Ships at Dock by Amy Ryding

Astoria, Oregon ~ Photo by Amy Ryding
I love this shot. As many times as I've been to the 17th Street dock, Amy's photo makes it look like a different place, like a a postcard from the early 1900s. Visit Amy's Long Beach Peninsula Photo blog.
Astoria, Oregon, Daily Photo is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Repairing Docks

Astoria, Oregon ~ October 9, 2012

The crane barge was busy much of the fall repairing docks at the 17th Street Pier. The building with the white roof is the Maritime Museum. The building in front with the round hole is the office of Columbia River Bar Pilots.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Buoys at the Entrance

June 4, 2010

Although at first glance, they may look like bombs, they are not. Buoys 92 and 17 mark the entrance to the parking lot at the 17th Street Docks next to the Maritime Museum. The blacktop on the left leads in from Marine Drive, and the blacktop on the right serves as parking for cars, tour buses, and a venue for the occasional fair. The main Maritime Museum parking lot is behind and to the right. The River Walk passes through this area, and it's always a pleasant place to go because of the interesting things on the water, the docks, the friendly people walking, biking and sightseeing, and interesting decor such as the buoys. It's also one of the stops for the Riverfront Trolley. I wonder what it took to get Buoy 17 for the 17th Street location?

In the background you can see the Shallon Winery and Custard King, and towering above them are the Owens-Adair Apartments senior housing and care facility, which used to be St. Mary's Hospital. The tan or brown building is a furniture and appliance store where I once found this big drip on the other side.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

They're making beautiful carpets on the ground, and the trees are growing new leaves.

I couldn't help but take a photo of this corner, home of Wadsworth Electric at 17th and Exchange.

The cherry blossoms may be falling and the picturesque carpets soon to be gone, but so many other flowers are just coming into their own. I'm still waiting for the huge rhododendrons flanking the post office to open up, but until they do, I've got another rhodie picture for you tomorrow. Actually, I'm posting a few days in advance, so by the time you read this those huge bushes could be in bloom. It looks like they're going to have a magnificent crop of flowers this year, and I'll be sure to post them in a week or so.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Classic Beauty

February 23, 2009

I took this photo just about a year ago on a peaceful evening along the Columbia River from the dock at the Maritime Museum at the foot of 17th Street. It's especially nice if you click on it to enlarge the image. It almost looks like a channel or narrow waterway, but the structure on the right is simply a pier. That's the Astoria-Megler bridge in the background (our connection to Washington), and the radio tower reaching into the sky.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Leaving home backwards

This morning the Coast Guard cutter Steadfast left its dock at 17th Street by the Maritime Museum, headed for the ocean. I'm not sure why it does the following, since the river is so wide here, but it backs up from the dock for a about a block (to just outside my office), turns in the water pretty much in place, then heads downriver toward the ocean. I don't know why it doesn't just travel in an arc, but maybe someone can tell me. I've seen other boats do this, too, such as the Sea Bird (National Geographic/Lindblad Expeditions' tour boat), a crane barge, and others. I wonder if it has something to do with the current here, but it's hard to believe that would matter.

I thought the fog and low clouds made a pretty scene this morning. It looks like snow, but there is none. We may have snow this year, but it will be rare. We've had more than usual the past couple of years. Other years we have none.

Carriage house at 17th and Jerome

Yesterday I showed another side of this house with a large corner cupola (to the left, outside the current photo), and Mom of Three made the comment: "About two years ago, I saw a really old man puttering around out there. What's also great about that house is the carriage house there. It's in better shape. That place has it all. An amazing grassy front yard, views for days, and the architecture." "Views for days," refers to the fact that this house is perched at the top of 17th Street with an incredible view over the Columbia River and the town.

These are not fall colors. I took this photo on the same day in May as I took the pictures for yesterday's post. The lighting makes all the difference. The potting shed or tool shed is also interesting in that it is not separate from the house at all, but (speaking of corner cupolas) wraps itself around the corner of the house, covering part of two walls. It's all so intriguing, and I love the colors.

Corner cupola on 17th and Jerome

It looks like I could do "Corner Cupola Week" without much effort. I've been wanting to post photos of this house since I took them last May, and after yesterday's cupola, it may be the right time. I actually don't know what you'd call this style, but it has wonderful details. Some seem quite unique; I don't think I've ever seen a diamond made of shingles like the one between the two windows.

Here's another view of the house on the hill. It's empty now. I expect it will be fixed up and sold. One thing's for sure. There are a lot of unique architectural details in this town, and it would be fun to take pictures of all of them.