer, we saw that it was some kind of monument and decided to investigate it.  It turned out to be a life-sized sculpture of 15 wild horses titled “Grandfather Cuts Loose the Ponies.”  The horses are made of 1-inch thick tempered steel by sculptor David Govedare and placed on the Wanapum Vista Overlook in 1989 for the Washington State Centennial Celebration.  The monument overlooks the Columbia River and can be seen for many miles from the highway in any direction.  Access to the monument is located off the Eastbound lanes of I-90.  I found out the monument is not yet complete.  The sculptor, Govedare, wants to add three more horses and a 13-ton, 36-foot diameter metal basket adorned with symbols of “land, water, sky and human spirit.”  The horses would appear to be running out of the tilted basket.  The sculpture depicts the Indian legend of The Great Spirit’s gift of horses to Earth and man.

"Grandfather Cuts Loose the Ponies"

view from Wanapum Vista Overlook, overlooking the Columbia River

After admiring the monument and stretching our legs, we continue on our way into Idaho, then Montana through Butte and Yellowstone Park.  We didn’t stop to see Yellowstone Park because it was late when we passed through.  Crossing over into Wyoming, we changed highways taking I-25 down to Denver, Colorado and over to I-70 into Kansas to Salina.  In Salina we switched to I-135 to Wichita and continued east to Fort Scott crossing into Missouri and then traveling south on highways 71 and then 59 south to Arkansas. 

The last few miles seemed to take forever.  Finally, we’re home.  Nothing could look so good.  My own bed to sleep in.  This journey taught me that home is truly where your heart is, and mine is in Northwest Arkansas.

My brother, Larry, died from a sudden illness 7 months after my visit to Sitka.  My only regret is that we didn’t get to spend more time together when I was there.  As children we never saw eye to eye on anything and fought like cats and dogs.  As adults we grew apart and rarely saw each other.  It would have been nice if we could have set aside our childhood differences and gotten to know each other as adults before his death.  No person is perfect.  My advice to everyone is “live today like there is no tomorrow and forgive your friends and loved ones, but mostly-show your love.”  This travel journal is dedicated to my brother, Larry Alan Norris, July/1961-February/2001. 

return to part I
return to part II
return to part III

©Copyright 2006 by Deborah Taylor

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