Blaine took this video last week and it’s so beautiful!  It is whale-watching season and we’ve had some great days to look for the migrating gray whales, heading north to Alaska!   When you come stay at Boreas Inn, we will set you up to eat dinner at Blaine and Cheri Walker’s 42nd Street Cafe.  Unique dining, and the coziest, most romantic  Bed and Breakfast in Washington State are yours for the asking!  Come visit soon–the whales will be running up the coast for the next couple of months and the weather in the Columbia Pacific region is alternating between being warm and glorious and… not!

Seattle 110—
Originally uploaded by JohannaD

Wet Winter Plants in the Rain Forest
Event Date: Saturday, February 13, 2010

Start Time: 10 a.m. End Time: Noon Maximum: 15 people

Fee: Free to members of Friends of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge $10 per person for non-members.

Location: Willapa NWR Headquarters, 3888 State Route 101 (Hwy 101 near Milepost 24) Ilwaco, WA 98624

Event description: This is a wet winter walk in coastal temperate rain forest along Headquarters Creek at Willapa NWR Headquarters.

After a brief orientation indoors, we will walk along and over the creek, and through rain forest to look at plants that grow during the wet season. The focus will be on lichens, mosses and liverworts. We may find a few salamanders and frogs, too. This walk is less than a mile long, on a naturally surfaced trail, with moderate slopes in some sections.

This walk will not be canceled due to rain, but it will be canceled due to high wind, if winds above 40 mph arrive along the coast. If you do not receive a message or phone call canceling the walk by 7-8 a.m. on the day of the walk, then it has not been canceled.

Gear & Equipment: Rain gear, including boots, is required. Bring a hand lens or digital camera to see small plants more easily. This will be a good site to take close-up shots of many small plants.
The Friends of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge will be announcing details regarding their 3rd annual photo contest in April, 2010. The winning photos will be included in the 2011 Willapa National Wildlife Refuge calendar.

To sign up: contact Kathleen Sayce, ksayce@willapabay.org (preferred mode) or by phone, 360-665-5292. To register for this walk, you must leave an email address or phone number that you will be able to access the day of the hike, so that if the walk is canceled at the last minute, you can be contacted by 7 a.m. the morning of the walk.

Hearing the story that fun weekend in May,  guests Steve and Amy Hughes and returning guest Karen Carpenter(always with a mischievous glint in her eye)  and her daughter, Lori Anne, teamed up to prank Bill and me the next morning.  We arrived to cook breakfast and on everyone’s plate was a box of cereal.  On our cooktop was a box of Crispix.  I swear that our laughter woke everyone up that morning.  (Not a bad way to wake up!)  We have always said that on April Fools Day, we’re going to get a McDonald’s bag and fill it with goodies and serve it as a first course.  But, again, we’re just too picky about what we serve for breakfast at Boreas Inn!  The morning of the prank, I went to our house and guess what I had for breakfast!  That little box of Crispix!

The Hughes and the Carpenters Prank Susie and Bill