Albany, Oregon

Marys Peak, at 4,097 feet, is the highest point in Oregon’s Coast Range and the most prominent peak to the west of Corvallis.

See what happens when you don't use them

Stopped by the Farmers Market for some local treats

In 2002 the community of Albany, Oregon became interested in creating a hand carved carousel.
This is no ordinary merry-go-round.  Albany Historic Carousel is a community volunteer-driven project 15 years in the making. With their Grand Opening on August 15, 2017. Artists and laborers contributed countless hours to hand-carve and decorate the fabulous animals.  This carousel will consist of 52 animals with a variety ranging from a seven foot plus tall giraffe, dogs, cats, zebras, unicorns, dragons, and yes, even lions, tigers, and bears.  Each row will also have two replacement animals and there is also five seasonal animals planned, bringing their total to sixty-three animals.  They were fortunate to have a 1909 Dentzel Carousel Corporation mechanism donated to them.
Back in June 2013 we visited the Carousel workshop long before this building was built or the historic mechanism was restored.  Volunteer carvers and painters were hard at work with only a handful of animals completed.

Each animal takes over 2,000 hours to complete.
Families were able to sponsor and work with the design team so that the finished animals were personalized to their specifications!

Harriette the Frog is perhaps the most whimsical animal on the Carousel – while without question she is certainly the most “ribbit-ing”. Harriette is wearing a straw hat and bloomers made out of a flour sack.  You will find she is carrying a canning jar for all her flies.

Hope is a baby Masai Giraffe, and at a height of 7’6″ she is the tallest animal on the carousel.

Quigga the Quaggas.  (left)
Quaggas are a species of zebra that became extinct in the 1880s. Not only is Quigga an extinct animal, he is possibly the only Quagga Carousel animal in the world!
Sassie Mae (right)
Sassie Mae is an elegant cinnamon horse with black mane and tail.

Harriette was one of the completed animals we saw back in 2013

Dave riding Timber

Timber is an English Bulldog sponsored by the Albany Union High School Alumni. Timber sports a blue spiked collar.

Sampson is a Rhode Island Red rooster and as his pose indicates he is in one heck of a hurry.

The Bison celebrates Montana and its Native American Heritage. It was carved and gifted by the same folks who carved the Missoula, Montana Carousel.

Yun Hsiang is a Chinese dragon who's name means Sea Foam Harmony.

Sally, the Swiss Brown Cow is “udderly amazing”!

Picnic lunch at River Bend
cousin Linda - Great Aunt Deanie - cousin Wanda

Hiking along the banks of the upper South Santiam River.

There are 14 rearing ponds here.  The ponds are 17 to 20 feet wide by 75 feet long.  Covers help shade the ponds, which reduces stress to the fish while they're eating and reduces algae growth in the ponds.  Netting and wiring help protect the young fish from osprey, herons, seagulls and king fishers.  Each pond uses 864,000 gallons of water a day - that's 12 million gallons a day when all 14 ponds are in use. These rearing ponds hold between 20,000 and 225,000 summer steelhead each, depending on the time of year and size of fish.  In May 255,000 1 1/2 inch fish will share a single pond.  By November, the fish will have grown to three times that size and will be distributed among eight different ponds to allow them room to grow.  The following April the now 7 inch fish will be released into both the North & South Santiam River.

Us with Great Aunt Deanie.  Our oldest living relative at 102 years of age.