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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 2016)
4A • July 1, 2016 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com Views from the Rock Celebrating those who built Having fun at pinot noir summer camp the roads, dug the rock E A uthor Deb Cuyle is fascinated by the crunch of gravel and the movement of rock, the play of mountains and tides as they shaped Cannon Beach. Her history focuses less on the cultural and social life — so well documented in Peter Lindsey’s “Coming in Over the Rock” and Terence O’Don- nell’s magical “Cannon Beach: A Place by the Sea” than on the men who blasted rock and dared landslides to create a postcard city with international appeal. This entry in Arcadia Books’ Images of America series zeros in on the geography and the particular challenges Cannon Beach, Tolovana and Arch Cape faced in early days, bringing to life the hairpin turns of a logging truck coming CANNON SHOTS down a steep curve R.J. MARX and the superhuman efforts of highway department workers as they dug through mud and downpours to excavate thousands of yards of dirt building the tunnel in 1936. “When people today drive to Cannon Beach via High- way 26 from Portland or the road from Cannon Beach to Seaside, it is hard to imagine those roads were once just muddy paths,” Cuyle said in a phone interview. Cuyle, a former Cannon Beach resident, is the author of “Kidding Around Portland: What to Do, Where to Go, and How to Have Fun in Portland” and “Haunted Snohomish,” an Arcadia book paying tribute to the supernatural side of Snohomish, Washington, where she resides. “This project was kind of a labor of love,” Cuyle said. “When I was going to Cannon Beach, I noticed there wasn’t a history book. So I came back and talking to Ar- cadia. ‘Why haven’t you done Cannon Beach, it’s the best place in the world?’ They’re like, ‘We’ve been thinking about that for 10 years.’ So again, I asked, ‘Well, why hasn’t anybody done it?’” Cuyle’s persistence paid off and after preparing a proposal earned a contract with the Images of America series. “When I lived in Cannon Beach I fell in love with it,” Cuyle said. “It is hard not to. The way the town is preserved and presented is absolutely stunning. I wanted to learn more about its history and the founding fathers who so eagerly wanted to develop the area. She launches her journey in 1846, when Lt. Neil How- ison sailed the USS Shark into the mouth of the Colum- bia River. When the ship encountered trouble, Howison ordered the masts to be chopped off and the cannons pushed overboard to light the ship, dropping the cannons into the sea. In the 1860s, John Hobson and his business partner M. Eberman regularly spotted a cannon in a creek as they drove cattle to Tillamook. Retrieval of the weapon didn’t come until January 1898, when a mail carrier named George Luce found and retrieved the cannon from which Cannon Beach derives its name. “Remittance men” — sons of wealthy Englishmen who came to Cannon Beach to work though still receiving money from home — comprised many of the 50 families occupying the 90-mile stretch of land between Tillamook Mountain and Neahkahnie Mountain in the late 1800s, Cuyle writes. She presents the old days of horse-drawn carriages, summer tent camps, clearing of the land, the first hotels and automobiles. In 1891, James P. Austin built the Austin House, which was both a hotel and a post office. More lodgings followed. The Hotel Bill was constructed in 1904, the Warren Hotel in 1911 and the Ecola Inn in 1913. While variously called Seal Rock, Ecola Creek, Silver Point Cliffs and Brighton Beach, the Cannon Beach name became official in 1955. Pictures bear witness to the Herculean efforts of con- struction teams as workers work nonstop during rain- storms in mud and falling rock. And their ingenuity. A photo of the 1936 creation of the Arch Cape tunnel shows SUBMITTED PHOTO Workers in 1936 at work on the Arch Cape Tunnel. a beached bulldozer dragged by the drums and cables of a “gas donkey,” a contraption more commonly used to pull logs from the woods. “The more I learned about the trials and tribulations these early settlers had to endure, and the incredible amount of hard work in- Author volved, the more I realized that the area has Deborah tugged at people’s hearts since it was first Cuyle discovered,” Cuyle said. “I wanted people to discover how the very important road systems and land developments for Cannon Beach were established.” The highway from Portland to Cannon Beach, original- ly the Wolf Creek Highway and now the Sunset Highway, was built between 1933 and 1936 by the labor of the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Workers Progress Administration in the aftermath of the Great Depres- sion. “It would take days to get from Portland to Cannon Beach,” Cuyle said. “Now we do it in 45 minutes with a stop at 7-Eleven.” Cuyle hopes to bring readers “back and make them re- member what it was like,” she said. Equal measure is giv- en to the development of Arch Cape, Hug Point and Ecola State park, with dramatic photos of a 1961 mudslide, or “earth slippage.” “I am sure the book is not perfect and was really just a labor of my love for Cannon Beach, but I do hope it will bring happiness to all who read it,” Cuyle said. “And when they are sitting with their toes in the warm sand nes- tled by a beach fire, I hope they will try to remember how Cannon Beach got to where it is today and some of these photographs and information will stick in their minds.” Cuyle will be appearing and signing copies of her book: “Images of America: Cannon Beach,” Saturday, July 9, at the Cannon Beach Book Company, 130 N. Hemlock from 2 to 4 p.m.; 503-436-1301. Prizes and more from Penny’s Puppet Productions H appy summertime, library friends!! Everything perks up in our little town as the weather gets warmer and the days get longer – and the library is part of this phenome- non! If you’re in town over the Fourth of July weekend, plan to spend some time browsing through books of every kind at our book sale, which runs from July 2-4 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Lots of preparations are involved, but as one of our most important fundraisers, it’s well worth the effort! We also will be selling tickets for our quilt drawing; tickets are $1 each, or six for $5. Cannon Beach Reads will meet as always on Wednesday, July 20, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. This month the group is read- ing “Cat’s Cradle,” by Kurt Vonnegut. Tom Schaeffer will be the discussion leader. All are welcome! Calling all kids!! It’s not too late to join the summer reading contest, “Fetch a Good Book.” The contest continues until Aug. 22, and you can win prizes along the way, as well as have a chance to win the grand prizes at the end. The contest is for all children, tweens, and teens. Local and visitor kids alike are invited to a special children’s program Publisher Steve Forrester Editor R.J. Marx Reporter Lyra Fontaine Sales/Advertising Manager Betty Smith AT THE LIBRARY CARLA O’REILLY Saturday, July 23, at 1 p.m., when pup- peteer Penny Walters of Penny’s Puppet Productions will put on a puppet show at the library. Also of interest to children of all ages there will be a return perfor- mance of popular local magician Brett Willyard Saturday, Aug. 13, at 1 p.m. There was standing room only — if that — when he gave his previous perfor- mance. We’ve already reached July, and August is just around the corner, so be sure and save the date! We also are in the planning stages of our wonderful fall festival, which will be on Sept. 24. Library friends are invited to work on crafts for the event, and bakers will also be needed to provide pies, cookies, and other baked goods. Other ongoing library monthly events which do not occur during sum- mer months are the membership meet- ings, Northwest Author Series, and the Production Manager John D. Bruijn Circulation Manager Heather Ramsdell Classifi ed Sales Jamie Ramsdell Advertising Sales Holly Larkins Brandy Stewart CANNON BEACH GAZETTE The Cannon Beach Gazette is published every other week by EO Media Group. 1555 N. Roosevelt, Seaside, Oregon 97138 503-738-5561 • Fax 503-738-9285 www.cannonbeachgazette.com • email: editor@cannonbeachgazette.com SUBMITTED PHOTO Penny’s Puppet Productions comes to the Cannon Beach Library. World of Haystack Rock lecture series. All will resume in September. And fi nally, there are always volun- teer opportunities at the Cannon Beach Library — whether “manning” the desk during library hours, working on special events, or helping to keep our shelves dust-free and appropriately arranged. If you’re interested in helping us keep our library a lovely, cozy, and restful place to visit, please call Kathe Leduc at 503- 436-2250 — or just stop in to see us! SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Annually: $40.50 in county, $58.00 in and out of county. Postage Paid at: Cannon Beach, OR 97110 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Cannon Beach Gazette, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Copyright 2015 © Cannon Beach Gazette. Nothing can be reprinted or copied without consent of the owners. very summer, since beginning in 2000, a group of Oregon’s fi nest wineries hold “Oregon Pinot Camp,” a jam-packed weekend of seminars, pre- sentations and tastings devoted to Oregon’s premier wine grape, Pinot Noir. Pinot Camp was originally conceived to be a one-time event to promote Oregon Pinot noir to selected wine retailers, sommeliers, distributors, hoteliers and restaurateurs from across the US and Canada. How- ever, because of the enthusiastic response and resulting increase in wine sales, Pinot Camp transformed into an annual event. I haven’t gone to summer UNCORKED RAMBLINGS camp in about 40 STEVE SINKLER years or so, but I had the good fortune to be an Oregon Pinot Camper this past weekend in the Willamette Valley. Not knowing exactly what to expect, I left Cannon Beach on Saturday afternoon, while the Wine Shack’s Saturday tasting was in full swing heading to Dundee for Oregon Pinot Camp’s opening reception held at Sokol Blosser. Once arriving at the reception, this year’s 275 attendees were treated to an amazing selection of wines from the 50 wineries participating in Oregon Pinot Camp 2016. Paella and pinot noir, what a delicious way to start the weekend. The reception party was still going strong when I headed to my hotel for the night. I heard that a good night’s sleep would help me be at my best for Day 1. Day 1 began bright at early. I was assigned to the “Red Bus” and told to be at the bus no later than 7:30. The fun started immediately upon arrival as the Red Bus Camp Leaders were pouring Argyle Brut Sparkling wine and blasting old school hip hop from the back of their car. Breakfast was served at McMinnville’s Evergreen Air Museum, under Howard Hughes’ Spruce Goose. I had the pleasure to eat with Maysara Winery owner and winemaker Moe Momtazi. Back on the bus, we were off to Penner Ash winery for presentations on Willamette Valley soil types and how the soil impacts a wine’s structure. We also heard several presentations about topography and vineyard practices, mostly centered around vine canopy manage- ment. “The pursuit of balance” was the overall theme and while there were many opinions on which practices lead to balance, the speakers all agreed on one thing, great wine isn’t made in the winery, it’s grown in the vineyard. After a delicious lunch in Penner Ash’s tank room, the Red Bus headed to Elk Cove Vineyards to hear more presentations on soil and vineyard practices. After each presentation, we sampled pinot noir that refl ected the topic, for example we tasted wine made from clay versus volcanic soils, and wine made from low hanging grape clusters versus higher hanging clusters. The mes- sage was clear, every decision in the vineyard directly impacts the taste and structure of the wine. Day 1 ended with a delicious dinner at Anne Amie Vineyards. All 275 attendees were back together for a delicious meal, world class pinot noir and an amazing sunset. Day 2 started even earlier as the red bus headed for Adelsheim Vineyard at 7:15 for breakfast and pinot noir winemaking presentations by Rex Hill winemaker, Michael Davies, Solena’s winemaker, Laurent Mon- talieu, and Veronique Drouhin, from Domaine Drouhin. They talked about their background and how it impacts their style of winemaking. We then tasted through three pinot noir panels and discussed how the wines refl ecting vintage, soil and winemaker. I had the good fortune to sit next to Veronique Drouhin, the head winemaker for not only Drouhin’s Oregon winery, but who also leads winemaking at the Joseph Drouhin Domaine in Bur- gundy, one of the largest winery estates in the world. This was possibly the highlight of the entire weekend as Veronique works passionately to make world class wines in the two fi nest pinot noir regions in the world, Burgundy and the Willamette Valley. Next, we headed to Trisaetum for their “Chasing the Great White” session. As a white wine lover, I really enjoyed the presentations on Oregon’s three main white wines; Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Riesling. Oregon Chardonnay is best known for being food friendly, with crisp acidity, a focus on fruit fl avors and a restrained use of oak. These chardonnays have much more in common with Burgundy’s Chablis than oaky butter bombs from California. Chris Williams, winemaker at Brooks Win- ery gave the Riesling presentation and surprised us all when he said he makes 17 different Rieslings. That man loves Riesling. Before leaving Trisaetum, we had lunch on their patio and sampled a variety of their Pinot noir and Riesling offerings. After lunch, the red bus made its way to Lemel- son Vineyards for the last session of Pinot Camp, the winemaking process. We listened to six winemakers, in teams of two, talking about choices they make at each step of the winemaking process and how each decision impacts the fi nal taste of the wine. Should they make wine from whole clusters or berries, punch down or pour over the cap, use new oak or old oak, French, Hungarian or American oak barrels? The list of questions is long and each response results in a slightly different wine. Winemakers develop their own processes but continue to experiment, sometime successfully, sometimes not. But they are always looking to make the very best Pinot noir they can. Pinot Camp ended with a traditional salmon bake at Stoller Vineyards. The food was delicious but the wine was amazing. Winemakers walked through the tent pouring library and reserved wines, from bottles of every size. I would like to say “Thank you” to Sokol Blosser Winery for nominating me and selecting me to attend Oregon Pinot Camp 2016. It was an incredible experi- ence I’ll never forget. THE NATIONAL AWARD-WINNING
