Pacific Northwest Tour Bingo -- Twelfth numbers posted!

[rcperryls]

None today, but very interesting about the tunnels. Reminds me of the underground cities that you find in some of the older cities I wouldn't be surprised to run into a ghost or two in those tunnels. They look appropriately creepy. Mountains are beautiful.
Still at 6/10

Carole

[Lizzieh]

Loving your photos. That picture of a car driving through a giant redwood was in a text book at school way back in junior school and it made a huge impressions on me. Over the years I have described it to many people including my children so it's lovely to see it again.
Oh and I've got 5/10

[cairee]

this weekend brings me to 5/10
been to the redwood forest with my family(6 of us)we picked a random tree and tried to 'hug' it by joining hands all the way around, we couldnt reach! those trees are truely massive!

[perftangel]

I was on a mini-vaca so I didn't get to check the forum until today, and I'm happy to report I'm at 8/10! Way better than the last one where I got 4 before someone won! Anyways, really enjoying the pictures and the information. I love pictures.

[Ketta]

I'm sorry that I didn't post numbers yesterday--I had an extremely long day at work, and today I have jury duty (ugh). Depending on when that finishes, I'll either post some numbers this afternoon or late tonight.

[bookknurd]

Up to 7/10 now. I almost completely forgot about the game!

[Ketta]

Yay for me, not getting selected for jury duty!

Here are today's picks: 11 and 24

11. The Yakima Valley

Located just east of the Cascades, the Yakima Valley exemplifies the major contrast in climates on the east and west sides of the Cascades. Very hot and dry and in the summer, and bitterly cold and dry winters are typical. This region's original habitat of extensive wetlands has been all but destroyed by many factors, all influenced by humans. Stripping the lower Cascades of most the timber in the low-lying hills and slopes, diverting wetlands' water into canals for farming, cultivating the land for farming, and grazing cattle and sheep have all contributed to the current desert-like area.

Many outlying areas beyond the city of Yakima, mainly to the west, are reservation lands. That's where I grew up, in a tiny town called White Swan. Yakama (how the tribal name was originally spelled) by proxy, as my grandfather is a Native who adopted my mother and her siblings, and my stepfather is also Yakama, I was able to go places and do things most other 'white' kids weren't. It was definitely an interesting childhood.

The region is great farmland, and when you hear about Washington apples, most of them come from the Yakima Valley. Many varieties of apples, pears, peaches, cherries, and other fruits are grown in expansive orchards. Mint, tons of vegetables, wheat, barley, hay, corn, and hops are also grown, and I'm sure I've forgotten some crops! Even certain types of floral-grade flowers are grown there, like baby's breath.

Because of the area being great farmland, thousands of migrant workers travel and live in the Yakima Valley, primarily from Mexico. This high number of undocumented people, combined with several other factors like the proximity of Reservation land, high corruption, and the lowering productivity for farmers and orchardists by the land has contributed to an incredibly high crime rate. Last year, it was ranked 17th in the nation, and Yakima is only a city of about 70,000 people. The area is slowly dying, and has become extremely depressed. The gap between the rich and poor is huge.

To end on a good note, in February or March there is a fantastic event you can take part of, the President's Day weekend Wine and Chocolates tour. Grapes are grown here as well as in California, and wine culture is one thing that is growing in the Yakima Valley. I highly recommend it!

A shot from one of the big vineyards:



And a shot of a hop field just about to start taking off (my family always told newcomers to the area that this is where telephone poles are grown...you'd be amazed at how many people believed us!):



24. Victoria, BC

Victoria, the capitol of British Columbia, is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. A very popular tourist spot, ferries traverse the Straight and the Pugest Sound daily between Seatlle and smaller cities like Port Angeles. I haven't been there since I was about 11 years old, but I remember visiting places like huge gardens, doing lots of shopping, and every time I went with my family, we hit the wax museum. My aunts, only 2 and 4 years older than me, once made me go ask a man what time it was while he was reading a paper. He wouldn't answer me, and I finally realized what was wrong when my aunts were giggling...being we were in the wax museum at the time...he was made from wax. I think the creepiest display there was either Snow White or Sleeping Beauty, as they made her chest move while she slept.

The climate in Victoria is similar to many places in the Northwest, west of the Cascades...wet! But to me, it always seemed cleaner and happier there than places I saw in the US. The Victoria you visit when you get off the ferry is a part of the 'real' Victoria, BC, consisting of about 80,000 people while the true capitol Victoria is well over 300,000. It's the 15th largest city in Canada.

I know once I visit again, I'll have to have a passport (something I've never had)--back in 'the day', you only needed your state-issued ID, and even then it was no biggie if you forgot it. Amazing how times change.

This is a view from one of the big Gardens you can see there, this one is very near the ferry dock that houses the ferry from Port Angeles:

[bookknurd]

8/10! So close!

[wwdiva]

2 more today! That's 5/10 now

Yakima Valley is the area my Mom was born. All I remember from my visits there was how incredibly hot it was. Makes me drip just thinking of it.

And Victoria, ahhhhh! If you love flowers, this is the place.
Ketta, much there is the same as when you visited as a child and yet it has also grown into an energetic region with so much to do.

Thank you again Ketta. I hope others are having as much fun with this as I am! I appreciate all your great photos and information.
Cheers

[Fizzbw]

5/10 for me still.....

Great Info and well done on not getting jury duty!!!

Niki xxx

[socialsue]

Got two more. Now 4/10 for me.

socialsue

[Squirrel]

None for me out of the today or the last one boo hoo. Still at 5/10. Lovely pics though and most interesting reading. Love the pic of the Yakima Valley - those hills look beautiful.

[rcperryls]

One more for me with the Valley! That makes it 7/10. There are a few now with 8 so Bingo is not far away. Good luck to those of you who are real close now!

Carole

[LadyS]

8/10 for me! I had even forgotten to check yesterday since I wasn't much on the computer because of my back.

[perftangel]

Ah yes, I remember those days when you didn't need a passport. My husband and I went up in January this year and I swear it's super easy to go to Canada but getting back is always a hassle!

Still at 8/10!

[Ketta]

Today's picks are numbers 16 and 19!

16. Crater Lake

This is a place I've never visited but hope to in the near future. Located in south-central Oregon, Crater Lake fills the caldera formed by Mount Mazama, which collapsed over 7,500 years ago. Noted for it's crystal clear water that glows a wonderful blue color, it's the main attraction at Crater Lake National Park (go figure). Interestingly, no rivers or other waterways flow in or out of Crater Lake, and evaporated water is compensated for fairly evenly--according to Wikipedia, the entirety of the lake is replaced every 250 years. It's the deepest lake in the US and the seventh deepest in the world.



19. Puget Sound

Pronounced 'pew-jet', this region of Washington State is quite unique. Due to many geological factors, including the movement of continental plates (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc) and the repeated advance and retreat of massive ice sheets, the Puget Sound is a complicated estuary system of marine waterways and basins, which are all interconnected. The waters are part of the Salish Sea and connect to the Pacific Ocean by way of the Straight of Juan de Fuca.

The latest advancement and retreat of glacial ice occurred around 15,000 years ago; each time this occurs, large amounts of the land beneath is scraped and scoured. The latest ice sheet was about 3,000 feet thick and had a huge impact on the area, and it's estimated that were a similar event to occur again, the Puget Sound would no longer exist--instead, it would likely deepen the peninsula of Washington (the 'handle' area) and the Salish Sea would extend as far south as Chehalis.

I have traveled across the Sound countless times, both by bridge (the Tacoma Narrows bridge and the Hood Canal bridge) and by ferry. Driving across is faster, but taking the ferry is more enjoyable, for sure. In the open areas of the Puget Sound, it's not too uncommon to see dolphins or porpoises, and very rarely, orca.

The map below makes it easy to image just how much of an impact those massive ice sheets were:

[socialsue]

Got one.... I am now up to 5/10

socialsue

[Squirrel]

Crater Lake sure is beautiful and has given me another one so I am now 6/10.

Very interesting about both of them. I have often heard of Puget Sound but knew little about it - now I know a few more things. Thank you.

to those who are close now. We should have Bingo very soon.

[LadyS]

More great info and pics!! 9/10 for me, so close!

[wwdiva]

Nothing today for me but at the risk of sounding cliche, I feel like a winner already with reading/seeing all this great information.
Good luck to all in the home stretch.
Cheers