BRANSON
by Yvette Cardozo

I’m not sure what I expected to find in Branson, MO. I knew about its strong faith-based focus, its patriotism, and its hordes of Midwesterners.

And not much else.

What I didn’t expect was the foot-stomping fun, the quality of the shows, the sweetness of it all.

WHATCOM MARITIME HERITAGE MUSEUM by Steve Giordano and Lynn Rosen

In my 30 years of seeking out and enjoying small local museums - the ones with no money to operate but succeed on small donations and large love - the Whatcom Maritime Heritage Museum is a special find. It meets my standards of:

1) Hard to find - tucked away on the main floor of the Bellingham Cruise Terminal at 355 Harris Ave. in Fairhaven.

HOP TO IT IN CALIFORNIA'S SIERRA NEVADA FOOTHILLS
by Lee Juillerat

It took a tall tale about a jumping frog to make Angels Camp famous. In 1865, a youthful Samuel Clemens was spending several months living in a ramshackle cabin on nearby Jackass Hill. While in town at the Angel Hotel, he heard a yarn about a legendary frog. The resulting short story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras," made him and the town famous.

ALCATRAZ ISLAND
by Lynn Rosen

MILE-HIGH IDYLLWILD ELEVATES THE SENSES
by Susan Cohn

Seaplane Adventure over San Francisco Bay
by Brad Hathaway

The Birdman of Alcatraz, Al Capone, The Rock, the Native American Occupation, dangerous escapes - Alcatraz has had countless headlines, numerous books, and many movies - 12 so far - over the decades since it opened as a federal penitentiary in 1934. Lynn Rosen takes us on a trip to this iconic island in San Francisco Bay.

It’s not unusual to spot a herd of colorful deer right in the center of Idyllwild, the famously art-hearted small town in the mountains above Palm Springs. Not your ordinary deer, mind you, but 22 fabulously painted aluminum bucks, does and fawns, each decorated to reflect a part of Idyllwild’s history (the Native American legend of the spirit-demon Tahquitz) or activities (rock-climbing) or events (Jazz in the Pines).

Our flight was scheduled at a time when the tides were low on Richardson Bay - one of the sub-bays of the greater San Francisco Bay. The plane's floats sat directly on the mud, but our pilot assured us that we would slide over the slippery surface to reach deeper water for takeoff.

Review of Amber Casali's Hiking Washington's Fire Lookouts
by Steve Giordano

Who we are: For brief bios on the writers who form this Pacific Northwest collective, please click here.