Event Write-Up

The April RVW rally was actually in May. However, about one-third of the group arrived on Thursday, April 30, so it would be okay to call it the April rally. Thanks early-birds!

In the end we had 46 people including a couple of day trippers, a park model renter, and 27 rigs. We welcomed several visitors we hope will become members.

Thursday and Friday were warm and sunny. Well, at least warmer than it has been. Friday night the clouds rolled in, the skies opened, and it poured. We awoke Saturday to a park filled with puddles and heavy gray skies. Rain and wind continued off and on for the rest of Saturday. By Saturday night the moon and a few stars appeared so that Sunday dawned sunny though still partly cloudy. Washington weather, especially on the coast, is always a bit unpredictable.So for Cascadia RVing Women it was a normal weekend with a bit of delightful weather.

Thursday afternoon one of our members had an asthma attack that necessitated our calling 911. She was taken to the hospital and will be OK. However, this precipitated discussion of the importance of having personal health and emergency contact information in our rigs where others can find it. The best place to stash it seems to be in the freezer in a plastic bag or container. We have recreated the questionnaire on the last page of the new RVW national directory for you to use. Either fill it out or use it as a guide to provide appropriate information about yourself and your pets.

American Sunset RV & Tent Resort is right on the edge of Westport, Washington, a charming little fishing/tourist village. The park management were gracious hosts contributing generously to our stash of prizes. The prizes were distributed Saturday evening after dinner in an Easter egg hunt. We know Easter was a few weeks ago but the Easter bunny had some eggs left and knew we would enjoy the hunt. The Bunny hid the eggs in the Club House which was big enough to have lots of hiding places for 100 plastic eggs filled with goodies including candy and Marne Dollars. The Marne dollars will be redeemable at our auction during Memorial Day Weekend. Ten of the eggs were numbered to determine the lucky prize winners.

Saturday, eleven intrepid campers went whale watching undaunted by wind and rain and encouraged by the fact that most of us had already paid for the trip. Captain Richard “Wink”Winkleman and deckhand Sonia gave us quite a ride. Westport is on a protected bay at the mouth of the Chehalis River. Crossing the bar into the open ocean is usually rough. On Saturday it just got rougher as we left the bay so we turned around and hightailed it back into the protection of the bay. We then motored up river where we encountered two or three whales, or at least their spouts. They were hanging out near shore in about 8 feet of water so our boat couldn’t get close to them. We hung around to watch them spout several times then turned back to the dock. We also saw seals plus any number of birds including gulls, cormorants and loons. No one got seasick and no one went overboard despite a couple of tumbles. We all got a bit wet from sea spray and rain. And . . . we all had a great time.

While we were whale watching, another group attended the Ocosta Oyster Feed at the Ocosta Community Center a few miles back up the road. Reports are that the oysters were fantastic and fresh, of course. The people were very welcoming. Perhaps if we are there again on the Oyster Festival Weekend we should all go.

The rest of the weekend was spent doing what we do best – talking and eating. Friday evening’s appetizer potluck featured half a smoked salmon that was delicious on crackers as well as a wide range of other choices. Saturday’s seafood potluck included many delicious dishes from chilled shrimp to crab salad and barbequed salmon.

Pat Lebbert, center, contemplates which piece to play
in a board game called Carcasonne that Marne and
Elaine brought back from Holland earlier this year.

Eleven Cascadians bundled up and went on a whale
watching tour Saturday morning.

Kathy Clixby sported a fun crab hat in keeping with
Saturday's seafood-themed potluck.

Vicky Para shows off her collection of eggs during the
Saturday evening Easter egg hunt.

Val West of the Gray's Harbor PAWS Animal Shelter appreciated the generous donations provided by Cascadia.

Each evening after dinner and clean-up, the games came out and competition continued well into the evening. Meanwhile, Friday evening a couple of groups built fires in the barrels provided. I didn’t hear any singing but I did hear seals barking and crickets chirping as well as our voices sharing RVing tales.

A big thank-you to:

• Weekend Captains and breakfast cooks Marcia Anderson and Leanna Davis.
• “Hi There” Girls Christine Taylor and Lori Youngs.
• “Bandana Divas” Alice Burke, Diane Milnor, Nancy Gerou and Kathy Clixby.

See you in Mossyrock May 22-25th!

Jan Secor