Heading west on US 2 out of Spokane, you enter farming country with gentle rolling hills. This is part of the Great Northern, the northernmost highway crossing the USA. A section go 2 in the Great Lakes region diverts into Ontario and Quebec and re-enters New England.
Airway Heights
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| A 1957-1965 Jeep FC-150 “Forward Control” pickup truck and less unusual Chevrolet van, Airway Heights |
It is a treat (if you like this type of arcana) to see one of these old Jeep FC-150 trucks. This one is ready for snow duty.
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| Somewhat rough strip shopping building, West Sunset Highway (Rte 2), Airway Heights (50 ƒ/1.4 SMC Takumar lens) |
Deep Creek
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| Traditional barn, Rte 2, Deep Creek, Washington (35mm ƒ/3.5 Super-Takumar lens) |
Sherman
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| Barn, Sherman Road, Sherman |
I like to look for old fashioned wood barns. Many new ones are steel sheds with less charm than these true wood classics. Sherman is the site of a ghost town, but other than a pretty and well-maintained church, I did not find much to record.
Wilbur
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| Flower Bar of Wilbur (35mm f/3.5 Super-Takumar lens) |
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| Abandoned farm, Rte US 2, Wilbur (35mm ƒ/3.5 Super-Takumar lens) |
It is sad to see these old homesteads left to decay. Are the families happier where they live now?
Govan
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| Govan schoolhouse (1905 or 1906) |
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| Farmhouse, Govan |
Govan is another so-called "ghost town." The town started as railway station on the Central Washington Railway in 1889. It expanded when large local deposits of sand became useful to the railroad. Several murders made the town somewhat interesting, but in 1927, a fire wiped out most of the business district. Today, there is not much to see.
From Govan, I turned south on Kinder Road and drove lonely rural highways through gorgeous geologic terrain en route to Richland. This is the geological wonderland known as the
Channeled Scablands. They were shaped by the greatest flood ever documented, when Glacial Lake Missoula burst through an ice dam and drained rapidly, scouring the land west and south of the former lake.
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| Scablands of eastern Washington (From the US Geological Survey) |
I want to return to this fascinating topography and explore in more leisure. This sounds like another road trip!
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| Store, Marlin, Washington (35mm ƒ/3.5 Super-Takumar lens) |
Marlin was tiny. I wonder how it got the name of a big game fish?
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| Former motel, Warden (135mm ƒ/3.5 SMC Takumar lens, polarizer) |
Finally, approaching Richland, I encountered more traffic, farm warehouses, and commercial activity.
My next goal on this trip: the Manhattan Project National Historical Site at the Hanford Reach. Stand by.
4 comments:
I enjoyed this trip to a very different area! That abandoned farmhouse site is hauntingly beautiful. I will be interested to see what you discover on your return road trip!
Thanks! There are many more lonely and forgotten farmhouses in eastern Washington. So much to explore!
Kodachromeguy
Living for a couple years in Cheney I was familiar with the northern portion of the channeled scablands, but I did not realize the flood had reached so far south. I recall traveling many times as a child to Pasco near Richland to visit relatives of my setpfather. The main thing I recall about the area was the unspoken judgment that nobody in their right mind would choose that as a place to live. I can't say I recall much good or bad about the place other than that it seemed hot and dry compared to Seattle.Giving some thought to the issue of how my stepfather's large family ended up in Pasco I recalled that his father was an engineer working for a time in concrete testing, which leads me to consider the possibility that Pasco's nearness to Hanford may have been what brought the family to the scabliands.
Interesting memories. It's likely that he did work at Hanford. Wait for the next update to my E Washington road trip.
Kodachromeguy
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