A Haven for Trolls in Sequim, WA

August 24, 2015 1 Comment read Pacific, Travel, USA, Washington, West

Some settings make the mythological seem more plausible. I found myself in Sequim on a misty morning, fog curling around the trees, and it made sense to me that trolls would congregate at Bandy’s Troll Haven, a place where the sun would never turn them to stone, a place that lives up to their legendary reputation of overruning farms and estates. Gary Bandy, the creator of Troll Haven, was deeply interested in Tolkein’s Middle Earth stories and was wealthy enough (from his invention of a special door hinge) to decorate his properties in truly eccentric fashion, scattering trolls, wizards, and dragons around his castle and surrounding orchards and farmland. Better yet, some of the properties of Troll Haven are available to rent–I’m already pondering ideas for epic parties. I hope they have a recommended vendor for insurance in case of party-crashing trolls.

Spotted on the Roadside: Stonehenge Maryhill, where the dew drops cry and the cats meow

August 21, 2015 4 Comments read Attractions, Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, Washington, West

Who the fuck builds a stonehenge? Two Stone Age-guys wondering what to do who just said: “Dude, let’s build a henge or two!”

We do know who the fuck built this Stonehenge, and it wasn’t exactly a stone age guy. Sam Hill (1857-1931) was a pacific northwest businessman with a lot of klout in the area. He’s known for two large monument in Washington: the Peace Arch at the Washington/Canadian border, which was dedicated in 1921, and the town of Maryhill, named after his wife and upon which he dedicated this replica of Stonehenge in 1918. He was inspired by the supposed druidic sacrifices on the central altar of the prehistoric Stonehenge and built this replica as a memorial to the local soldiers who died in World War I, to remind the populace that human life is continually sacrificed to the god of war. Rather than replicate Stonehenge precisely, dragging large stones from the surrounding hillsides, he built his stonehenge from concrete blocks, its altar aligned with the sunrise of the summer solstice.

There are a number of huge burned out patches near the site, and a sign warns visitors to make use of their car ashtray rather than discarding them on the ground. The area knows a thing or two about fire–the original Maryhill buildings all burned down shortly after construction, much like the ill-fated nearby town of Shaniko.

Spotted on Stonehenge Dr in Maryhill, WA

With twice as many blacksmiths and 40% more rootin’ tootin: Shaniko, Oregon

August 19, 2015 4 Comments read Attractions, Oregon, Pacific, The Great Outdoors, Travel, USA, West

It’s surprising how quickly the landscape changes in Oregon. Almost as soon as you leave Portland bearing east on the historic Columbia River Highway, the surrounding hillsides turn golden and dry, giant trees giving way to small shrubs, craggly hills leaning over the wide blue river. As you push further east and reach Route 97, tumbleweeds start bumbling across the road (hence their Latin name: tumblus bumblus) and deer can be spotted on the hills to either side, cropping the shimmering grasses and keeping a wary eye out for predators. Still further on Route 97 is the destination: Shaniko, Oregon’s best-known ghost town.

Many North American ghost towns were created by the gold rushes of the 1800s. While gold in the somewhat-nearby (150 miles) Canyon City did influence people to move to and settle the area, Shaniko’s big boom (and name change from Cross Hollows) came in the early 1900s, when it served as a temporary terminus of the Columbia Southern Railway. At that time, Shaniko was known for its wool production, and boasted the largest wool warehouse in the state. The Columbia Southern Railway was originally intended to continue out of Shaniko and to the coast, but terrain issues prevented its construction, making Shaniko the permanent terminus of the line. In 1911, two things happened that precipitated Shaniko’s decline. First, a different rail line with service to Portland diverted passengers from Shaniko. Second, a major fire wiped out the majority of Shaniko’s business district. With little incentive to rebuild, many of the businesses left for more prosperous locations, and the settlers went with them. Passenger rail service to Shaniko ended in the early 1930s, and by the 1960s, that rail line was discontinued entirely.

Now Shaniko is categorized as a ghost town, though people do still live there (36 of them, as of the 2010 census). I didn’t run into any of them during my visit–the only other person I saw was another visitor, a trucker who excitedly pointed out the jail and mentioned offhand that he’d seen three rattlesnakes that day, which kept me scanning the ground anxiously and caused Jason to get startled by a hose. Some restoration has been done to the buildings, along with some modern damage because assholes like to carve their names into everything.

Here’s the blacksmith shop…

…not far from the blacksmith shop. Hey! How many blacksmiths does one town need?

And while we’re at it, what’s up with ghost towns and christmas lights?

Aside from the jail, there weren’t many buildings you could enter, which was a little disappointing. But on the other hand, entering a dark building that may also be occupied by free range rattlesnakes isn’t necessarily all that high on my to-do list. Either way, by the time I’d checked out the town and taken the all-important jail photo, the sky had grown a threatening shade of gray for early afternoon, so I decided to emulate those 1911 settlers and beat a retreat back to civilization.

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