Northwest Magazines

Washington:

Steigerwald: A Migratory Crossroads—History, hiking, and exceptional birding are all a part of this wildlife refuge.—Harold Harbaugh

The Belle of the Northwest Corner—Bellingham offers a myriad of outdoor pursuits and a vibrant arts scene. —Joanna Nesbit

Tri-Cities Wines—This area is home to some of the best wine country in the state. —Vickie S. Higgins

Sensational Vashon—A Puget Sound getaway that's a treat for the senses. —Jonathan Shipley

Roslyn's Rich Vein of History—A walking tour turns up some fascinating surprises. —Roy Stevenson

Oregon:

Outdoors in the Land of Umpqua—There's enough to do to keep you busy for a lifetime. —Gail Elber & Judy Fleagle

Crawfish Camping—Catch your own crustaceans while camping. —Liz Crain

British Columbia:

Denman Island—This scenic destination makes a great daytrip from Vancouver Island.
—Peg Fong

Alaska:

Flattop Mountain—A favorite hike just outside of Anchorage. —David Thompson

Montana:

An Inspiring Hike—Walk on the wild side in Flathead National Forest. —Becky Lomax

Idaho:

Mesa Falls—The largest undisturbed waterfalls in the Columbia River system.
—Rob Lundgren

Departments:

Destination Outdoors — Mount Saint Helens: The Other Side of the Mountain

Travel Green—Okanagan Nut Farm Join in the harvest at this historic orchard near
British Columbia’s Okanagan Lake.

Worth a Stop

• Smokejumper Base
• Pie Hut
• Hot Licks
• Teatro ZinZanni
• Mississippi Avenue

Editors Notes - By Judy Fleagle, Editor

EDITORS NOTES

I’ve gone to nearly every birding festival in the Northwest, cruised the San Juans, explored Victoria, attended a winemaker’s dinner in Astoria, and taken an epicurean tour of great restaurants and wineries with McMinnville as my base. During a week-long exploration of Clackamas County, I spent a night at Timberline Lodge, something I had wanted to do since my first visit as a child. These are just a few of my memories from the 18 years I’ve been an editor/writer with Northwest Travel. . . . And I won’t forget my last trip, fishing with my co-editors, Emily and Rosemary, at Lava Lake near
Bend in June.

After being with the magazine since its inception in 1991, I’m retiring. I tried this once before in 2002, but it didn’t take. So when the publisher asked me to come back for a few weeks in 2004, I did. Who’d a thunk I’d still be here in 2009?

Actually, it’s turned out to be a wonderful second career. I had previously spent 22 years as a first grade teacher. Instead of being the stereotypical hard-nosed editor, I became a semi-hard-nosed, nurturing editor. I learned to write about everything and edit anything, and traveled all over the Northwest meeting great people.

And I’ve seen many changes. When I was first hired—before Internet and e-mail, when fax machines were the new-fangled thing—we typed in the stories and sent them to Eugene to be edited and designed. After these functions were brought in-house, we still had to paste-up each page before sending to the printer. Now we do everything in-house and send all pages to the printer electronically.

I’m retiring as an editor—not as a writer. So I’ll continue to write an occasional story for Northwest Travel. My plans also include writing a book about Florence’s Siuslaw River Bridge that turns 75 in May 2011.
I’m not the only one that’s leaving.

In this issue, we profile the city of Bellingham and explore all the ways to enjoy the great outdoors in Oregon’s land of Umpqua. We cover the wineries of the Tri-Cities and learn how to catch—and cook up—crawfish. And we feature Idaho’s beautiful upper and lower Mesa Falls. Enjoy the issue!

—Judy Fleagle