Thorp Grist Mill

Thorp is a small town near I-90 on what we call the East Side. It’s the east side of Washington where Dino got most of the votes. Lots of Seattle folks drive I-90 to watch football games in Pullman, to pick apples in Yakima, and to taste wine in the Yakima Valley.

There’s also John Wayne Trail State Park trail. You can walk, ride a bike or horse, or have a picnic on the trail. Some folks like to think you can get over the mountains on the trail.

Long ago when I was just a kid, in the 1800s, people used to buy bags of flour. Honestly, I don’t know why anyone would want to buy flour. You can buy hundreds of things already made out of flour at Safeway.

People around Thorp in those days got agitated and decided to build a grist mill. Grist is what they call grain that’s ground into flour. It also refers to the quantity of grain that’s ground into flour in one batch. Just in case you thought I didn’t know what a grist was.

After the mill was built folks around Thorp would carry wheat to the mill and say something like, “Hey, Miller, grist this!” Fights broke out until everyone realized the farmer was just asking the miller to make a batch of flour. Grist is one of those interesting words. It seems to be an action word that annoys people, but it’s really just a noun, not a verb. So you can readily see why people wanted to fight over it.

The grist mill at Thorp used a water turbine mounted horizontally in the irrigation ditch. The turbine was connected to the main shaft by a large leather strap with a 90 degree twist. The main shaft had numerous wheels that were connected by many other leather belts that turned the grinding machinery. Cows lost their skin over this mill.

All the water stays in the irrigation system. Many other mills use a vertical wheel that turns as water runs over the top and drops into the creek. These usually have a higher water source. There was also had a saw mill that got its power from the irrigation ditch turbine. That part is gone.

In the early 1900s the water turbines were used to generate electricity. Not many folks in Thorp had computers so it served OK. If they needed more power it could be brought in by train, I think. Anyway, the Milwaukee Road had a depot in Thorp.

Another interesting feature at the Thorp mill is the old ice pond. Northern Pacific trains would stop there to toss ice into refrigerator cars. The pond was 23 acres and provided ice for the local community as well. That is when it was frozen. When the weather got above freezing one has to assume the ice was hidden in cold dark places. Another mystery for further research – where did they hide the ice in summer?

The John Wayne Trail passes close to the mill and people can stop at the Ice Pond Park for a rest. I-90 travelers may also stop in for a visit.

To me, the main attraction of the mill is the mechanical complexity. The grain travels up into the top and down for the various grinding processes using a spider web of wood races. It takes several grinding stages in order to get the finest flour.

The mill also made livestock feed which was a courser grind. I don’t know if you could call it grist. Feed of this type is used to fatten out cattle just before they’re made into quarter pounders with cheese. The bonus is they got more cow skin for the drive belts. Economic theory in action.

Sometime in the future we may once again see passenger rail service along the I-90 route. Right now Amtrak runs the Seattle – Chicago train further north via Stevens Pass. That pass was named for an early Washington State pioneer in building passes. However, right now we don’t have passenger trains near Thorp.

Which brings us to my plan: BNSF currently runs freight trains through Thorp on the old Northern Pacific right of way. Passes right by the old ice pond. I think it’s about time we get back to passenger rail service across the state. BNSF would probably be OK with this.

Their line follows the Yakima River down through Yakima and then through the wine tasting country to the Tri-Cities. Do we have to call it “Trines” now? We need to check with the folks in Northern Indiana. Oh, I know; if Trine gives us the money to get a passenger train going then yes, we’ll change the name.

Wouldn’t it be great to relax in a train over the Cascades, have lunch at the Thorp Grist Mill, taste a gallon or two of wine in the Yakima valley, spend the night at the Trines, take in a football game in Pullman, and head back to the rainy side without ever having to drive on I-90? If you have a bag of wheat you could drop it off on the way over and pick up flour on the way home.

Al

If you click on a photo it gets bigger. Amazing, isn't it, but they don't all do it.?.

Election Results 2008

Well the Sound Transit proposition won. We’ll get more miles on the light rail system. They’re planning a ring around the Puget Sound bathtub.

Bellevue has an area of low level development and high level asphalt east of the main downtown area. There was a Safeway distribution center, Coke warehouse, and a lumber yard among hundreds of other expansive type places.

Metro Transit has a big bus parking lot in the area. Burlington Northern provided rail freight on its now closed on the eastside. In fact the rail line kind of defined the boundary of this area.
Bellevue’s no longer proud of the low density business. For years those businesses paid tax money into the city because they had such large chunks of ground. Now the downtown high rise development pays most of the commercial tax and these places east of the tracks are being left behind.

A lot of the big space businesses are pulling out and heading for places where the property tax rates are lower. This leaves some big empty warehouse and parking areas. Bellevue wants to control what goes in there. Or at least set a lot of conditions.

One of their ideas is to use that area as a kind of landing zone for the eastside light rail. Sound Transit is hoping to run the rails over the lake and into downtown Bellevue. They think a lot of people will ride. A small part of the Link will potentially use the BNSF line. And then past there we’re looking at some maintenance facilities.

Which has me wondering – Is Bellevue going to have as much fun as Seattle?
Seattle has the South Lake Union Trolley. It goes up and down for little reason. I pass by that way about once a month and I see bright trolleys but nobody riding except the driver. Bellevue could have one of those.

Seattle also has a tunnel as part of the light rail line from downtown to Sea-Tac. Bellevue has hills. It seems logical to find some way to have a tunnel in the eastside system. That’s how it could reach Newcastle!

I-90 is part of Ike’s Interstate system. In the 1930s they began hauling rocks and dirt from Maple Valley (it use to be Maple Hill) and dumping it into Lake Washington. The goal was to construct a mid-lake land bridge between Bellevue and Seattle. Well they finally gave up and installed a four lane floating bridge in 1940. The fill was named Mercer Island and in order to save face they made it a city and let people build houses on it. We’d never get away with trying to fill in a lake these days – too many whiners.

Anyway, Sound Transit wants to run the East Link Light Rail on I-90. So I’m wondering who they have to ask. The feds probably think they still own the highway, but you know how they are.

Washdot wants to use the other floating bridge for the light rail line. That’s the one everyone thinks is about to sink. Thus it needs to be replaced immediately or at least before 2050. One of the big arguments is whether to make the new pontoons bigger than they need to be. Here’s why: people in Seattle want to keep it to four lanes. But Washdot is pretty sure that if they need to make it six lanes someday they’ll have to replace those pontoons with bigger ones. So why not make them bigger now? In addition they may want to add light rail. So now the pontoons are really big. But they’re under water so what’s the big deal? Cost. Building pontoons much bigger than the approved roadway would annoy toll payers and Timmy the nut.

Timmy would start an initiative campaign that in essence would require pontoons made out of old plastic bags. And at some point the Supreme Court in Olympia would declare it null and void, but the process would add years and millions of $$$ to the cost. And maybe the old bridge would sink during all this.

See, the problem with Timmy is his ideas sound OK at first but if you think them through it’s just not workable. For example some of the wagon trains on the Oregon Trail got diverted by a billboard advertising Mount Rushmore but when they arrived it was just a regular mountain. In those days nobody had carved presidents into mountains. Then winter came.

So the question for Washdot is this: “When will Winter come and stop your plans for light rail on SR 520?"

I also have a question for California: "Are you crazy? Don't you know your Supreme Court will have to set aside the Prop 8 result?" Two reasons: 1. in our 2008 enlightened time we all should realize you can't discriminate about whom a person chooses to marry. 2. It's almost completely certain the victims of this stupid initiative are not the ones that voted for it - so you can't have one group deciding what's right for another group. So Cal tax payers will have to pay for the courts to hear this nonsense and overturn it. They deserve it.

Al

Inspection Report

The State DOT – Washdot – inspected the Alaska Way Viaduct last week and they say it hasn’t sunk any more. Since the earthquake it’s down 5.5 inches but they pumped some stabilizing crud into the ground underneath it and now it’s not sinking. They should patent that crud.

Somebody bumped into a guard rail on a downtown exit and knocks a chunk into the street below. It’s happened before. This time the chunk grew as the day went on. When they first reported it the chunk was “about 10 feet long” as by the 5:00 news it had grown to 35 feet. Another good reason for Christine to knock it down in 2012. What if the guard rail started expanding some dark knight, like October 31?

They inspected the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge and pronounced it still floating. Took them 48 hours to make that determination. State DOT inspectors crawled around with flashlights and Q-tips checking to see how much water is seeping into the pontoons. Oh, the jobs I could have had!

Both of these structures are in danger of suddenly failing in a manner that would probably hurt lots of folks. It’s an emergency situation and we need to fix them immediately. In this case “immediately” apparently means as soon as the next administration can find the money.

Venerable old Coal Creek Parkway is starting to look like its new self. Drivers are now using the brand new north bound May Creek Bridge while crews construct the south bound bridge. So traffic is two way for now.

They’ve also started drivers on some of the new pavement along the Great Wall of Newcastle. Amazing retaining wall that’s going to have a walkway on top. I need to get around to a good spot and take a picture. But I don’t think a mere photo can do it justice. It’s enormous.

The Boren Creek culverts are in place and the roadway is taking shape above it. I still think it would have been fun to combine the culvert and roadway so that in heavy rain we’d be driving in a foot of water. But nobody listens to me.

We have a curbing along much of the new roadway and right now piles of old road surface dug up waiting for trucks to haul it to Maple Valley. From there it will be hauled back to the asphalt plant in Seattle. Then back to Maple Valley for short term storage and then back to Seattle to pave the new Alaska Way Viaduct. Maple Valley Highway is bumper to bumper with dump trucks and garbage trucks. If you like trucks just take a walk on the Cedar River Trail on a weekday.

Where was I? Oh, yeah, Coal Creek Parkway is at the point where you can pretty much see the new alignment. They moved it over and made longer straight stretches here and there. I think it’s in preparation for light rail.

Duval Avenue in Renton is still closed for construction. It is supposed to open in July 2009 all paved and striped with four lanes and turn lanes. Oh, and bike lanes, walkways, and planting strips. They also have an enormous retaining wall. It could be called the Great Wall of Renton except that the word “Great” doesn’t go with “Renton.”

Duval Ave. will join up on the south end of Coal Creek Parkway and eventually we have a four lane roadway all the way to Cemetery Road from Factoria. But why go that far? Turn right on Sunset and Fry’s is right down the hill. But until the work is all done we have to endure “up to 20 minute delays” or take an alternate.

The official alternate is I-405 from Bellevue to the Maple Valley Highway. Remember that one? Well, it’s true, that’s the alternate. Work continues on I-405 as well.

I signed up for email updates from the DOT on the I-405 project. It only tells me what times the freeway will be closed but practically nothing about the project itself. So I have to go to the Park and Ride lot and check it out myself. Do they think I have nothing better to do? Oh, yeah, I don’t.

Here again the earth is backed up behind an enormous retaining wall. In order to add lanes (which seems to be what’s going on) they need to carve into the hillside. I bet the folks who live on top of the hill sure enjoy it as the dozers load huge trucks that head off to Maple Valley.
Once it’s all finished they’ll have to raise noise walls on top so the neighbors can’t hear the traffic. Then you’ll see some serious concrete!

The Link Light Rail from downtown Seattle to the airport is progressing. The papers show a photo of the new rail cars testing. They even let some people ride along. I’m going to see if I can get a test ride.

The last big segment is the tunnel and station above it on Beacon Hill. The station is at surface level and passengers will be hoisted up and down via a rope tow or something. Anyway its 165 feet from the Beacon Hill surface down to the tunnel and that’s a long way. Maybe they’ll have a fireman pole for going down and a jetpack for going up. Looks like another inspection tour coming up.

I’ll keep you posted on progress as I see it, not as the official web sites see it. After all, what do they know?

Al

Election Advisory

As a public service we here at Lake Boren are providing a quick review of the issues and candidates in the November 4 election. Following the review we’ll tell you how you should vote. Yes, we’re pretty generous. This will allow you to ignore all the political ads and discussions. If you have a mail ballot just get it now so you can fill it out as you read.

National office: President – What we have here is just about as confused as it can get. It’s all different from past elections so it’s hard to really know what to do. Since it’s O 8 just go ahead and vote for O-bama.and O-biden.

Senate: Doesn’t matter. They’ll hold endless hearings and explain how various things will or won’t work. Close your eyes and do it. Besides, whoever gets elected president will have to be replaced in the Senate so we’ll have another chance.

House: These people need to clean house. There are way too many. I’d say vote “NO” for anyone running for the House of Representatives.

Supreme Court: We don’t get to choose these people. How come?

Indiana Governor: Go with the funny names. That’s what we do in Washington and it works. Or anyway we remember who it is. Like Dixie, Scoop, Brock, and that other guy. So vote for Jilllong and Dennie.

Texas: Don’t vote. Just go to a local rodeo or something. We’ll let you know how it came out.
Tennessee: Yes, by all means vote. Get out there and make a difference. Just remember the funny name thing.

Mountain States: Same as Texas.

Washington: Our governess, Christine, should stay the course. We don’t need anyone named Dino. Oh wait, Dino is a funny name. OK, go ahead and throw your vote away.

All other states – just vote as early and as often as you can. We here in Washington will want some company in the endless recount/voter qualification process that will take place beginning November 5.

States that have an initiative process wherein citizens can gather signatures and get their pet projects on the ballot have lots of challenges. And our state has a couple of things on the ballot besides the usual politicians.

We have a “Death with Dignity” initiative. It works pretty well in Oregon and its point is to allow folks who can’t stand the pain of losing our basketball team end it all peacefully. Vote YES.

Another one, 985, will mess up the HOV lane system we’ve come to hate. Right now it works as intended, badly, but if this thing passes it won’t even work that well. This is like making a flat tire feel better by letting the air out of the other three tires. Vote NO.

Then we have the one about long term care worker certification. OK, yes.

I Googled other states to see what kind of nut farm initiatives they’re voting on. Oddly, lots of states don’t have any. And even more oddly, some of the ones that do are pretty odd. So I can’t give advice. Vote the way you think best. If your state has an interesting issue be sure to let me know.

Another thing we like to put on the ballot is something called a “Proposition.” It’s different. Usually put up by some kind of government type entity wanting lots of money. For example Sound Transit wants to extend the light rail system and they want voters to approve the money to do it. It’s called “Prop 1” and seems to get a lot of discussion. I’d like to see this one pass since it will eventually provide rapid transit to Newcastle. But I don’t have much hope for it.

Prop 1 people have this fixation on how many people can be carried and claiming an end to congestion. The people against it point out that it takes years to build the rails and get the trains running and by that time we’ll have way more people in the area. They want more highways now. And, sure, it costs a lot less per mile to pave than to put in light rail. Plus people aren’t in the mood to increase the sales tax these days.

OK, now I’ve got my ballot all marked and ready to mail. As soon as you finish yours we can form a convoy and mail them. I’ll wait.

Al

Glen Tests Light Rail Train

Glen, the Lake Boren Carp, was given a chance to try out the new Sound Transit vehicle recently. Since we don't have any track yet he took it for a swim.

If you can buy a fish driving a train why not believe it runs in water?

Al