Talking Story Archives - Page 84 of 114

Prince Arthur’s lament

Posted by Ken Campbell October 26, 2009 0 Comment 1055 views

It was a dark and stormy night. (Stories that begin in this manner rarely end well.) On January 2nd, 1903, a winter gale was raging along the Olympic coast, roiling the waters and obscuring the vision of the crew on board the three-masted Norwegian vessel, the “Prince Arthur.” At some point, Captain Hans Markusson saw […]

Turned to stone

Posted by Ken Campbell October 23, 2009 1 Comment 1122 views

One other thing about Sekiu. There’s a rock formation along the shore known as the Three Sisters. Apparently, according to a native legend I have yet to track down, three sisters from the village that once stood here were turned into pillars of stone for… I don’t know, but it must have been something awful. […]

Quiet Waters

Posted by Ken Campbell October 22, 2009 0 Comment 1208 views

I’ve been looking over the route for next summer’s trip around the peninsula, and as my eyes trace the shoreline, I can’t help but pause at a few places along the way. More than a few, actually. I’ve spent enough time out there now to have formed a connection with some spots; memories of times […]

The Spirit is willing, but…

Posted by Ken Campbell October 20, 2009 0 Comment 989 views

My Air Force career, such as it was, ended a couple of years shy of retirement. I was medically discharged because of my back, which had been injured a number of times during the course of 17-plus years of flying. It got to the point that I could no longer pass a flight physical due […]

Watching the river flow

Posted by Ken Campbell October 18, 2009 0 Comment 1042 views

Not much rain today, at least not yet. That’s got to be good news for those who live in the Skokomish basin, what with the flood warnings that were issued on Saturday. This break in precipitation should drop the river level back down to something reasonable. It just seems like a matter of time though, […]

Preachers

Posted by Ken Campbell October 17, 2009 1 Comment 1124 views

I ran into someone yesterday who I had not seen for a while. Not a friend exactly… more of an acquaintance, a fellow paddleboarder, who wanted to know if I’d been getting more people into the sport, if I’d been preaching the joys of SUP and recruiting new converts. He was insistent, going on and […]

Carpe now

Posted by Ken Campbell October 15, 2009 0 Comment 1187 views

My morning paddle ritual has been going through some changes. I used to spend the winter predawn hour kayaking across Commencement Bay and now it finds me on a paddleboard, gliding on the silky waters of the Foss, in downtown Tacoma. (I am sure the kayaking mornings are coming back soon… as the weather gets […]

See you next year

Posted by Ken Campbell October 14, 2009 0 Comment 1016 views

The Puget Sound Challenge held its official closing ceremony and barbeque at the waterfront park in the little town of Allyn last Saturday. I tried to count the paddlers as they came in below the Allyn dock, but there was no way to keep an accurate tally, at least not once I got past 40. […]

Dotted lines

Posted by Ken Campbell October 14, 2009 0 Comment 1003 views

I like it when the pavement turns to gravel. Makes me think that something worthwhile is probably just around the next bend.

Wood

Posted by Ken Campbell October 12, 2009 0 Comment 1044 views

It wouldn’t be a National Forest without the wood. It’s worth remembering, in our headlong rush to be productive and efficient (two of the more odious yardsticks by which we might measure ourselves), that it is dangerous to destroy what we cannot create. I was sitting by the campfire last night after the boy had […]