Just out., July 06, 2001, Page 15, Image 15

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C ourt A dvantage
Anthony's Cabins is not your average RV park
by Richard Bray
tisement for help in answering the door at night carpet that wasn’t cigarette burned.”
and picking up bodies for $10 a “load.” Even
They have been upgrading Anthony’s Cab­
though Hickey had a girlfriend at the time, he
ins for six years now—and it shows. Fancher’s
knew immediately he was “really interested.”
penchant for antiques is evident both in their
Other than the common junior high grope, living room and throughout the property.
both men were hardly aware they were gay. So,
All of the cabins sprinkled around the
not having any rules or examples to follow, they parklike setting bear his stamp of knick-
made up their own.
knacks and cozy odds and ends collected from
“We didn’t have a concept of being gay,” a number of sources. Each one is unique and
Hickey says. “This was 1970, and we didn’t have includes posters from their travels and paint­
a set concept of how to do this.”
ings from a relative.
They soon moved to the tourist town of
Although the couple share most duties,
Solvang, where Hickey grew up, and started their Fancher favors outfitting the cabins and does
unstructured lives together. On the advice of most of the gardening. He’s also the first to
someone he met at a nude beach, Fancher dis­ acknowledge Hickey’s mechanical and con­
covered a queer establishment in nearby Santa struction skills. “He likes power tools.”
Barbara with a bartender willing to bring him up
Hickey performs most of the maintenance on
to speed on who they were and just exactly what the property, including remodeling their most
was out there in the gay world.
recent cabin acquired only last year. It seems to be
Returning home one evening, he told Hick­ a functional division of labor.
ey: “Do you know what we are? We’re lovers!”
“We complement each other a lot,” Hickey
Fancher adds: “The advantage for us was that says. “Where 1’11 give in to a new power tool,
we didn’t have this model of what we were sup­ he’ll give in to a custom-made picket fence bed.”
posed to do or not supposed to do. We just did
Obviously, Hickey and Fancher both live at
it; there was no pattern to it.”
work and work at home. In fact, their office is
What evolved was an open but strong rela­ home—the check-in desk leads seamlessly into
tionship based on few preconceived expectations their living room.
Cabin boys Wayne Fancher (left) and Dan Hickey or limits. “We would know when we overstepped
The phone rings frequently while we talk, and
have been together for 31 years.
our bounds or when one was getting hurt.”
Fancher admits it hasn’t been easy being on call all
ong Beach, Wash., is just across the bor­
After more than three decades together, they the time. “That was hard to get used to at first—
der and a moderately short two-hour agree it’s been pretty smooth overall. They credit that somebody was at the door almost constantly.”
drive from Portland. A quick look their longevity to “deeply loving each other” and
In order to keep things simple and profitable,
around reveals your basic coastal resort a continuing healthy physical
containing the requisite kite and T-shirt relationship.
shops, plenty of 35 mph zones and the great beach­
After several years in
es that help make the Pacific Northwest famous.
Solvang working retail and turn­
On closer inspection, Long Beach also contains
ing real estate, they discovered
a pleasant and welcoming surprise. Located on the Long Beach while vacationing
Pacific Highway and only a short walk from what
in their own RV. They liked the
is touted as the world’s longest beach is Anthony’s casual feel of the community
Home Court Cabins and RV Park. But this isn’t and, through a family member
like any RV park you ever have stayed in before.
already in town, leaned Antho­
Owners/hosts Dan Hickey and Wayne ny’s Cabins was for sale.
Fancher have produced a little bit of gay-friend­
At the time it consisted of
ly heaven in Long Beach through six years of nothing but a few old cabins built
hard work and easy style.
in the 1930s (including one that
Anthony’s Home Court consists of eight rented by the hour) and several
brightly outfitted cabins with kitchens and 25 foil old trailers hunkered down in the
RV hookups. The cabins are quaint shingle-sided RV park out back. Because they
bungalows surrounded by relaxed, well-tended both previously had discussed
gardens. The entire place is as clean as a whistle.
owning a small hotel or bed and
A couple for 31 years, Hickey and Fancher breakfast, Anthony’s Cabins
met at, of all places, a funeral home in San Luis seemed like a decent fit.
Fancher says, “It was so run­
Obispo, Calif., where Hickey was putting himself
through college. Fancher responded to an adver- down, there was not a bed linen or Each cabin is unique
MULTI-CHANNEL ARCADE
Hickey and Fancher have no employ­
ees. They’re a two-man operation.
Anthony’s Cabins is open year-
round, making vacations difficult at
best. The busy season predictably
runs from Memorial Day through
Labor Day. Summers are high season, and
they work long hours.
Hickey, the computer guy, estimates 40 percent
of their business is from gay customers. They’re
both quick to add they never have had any trouble
or complaints from their straight guests. They
often have barbecues on the deck behind their
house where all their guests mingle comfortably.
When they’re not running Anthony’s Cab­
ins, Hickey and Fancher are busy with a small
but close-knit group of friends in Long Beach.
The town has no “organized” gay community, al­
though they fondly recall a group of friends who
used have dinner together and called themselves
the Helen Pearson Marching Chowder Society.
Nearby Astoria also plays host to occasional
potlucks. Like most small communities, gay peo­
ple seem to find each other there.
The only serious bump in their plans
occurred the day before Hickey left for the solo
drive north with all their gear. A call from his
doctor confirmed his HIV-positive status. He
remembers, “I had a thousand miles to drive in
this huge van with only the two dogs and too
much time to think.”
It’s easy to see how comfortable these two are
in Long Beach. During lunch at a restaurant with
a beautiful view of the water, we run into their
friends Gordon and Roy, part of the local color and
a couple for more than 40 years.
These two obviously have made a good home
for themselves near this long stretch of sand.
They love what they do and
where they live.
It shows in their attitude
and is obvious as you look
around Anthony’s Cabins.
My recommendation is that
you consider making that
two-hour drive—you might
find some of that good atti­
tude rubbing off on you as
well, jrn
OPEN 24 HOURS
To contact A nthony ’ s
C abins call 888-787-2754,
visit the Internet site
www. anthonyshomecourt. com
or write to P.O. Box 1532,
Long Beach, WA 986314532.
R ichard B ray is a
Portland free'lance writer.
He can be reached at
richbray2000@hotmail.com.
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