June 26-27, 1982
One of our most cherished memories is a trip we made to Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend. The fort is on Point Wilson, an area discovered by Captain George Vancouver in 1792. The first fort, constructed in 1855, was named Fort Wilson. It’s mission was to protect Port Townsend from the Indians. The fort was abandoned in 1856, and remained so until the 1900s when it became part of the harbor defense system for Puget Sound.
Fort Worden, along with the heavy batteries of Fort Flagler and Fort Casey, guarded the nautical entrance to Puget Sound to prevent a hostile fleet from reaching such targets as the Bremerton Naval Yard and the cities of Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett. The fort was named in honor of Admiral John L. Worden, the commander of the ironclad Monitor in the Civil War battle with the Confederate ship Merrimac.
Fort Worden is the only army installation named for a naval commander.
In modern popular culture, the fort is known as the locale for some of the scenes from the movie An Officer and A Gentleman (Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett Jr).
Battery Kinzie (1912-1944) was part of the harbor defense of Puget Sound.
But it’s not that we walked in Richard Gere’s footsteps that brings a smile to our lips when we think of our weekend getaway. At the time, we weren’t even aware of that little tidbit. Rather, it’s that we camped in our car!
We pulled into a campsite, surrounded by camping trailers of varying sizes, and proceeded to set up camp. We hung sheets inside the car for privacy; built a campfire; grilled hot dogs for dinner; and even made scrambled eggs for breakfast the next morning. Smaller in stature, I slept on the front seat; Mui had the more spacious back seat as his sleeping quarters.
Welcome to our campsite!
Until our visit to the park, we’d never seen a beach littered with driftwood.
Taking a stroll to the lighthouse.
Wilson Point Lighthouse (built in 1870).
Enjoying a cold brew on the pier.
How do you like our tabletop grill?
Would we repeat the experience now that we are older and wiser? Definitely; but we’d do it in a bit more comfort than we did back then.
2 comments:
How times do change, or should I say how we change throughout the years; those years were probably the best. Mom
Fun to read a sweet blast from the past.
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