Saturday, July 10, 2010

Here comes the sub - daily life at New Dungeness Light Station

We were lucky enough to see two subs this week as they passed us in the Straits of Juan de Fuca.

The first was a sub going out to sea with two menacing looking armored escorts.  The escorts were so close, it was hard to see the sub in between.  They were accompanied by two more Coast Guard boats and a fast pursuit boat.  They made an impressive showing. 

The other was a sub coming in to the sub base at Bangor with just two Coast Guard boats as escorts.  We were able to see the whole sub as it went by. 

We had great weather all week.   A couple of HOT days when we enjoyed the sunshine.  A breeze came up almost every night.  Lovely sunrises and sunsets.  It was clear enough to see the Olympic Mountains and Mt Baker most of the week. 

As usual, we had swallow nests and baby birds.  This time there were three nests on the station and they all flew the coop during our week.  Have a good life babies!

Monday, July 5, 2010

Lighthouse Keepers for the week

This week we are staying at the New Dungeness Light Station in Sequim, Washington as volunteer light keepers. 

Jim Thomas from Idlewild, CA raises the flag in the 4th of July.

We are sharing the 3 bedroom keepers quarters with two other couples.  One from Brush Prairie and one from Oceanside/Idlewild, California.  We are lucky to have such nice folks sharing our space.  We are alternating fixing the evening meal and Jennifer set the bar very high with grilled salmon and a pasta salad the first night.  I fixed razor clams and shrimp last night.  We are eating very well.  Our duties include putting up the flag each day, mowing the grass, taking care of the house we are living in, keeping the public picnic and restroom facilities clean and giving tours. 

This is the view from our bedroom window. 

It was gorgeous weather on Saturday and we had 87 people.  Only 37 people yesterday since it was overcast in the morning and although it did start to clear off, the wind was fierce by evening.    We were able to see fireworks from Port Angeles to Sequim.