OK, I've been to this area several times before during my DOD Civil Servant days working for the Navy. And I have seen Mt Rainier several times as well, even on a previous trip in our coach three years ago. But I gotta say, I just never get tired of watching that spectacle. It is so mesmerizing. You will see it again I'm afraid, in this blog, as well as our Mt Rainier blog yet to be published.
We left Camp Rilea Wednesday morning June 10 headed for Camp Murray on the huge Joint Base Lewis-McCord in the Lakewood-Tacoma area and the US Open. We were scheduled to work the Open the following week but wanted to get there early to scope out a little of the Seattle area. It is a very large metropolitan area with several surrounding cities and burbs with a population of over 4 million.
Above, is a our first evening at Camp Murray on the beach of American Lake. What an invite to the area.
We took an overnight trip into Vancouver on Friday and spent the night in Chilliwack, BC. Nothing really interesting here except that there are lots of raspberry and blueberry farms.
Above, a very good band was playing in downtown Seattle one day when we visited the Klondike Gold Rush Museum, but more on both in the Klondike blog, yet to be published.
We did, upon recommendations from other folks, visit the Boeing Museum of Flight, and the place where they make their airliners (all except the 737 which is at their Renton, WA plant). Look at the size of the world's most powerful jet engine, a GE behemoth.
From Wiki: The General Electric GE90 is a family of high-bypass turbofan aircraft engines built by GE Aviation for the Boeing 777, with thrust ratings ranging from 74,000 to 115,000 lbf (330 to 510 kN). It entered service in November 1995. Currently the world’s largest turbofan engine, it is one of three options for the 777-200, -200ER, and -300, and the exclusive engine of the -200LR, -300ER, and 777F.
The museum was a little interesting, but the factory tour where the workers are actually putting together these cargo and passenger giants was the real deal. Unfortunately, cameras and cell phones were not allowed AT ALL. We all had to walk thru detectors. They take this seriously.
So the pics here are of the museum, not the tour. Our guide was very informative and it lasted about 90 minutes. We saw all the parts of the factories all of their --7 series planes under construction. Wow!
747's run about $365 million, BEFORE you select which engines you desire. And February sales of 23 of these behemoths had seven going to private individuals. $$$ people...
Impressive: 115,000 ft lbs of thrust!
Above, Dreamliner! From Wiki: The aircraft's initial designation was the 7E7, prior to its renaming in January 2005. The first 787 was unveiled in a roll-out ceremony on July 8, 2007 (7/8/07) at Boeing's factory in Everett, Washington. Development and production of the 787 has involved a large-scale collaboration with numerous suppliers worldwide. Final assembly takes place at the Boeing Everett Factory in Everett, Washington, and at the Boeing South Carolina factory in North Charleston, South Carolina. Originally planned to enter service in May 2008, the project experienced multiple delays. The airliner's maiden flight took place on December 15, 2009, and completed flight testing in mid-2011.
Above and below, aircraft in final stages awaiting final paint schemes to be applied and then final flight tests prior to customer pick up. Huge parties are given for each delivery.
Well, that's about it for this chapter of blogs from this area of Washington State. We have been here since June 10 and today's date is July 11, so we have a lot to share. There really is a lot to see here.
So, till the next blog, RVing Beach Bums signing off. This blog published from Lakewood, WA Panera Bread on July 11, 2015.
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