CCC and Fort C

Seems our journey's today centered on the letter 'C'. We started off by trying to take a picture of the Deception Pass Bridge but it was fog bound to a point where we couldn't even see the far side of the span. So we traveled on to the Bowman Bay area of the the State Park where we had no vista other than a fog bound island in the bay surrounded by sailboats and trawlers waiting for the fog to lift, and those we sometimes lost in the fog. While in the park we visited the CCC Interpretive Center.

The Civilian Conservation Corps was established in 1933 by Pres. Roosevelt to put the unemployed young men of the depression era to work earning money and gaining an education but also saving the nation's natural resources. These men built roads, cleared land and built state and national parks, erected bridges, put up protective railings on roads, built kitchen shelters, bathrooms, picnic areas and caretakers homes. The bridges over Deception Pass was engineered and built by the CCC. In return for their hard labor, the men received free clothing, bedding, a place to sleep and three square meals a day. Oh, yes, they were paid a whopping $30 a month. But during the depression, this was enough to send home $25 and keep $5 for yourself.

After lunch in Anacosta we grocery shopped then drove south on Whidbey Island to Fort Casey. This fort was built to protect the western US from enemy attack. It was known for its disappearing guns. These huge cannons, I think about 12 of them, were mounted on a berm where they could be raised to fire over the top of the hill and then lowered below the rim so they could not be seen. They were never fired. The fort was used during WWI and WWII mostly for training of troops. It was decommissioned in the 60's and is now a tourist destination.

Next to the fort is Admiralty Head lighthouse. Built in 1903 it was an important landmark for ships traveling in Puget Sound until about the 1920's when steamships replaced sailing vessels. Today it is an interpretive center and wedding spot.