Crossing Canada - Part One!!!

On June 1, 2008, we left Chimacum, Washington and headed up to Canada for our several month long trip across Canada. Our border crossing was very simple and quick and we had nothing taken away from us. As we crossed into British Columbia, we noted that there were many orchards, fruit stands and wineries. The first provincial park we came to was Vaseaux Lake and we decided to stop to see what it was like. Unfortunately, most of the sites in this particular park were very short and narrow so it would not have been a good place for our large rig, but it was a beautiful spot in the road.

We headed on to Vernon, British Columbia where we would be visiting with our dear friends from the desert, Al and Betty Thomas. They had just moved to a new modular home and it was really beautiful. Betty and Al had done an excellent job of decorating on the inside and were busy planning their deck and landscaping. McKenzie especially liked the small chairs that Betty’s teddy bears sat in and had a great time terrorizing one of the bears. Al and Betty’s son, Calvin and his wife, Connie, had invited us to their home for a steak cookout and on the way, we drove up to Silver Star Ski Resort. It was cold and overcast but we were able to see the brightly painted condominiums. Calvin and Connie also had a beautiful home and had just returned from a trip to Australia. While they were gone, their dog, Sambucca (excuse me if I got the spelling of his name wrong), decided he was lonely and took off. He was picked up very close to their old home, about 15 kilometers away. Betty and Al picked him up from the pound and brought him back to the house.
The next day we awoke to drizzly rain and chilly temperatures. We decided to drive over to Enderby to see another set of friends that we had met out at the desert, Stan and Lorraine Ramstad. We had a lovely visit with them and caught up on all the news since we had last seen them about six years ago.

Though it was chilly the next morning, we decided to head on over to Sun Peaks Mountain Resort. It is a picturesque, ski-through alpine village with charming walkways, unique shops, cafes and spas, nestled between three inviting mountains. Sun Peaks is BC’s second largest ski area, spread across 122 runs on 3, 678 acres. The Sun Peaks Resort is steeped in Olympic greatness. As the Director of Skiing, Female Athlete of the Century and Olympic Champion, Nancy Greene brings excellence and inspiration to visitors and local athletes. She also has her lodge in this area, with a great many of her skiing medals and awards housed in the lobby. Sun Peaks is a four season mountain resort. During the summer you can discover the pristine meadows of brilliant alpine wildflowers and feel the warm wind at your back in the world-renowned mountain bike park or challenge yourself to a round of golf on the impressive 18-hole Graham Cooke designed golf course. The homes and condos here are absolutely beautiful – quite a different look from the Silver Star ski area. As a change of pace and to give Al a rest from driving, we decided to attend the Creative Chaos crafts fair, one of the largest in B.C. Betty and I had a ball going down all the rows and looking at all the unique crafts. A Scottish band marched thru the craft hall and we all gave them a wide berth as they went thru. After leaving there, we drove to a new neighborhood named Turtle Hill which is very exclusive. From the top of the hill you were able to see all of the town of Vernon as well as the Okanagan Lake. Each home should have a beautiful view.
We finally got a beautiful day and we headed over to O’Keefe Ranch. It is a historic site that steps back in time to the late 1800’s. At that time, huge cattle ranches occupied the valley and ranch headquarters were self-contained settlements. The ranch was founded in 1867 by Cornelius O’Keefe who, along with his partner, Thomas Greenhow, was driving cattle north to sell to the hungry miners in the gold fields. Impressed with the lush grass, ample water and the beauty of the valley, they each pre-empted 160 acres of prime meadowland and began cattle ranching. By the turn of the century, the O’Keefes and Greenhows owned over 20,000 acres of prime Okanagan land. While much of their land was sold off in 1907 to be subdivided into orchard land, the O’Keefe family carried on ranching after the death of Cornelius O’Keefe in 1919. Up until the 1960’s, the ranch was still being run by Tierney O’Keefe, son of the founder. It was Tierney who restored and rebuilt the original ranch buildings and opened the ranch as an historic site in 1967.

We toured the main house which was very beautifully decorated to reflect the original O’Keefe home. Inside the door was a hallway with beautiful banisters going up to the second floor. On the right side, was the ladies parlor, the gentlemen’s parlor and the dining room. In the dining room, both the lady and the master of the house had glass bells, each with a different ring, to signal the butlers and maids. Also on the grounds was the old store which Greenhow and O’Keefe established to supplement their ranching income. The O’Keefe ranch is helping to care for and preserve the heritage of rare breed farm animals. One we found very curious was Jacob’s Sheep. It is an ancient breed probably originating in Syria over 3,000 years ago. The name “Jacob” came from Jacob in the Old Testament who selectively bred spotted sheep. Jacob sheep produce 2, 4, or sometimes 6 horns and is a small mixed breed not considered commercially viable for its meat, but its wool is very popular with hand spinners. It is now considered “Internationally Rare” which means its numbers are very low worldwide.

Our last day with Betty and Al, found us driving over to Shuswap Lake to see all the houseboats. Just outside of the town of Sicamous, which is the houseboat capital of Canada, there are houseboats being built and floating down the lake. Of course, we had to make a stop at the D Dutchman Dairy which has excellent homemade ice cream. We hiked a short distance to Margaret Falls which is named after the first white woman to see this impressive falls. The water originates at the top of Bastion Mountain that lies directly to the west, and follows a fault in the limestone. The spray of the falls keeps the vegetation moist and allows the mosses that adorn many of the cedars to survive.

After leaving Betty and Al’s home, we drove east on our way to Alberta to visit with another of our desert friends, Sam and Wally Beck. On the way, we stopped to see the place where the last spike was driven for the Canadian Pacific Railroad. An iron ribbon crossed Canada from sea to sea, nearly 3,000 miles of steel rail pushed across vast prairies, lofty mountain passes, twisted thru canyons and bridged thousands of streams. The spot where Andrew Onderdonk’s crew ran out of rails in Eagle Pass became, in terms of what it represented, the most important point in the entire line. Van Horne named it Craigellachie after a gathering place of that name used by the Great Clan in Scotland. Here, on November 7, 1885, a plain iron spike welded East to West. It was raining heavily, so we bypassed the Enchanted Forest where you can discover over 350 handcrafted figurines in amongst 800 year old cedars. It looked like something we’d like to view, but unfortunately the rain was too heavy and since everything was outdoors, we decided to file it away as some place to visit in the future. We also stopped by Three Valley Gap Heritage Ghost Town, and dodging mud puddles and big rain drops, we looked around briefly. Also a place to put into our files for another trip. We did manage to get a picture of George next to the steam tractor. The 1915 – 65 horsepower steam tractor is the landmark of the Three Valley Motel. It was in continuous use til 1959 and was considered to be in the best condition of any tractor of its period in Western Canada. It is run for a few days every year to keep it in working order.

As we drove along thru British Columbia we were in awe of the beautiful snow-capped mountains and all the lush greenery and forests. We also noticed the avalanche tunnels which had been constructed across the roads to protect the cars from being buried when large tundras of snow slid down the mountainside. It is truly a beautiful province!

We thank Al and Betty, their family, and Stan and Lorraine for the great time we have had in British Columbia. Now we will head over to Alberta to see the beautiful landscape there. So stay with us and read about Part II of Crossing Canada! Til we get to see each of you again, stay well and happy.

Chimacum, Part II

Our time in Chimacum is getting shorter and we have less than a week before we start our long trip thru Canada, New England, down the east coast and over to Texas. We decided not to do any landscaping on our lot here at this time as we will probably be gone for at least a year. We did get involved with the park though from working on the Landscaping Committee on Thursdays to learning to play new games and attending some very delicious meals such as the one given for Memorial Day complete with flag decorations on all the tables. One of the things we like about this spot is that we are living with folks who are either doing what we are doing or have already done what we are doing. Though many of them are in their 70’s and 80’s, they maintain an active lifestyle. The clubhouse is open at all times and consists of a crafts room, workout room, library, laundry, and game room in addition to the central meeting hall and kitchen most chefs would die for. Everyday there are games such as Ponytail Canasta, Mexican Train, Bridge, Poker, Cribbage, etc. that you can participate in. There are also classes such as a beading, Mah Jong, and computer. If none of those meet your fancy, you can work puzzles, read in the library or just sit in an easy chair by the fireplace. George and I decided to learn Mah Jong which is a game that originated in the Far East and is played with a set of 144 basic tiles. We had learned it when we were here six years ago but since we hadn’t played it for a while, we had forgotten how to do it. We had weekly classes of two hours and then weekly playing games of four hours. Many of the folks here are experts at the game so you learn a lot when playing with them.

Anyway, as you can see, we’ve been very busy with things here at the park. In addition, to the structured things, we are always meeting wonderful people and making good friends, such as our neighbors, Jaci and Don who patiently taught us cribbage. One of our friends from our previous visit here was Irene Greening. She had, at one time, owned a Westie named Nugget and she adopted McKenzie from the start. She would come by and take McKenzie for drives, for romps at the Fort with the baby goats and to her trailer, especially if we were going somewhere that we could not take McKenzie with us. She was a lifesaver for us and McKenzie and it got to the point that each time we walked down the road, McKenzie would start pulling to go towards Irene’s home. I know McKenzie, as well as us, are really going to miss her when we take off for our trip.

Martha and Red, George’s sister and brother-in-law flew out to visit with us in early May. Unfortunately, the weather was not great while they were here. It was in the low 50’s, drizzly and foggy, but we still had a good time. They stayed at a hotel in Port Townsend on the waterfront and we drove around looking at the various scenic places within 100 miles of Chimacum. We ate dinner at the John Wayne Marina and breakfast at the Blue Moose, which has very “colorful” patrons. On our trip to show them Sequim, we drove by an area that has many gnomes carved into the trees, fences, and buildings. After Sequim, we drove over to Lake Crescent Lodge. Unfortunately, we were a week too early to be able to go inside the Lodge, but we did get to look at it and the beautiful view of the lake (too bad it was so foggy) but at least they were able to see the deep blue water of the lake. The day they left was very cool and sunny and as they were driving back to Seatac to catch the plane, they were able to see some of the beautiful landscape and the gorgeous flowering shrubs.

A day excursion took George, Brenda, John and me over to Pouslbo which is often called “Little Norway” and is nestled along the quiet shores of Liberty Bay. Here you can experience breathtaking vistas of the Olympic Mountains, Scandinavian hospitality and old world charm. We discovered unique specialty shops and the world-famous bakery, Sluy’s, which is the home of the famous Poulsbo bread and even more delicious pastries. Naturally, we had to sample some of them. The first course was so good, we had to stop by before we left to take home some scones. After a day of shopping, we drove over to Silverdale to eat some halibut and chips at the Silver City Brewery. George tried the Ridgetop Red Amber Ale and I had the Fat Scotch Ale, brewed on site. They also brew their own Root Beer which is absolutely fabulous for those days when you want to be able to walk out of the brewery instead of stumbling out!

On another day, we all decided to take a trip to the Olympic National Park to hike up to Sol duc Falls. It was in the low 50’s when we arrived and got steadily cooler as we walked thru the forest and up to the falls. There was still snow on the ground in places and George and Brenda had a great time having a snowball fight while John and I took pictures. The falls were running fast and there was so much moss on the trees that they looked as if they were covered in green velvet. After spending several hours there, we decided to drive back to Lake Crescent Lodge and eat a late lunch. Since we had missed eating there with Martha and Red, we thought we’d try it this time. Unfortunately, it was not to be! We got there at 2:30 and they quit serving at 2:00. So we just looked around and ended up back at Sequim for lunch. We have so enjoyed our time with Brenda and John, playing games and just wandering around. We weren’t able to see them this past winter as they didn’t get a chance to come to the desert for the winter. We’re hoping that we can all meet in Texas sometime next winter and they can teach us to do rockhounding.

Though our time has been short, we have truly enjoyed every minute that we have spent here. We will miss all our friends as we head out to do our next trip. The diesel prices are killers up here right now (currently $5.04/gallon), but we still want to take our planned trip. We’re not getting any younger and we want to go while we can still enjoy it and won’t feel intimidated about pulling a large rig. If the prices continue to rise, we may have to take much shorter trips in the future and sit for longer in one spot. We will re-evaluate after this year. Our plans are to spend approximately 3 months going across Canada to the Maritime Provinces. Hopefully we’ll be in the New England states in time for the changing of the colors. While we are in Canada we will not have the Broadband card for the computer as we are putting it on “vacation”, while we are there, but we will continue to try to find Wifi spots in order to keep you updated on what we are doing and where we are going. Hope you will continue to travel along with us and enjoy all the sites and experiences that we can share with you. Love and hugs to everyone!!

Our Very Own Piece of Heaven - Chimacum, Washington

Hello once again to all our friends and family. Now that it is about time for us to leave our “home” in Chimacum, Washington and begin another adventure, I figured I’d better get all of you caught up with the blog.

We arrived in Chimacum, which is on the Olympic Pennisula, on March 27th and had planned on spending a couple of months here. On the morning of the 27th, we left Oregon in the pouring rain. As we traveled closer to Washington, the weather changed to sunny, then to cloudy and finally to snow! This was McKenzie’s first experience with that wet, white stuff and she wasn’t sure what to do with it. She wanted to bury her nose in it and push it around. Once her nose and toes got cold, she was ready to head back to the truck.

We pulled onto our site and after a brief few days of rest, we began cleaning out the trailer and truck and deciding what could be left here in the storage building. Once we got everything out that we wanted to leave, we were amazed that we had had any room at all in the trailer. The park looked as beautiful as ever with all the tulips, natural rhodies, and pansies in bloom. Several of the folks who live here several months out of the year or year round, have decided to put “park models” on their lots. They still cannot be over 400 square feet, but many of the folks feel this is a better solution for their way of life. The main road is lined with cherry trees that blossom out in mid May.

During the month of April, it snowed 4 times – usually only a small amount that did not stick to the ground, but on one occasion, we had huge, fluffy snow flakes that came down for about 4 hours and it was truly beautiful to see all the snow in the trees. This past spring has been a very cold and damp spring, not what we had experienced six years ago when we were here as Assistant Managers. The “dry rain” was so soft and gentle that it did not keep us from doing anything that we wanted to do outdoors – nothing like the downpours we have in Texas!!

We spent time with our friends, Brenda and John Haworth who live in Sequim and also are fellow RVers. It was always fun to go to their place and see the wildlife that comes around, raccoons come right up to the porch and the deer are not shy either as they love to munch on Brenda’s flowers and shrubs. Sequim is the lavender capital of North America and has the Olympic Mountains at its back and the Strait of Juan de Fuca in its face. It is located about 23 miles from our park and is a large enough town to have most of the stores and necessities one needs. In May, the mountains were still wearing a lot of snow.

One of our day excursions with Brenda and John was over to Keyport, Washington to visit the Naval Undersea Museum. They had some very interesting displays featuring the history of undersea warfare and exploration. It is an official Navy museum and exhibits torpedos, submarine technology and diving technology. Sub Group 9 commands all the Trident submarines in the Pacific Ocean. The Naval Base Kitsap is the only base for Tridents on the U.S. west coast. Nine Tridents have their homeport at Bangor on the Hood Canal. The Tridents are always on patrol somewhere in the world’s oceans. No one ashore and only a few crew members know where the boat is for security measures. Each Trident has two complete crews – a Blue crew and a Gold crew. The two crews allow the submarine to stay at sea for more than 8 months each year. One crew takes the boat on patrol while the other crew remains at Bangor and conducts pre-deployment training.

An interesting exhibit was the Marine Rescue Chamber which was designed and operated to rescue sailors from sunken submarines. It had the ability to descent to 850 feet. On May 23, 1939, a McCann Rescue Chamber successfully rescued 33 crew members from the USS Squalas, trapped on the bottom at 240 feet. This event was both the first and last time the Navy rescued men from a sub using a rescue chamber.

The latest rescue vehicle is the DSRV (Deep Submarine Rescue Vehicle) which is designed to search out a nuclear submarine in distress, mate itself to the sub’s escape hatch and take up to 25 crew members at a time from a disabled sub. It is capable of diving 5,000 feet and can be transported by air, surface ship, or sub to the rescue location. The museum had a mock up of this vehicle which was built by Paramount Studios and featured in the film “Hunt for Red October”.

Another outing was to the Art Deco Light Museum in Port Townsend. The city is full of Victorian houses that have been restored. Port Townsend was the first in Washington state to establish the Main Street program, encouraging preservation of historical districts, renovation and restoration of buildings. It is one of the few cities nationwide that is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Kelly Art Deco light museum was created by a gentlemen who loved to collect lights. He soon acquired so many that he decided to create a “free museum” in the upstairs of his vintage hardware store so he could share his love of lights. In the museum are rare glimpses of lights from the years of 1928 – 1938. It is the only Art Deco Slip-Shade light museum in the world. The museum contains over 400 fixtures including hanging chandeliers, wall sconces and table lights which graced the homes of the middle and upper classes during the Great Depression. Some lights are so rare that no books have ever documented them and some became obsolete before a catalogue could be made to sell them. We especially enjoyed the vintage hardware store below the light museum as well which sold all types of handles, locks, lights, fasteners, etc.

This state is a very diverse state, having dramatic changes in scenery. Worlds collide in Washington where the sea meets the forest, the forest meets the desert and snow-capped mountains tower above all. In our area, the Olympic Pennisula, we have Indian legends, mineral hot springs, a temperate rain forest, a Victorian Seaport and four-season outdoor recreation. Forts are prolific here and you can literally run yourself ragged trying to see everything and absorb all the history. Two months will only scratch the surface, but we’ll be back here again to do more investigating. It is a wonderful place to absorb Mother Nature. Watch for our next episode of life on the peninsula.

The Magic of Redwoods

About 200 miles north of San Franciso is the small town of Garberville, CA. It was founded around the late 1800's as South Fork but was changed to Garberville in 1874, being named after the postmaster. Garberville is the gateway to the Eel River, Shelter Cove and the Lost Coast, and the 31-mile long Avenue of the Giants that winds through stands of ancient redwoods.

The Avenue of the Giants offers more than just the majesty of towering redwoods. It also passes thru several small towns that give a glimpse into the history of the timber industry. Several of these towns have been completely devastated by the Floods of 1955 and 1964 and if rebuilt, were placed on higher ground.

When we arrived in Garberville, it was foggy and drizzling rain, which we understand is pretty typical for the Spring here. Across from the RV park on Highway 101 stands the "One-Log House" which was hollowed in 1946 from a single redwood more than 2100 years old. The comfortable living quarters were made from a 40 ton tree, taking two men eight months to finish. The living, sleeping, and dining areas are completely furnished (it reminded us of the old RV's without slides). Amazingly, enough wood chips were produced from the hollowing to build a five-bedroom home.

Upon waking to a bright and sunny day, we decided to take the 31 mile drive down the Avenue of the Giants and it was certainly spectacular to look several hundred feet into the air and be in awe of the majestic beauty portrayed by these trees. The road was quiet and tranquil and built as a stagecoach and wagon road in the 1880's. It parallels Highway 101 and the Eel River. Fossil records show that redwoods grew naturally in many places across the Northern Hemisphere. Due to climatic changes and other factors, Coast Redwoods now only grow naturally in a narrow 40 mile wide and 450 mile long coastal strip from southern Oregon to southern Monterey county in California. Redwoods are taller than any other living thing. They can live over 2,000 years and withstand most fires, floods and insects. Only the greatest fires can kill mature redwoods because of their thick fire resistant bark and lack of resin. They also contain a great amount of tannin, a material that insects find particularly distasteful. Redwoods are so immense that they live in three climatic zones at once. The base of each tree is in one set of climatic conditions, the stem in another, and the crown in yet another. Redwoods need great amounts of moisture. The 65 inches/year average rainfall plus the summer fog moderate the climate. Redwoods help create their own microclimate through the transpiration of moisture from the leaves to the atmosphere. A very large redwood can release up to 500 gallons of water into the air per day.

When towns were originally built along the Avenue, it was because of farming and logging. Now they rely on the tourists. Humboldt Redwoods State Park covers over 52,000 acres, 17,000 of which are old growth coast redwood forests with trees whose average ages are 400 - 600 years.

We followed the auto tour, stopping and taking the half mile hikes back into the forest. Sunlight peeks from the clouds and foggy treetops, streaming down onto the needle packed paths. The silence is unbelievable as you hear only your steps crunching along and an occasional bird voicing its melodic chant. Founder's Grove, dedicated to the founders of the Save-the-Redwoods League, contains the 346 foot tall Founders Tree and the Dyerville Giant. The Dyerville Giant was recognized as the "Champion" Coast Redwood as certified by the American Forestry Association until it fell on March 24, 1991. Before it fell, it was at least 362 feet tall. That is 200 feet taller than Niagara Falls or comparable to a 30-story building. It is also 17 feet in diameter and 52 feet in circumference. It probably weighs over 1,000,000 pounds. The events that caused the Giant to fall are common in ancient redwood forests. During the rainy season the soil became saturated with water. Another large tree fell one week earlier, hitting a second tree causing it to lean. A week later the leaning tree fell, striking the Dyerville Giant, causing it to fall. No one actually saw the Giant fall, but a park neighbor, who lives a mile away, reported hearing a large crash and thought it was a train wreck! A tree over 50 feet away had mud splattered 15 feet up its trunk from the impact of the Giant hitting the ground. Unless fire consumes it, the Dyerville Giant will continue to lie on the forest floor for many hundreds of years, fulfilling an important role in the healthy life of an ancient forest. As the decay process gains a hold on the Giant, it will become the host, home and food source to over 4,000 kinds of plants and animals that will live on or in it. Even in repose, however, the tree is an impressive sight.

Among one of our stops was the Humboldt Redwoods State Park Visitor's Center. Inside were exhibits that offered a "hands-on" experience for children, historical and cultural videos and realistic displays of the fish and animals in their forest environment. Inside the center resides a curious vehicle which may just have been the original RV! In 1917, Charles Kellogg, an American naturalist and lecturer, hoisted a six ton hollowed-out giant redwood log onto the chassis of a Nash Quad, a large truck the Nash Company built for the military in World War I, one of the very first 4 x 4 vehicles. Kellogg used an axe and an adz to hollow out the log, and fashion it into a cabin on wheels. Inside the log, he built a complete home, with a kitchenette, lockers, beds, dining table, dresser, electric lights, running water and a guest room. And this was over 90 years ago! The log is completely solid; the walls, ceiling and floors are all one piece. To help preserve it, Kellog hand-rubbed 12 pounds of beeswax into the wood. Kellogg first toured the United States in his Travel-Log to sell liberty bonds for the war effort. After the war, Kellogg, also known for his surreal ability to imitate bird calls, traveled the states to promote preserving California's giant trees. He crossed the country four times in his lumbering motorhome!

A final stop was the Immortal Tree, one of the most durable trees in history. The Immortal Tree is over 950 years old and has experienced more trials and tribulations than any single tree should. It has been a victim of lightning strikes, fires, floods and the logger's ax. Yet it still stands and continues to grow heartily. Looking up, you can see a wooden fish attached to the trunk where the color of the bark changes. This indicates the high water mark when the area flooded in 1964. There's also part of an ax stuck in the tree where loggers tried to cut it down, but eventually gave up when the tree would not give way. Several times, the Immortal tree has been hit by lightning. The evidence of these strikes is on its scarred trunk. During its lifetime, through many forest fires, somehow this magical tree never burned down! The Immortal Tree is considered a truly exceptional specimen.

While sitting in the forest, surrounded by these huge awe-inspiring giants, we are reminded of the magical qualities imparted. Burls on the trees become faces, rabbits, Roman soldiers, or other imaginations of our minds. The more we study these forests, the more we realize we are just beginning to understand a small part of their dynamics. The simple act of walking thru an undisturbed area will change it and we need to make sure that we preserve all this beauty for our children and grandchildren so they are provided a glimpse into the past and a look into one of the greatest forests on earth!

Santa Rosa, California

After washing the trailer, we headed up Route 1, leaving behind the San Francisco RV Resort and heading toward Santa Rosa. We were a bit concerned with driving the truck and trailer thru the General Douglas McArthur Tunnel but made it just fine. The view of the San Francisco Bay as we drove across the Golden Gate Bridge was spectacular.

About 70 miles up the road we stopped at a lovely city by the name of Santa Rosa. which is centrally located in Sonoma Country. We were close to wineries, the coast and the Russian River.
The California Welcome Center is located in the historic Railroad Square train station. When you walk into the station, you will find yourself transported back in time. Rebuilt quickly after the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake (which did more damage in Santa Rosa than San Francisco) Railroad Square now is made up of specialty shops and restaurants.

One of the most interesting things we did while in Santa Rosa, was to visit the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center. As you may remember, Mr. Schulz was the illustrator who drew the Peanuts cartoons for the papers. Schulz, who was nicknamed "Sparky"at an early age by an uncle, picked this spot for his museum because his life was centered around this area. He built a small restaurant named the "Warm Puppy", where he had breakfast every morning and lunch every afternoon. A table was reserved for his use alone and today still stands there as a tribute.

In 1969, he built the Redwood Empire Ice Arena so children could skate all year long.

For those of us who grew up with Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock, Peppermint Patti, Schroeder, Linus, Lucy and Pig Pen, just to name a few of the more renown characters, every day was a new adventure. Here's a chronology of the Peanuts comic strip.

On October 2, the Peanuts comic strip was first published in 7 U.S. newspapers, introducing Charlie Brown, Patty and Shermy. During the same year, a little dog named Snoopy appears. Snoopy was actually created as a beagle because Schulz had a beagle named Spike. In 1951, Shroeder was introduced and in 1952 Lucy and Linus made their debut. The first Sunday comic strip was published in this year also. In 1954, Pigpen is introduced and in 1958, Snoopy abandons his four-pawed pose and begins walking on two feet. Sally debuts in the strip in 1959 and in 1969, Woodstock flutters in while Snoopy first appears as the "Flying Ace" , flying in his Sopwith Camel plane in the first Red Baron episode.

Peppermint Patty was introduced in 1966 and in 1969, Franklin was first intoduced into the strip. 1971 dawns with two new characters, Joe Cool and Marcie and in 1973 "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" wins an Emmy Award. "You're a Good Sport Charlie Brown" earns an Emmy Award in 1975 while "Life is a Circus, Charlie Brown" earns one in 1980. In 1984, the Guinness Book of Records names Peanuts the world's most popular comic strip.

George Schulz warmed up with pencil sketches on notebook paper before he inked a comic strip. Once he had his sketches perfected, he would wad the pencil sketches up and throw them in his wastebasket and then begin the finalized comic strip. His secretary pulled the penciled sketches out of the wastebasket each evening, took them home and ironed them flat - holding them for posterity. It usually took Schulz one hour to create a daily strip. Many examples of the final strips as well as the sketches can be seen in the museum. As you walk into the museum, on the left side you will see an original three-dimensional sculpture constructed with 43 layers of maple veneer which measures 25 feet long, 9.5 feet high , 10.5 inches deep and weighs 7,000 pounds. The title of the work is "Morphing Snoopy" and it emphasizes Snoopy's evolution from the 1950's when the inspiration for Snoopy came from Schulz's childhood pet, Spike, to the 1990's.

Another unusual piece is a mural on the back wall which is composed of 3,588 ceramic tiles,or about ten years worth of daily comic strips. The artist, Otani, hand selected each strip to compose a secondary scene of Lucy holding a football for Charlie Brown.

In 1981, Schulz had a quadruple heart bypass and in 1998 began planning for this museum. He announced his retirement due to health reasons on December 14, 1999 and his last daily comic strip was on January 1, 2000 with the final Sunday comic strip being shown on February 13, 2000. Schulz died on February 17, 2000.

Many of us remember avidly reading these comic strips and laughing at the antics that Schulz created for us. It helps us to remember a more gentler and easy going time and a time when simple things made us laugh. Schulz was truly brilliant and we miss him greatly.