Rules of the road
Dear Editor:
There are many miles of back roads in the Methow River drainages; many are beautiful drives in their own right and/or lead to access to more beautiful country. As you drive these roads, please remember you are not the only driver on the road. Drive at a pace comfortable to you, but please remember that others are comfortable with a faster or slower pace. If drivers come up behind you, the courteous thing to do is to pull over at a wide point and let them go by.
All drivers, but especially the faster ones, need to remember that many of these roads are essentially one lane – and there are often blind corners. If you can’t see around a corner, please slow down. There are often bikers, horses, and on-coming drivers around these corners. On hills, please remember that generally uphill traffic has the right-of-way, and it is the responsibility of drivers going down to yield to uphill traffic. If we all remember these simple “rules of the road,” we’ll all have a safer, happier time enjoying our back roads.
Bill Karro, Winthrop
Thanks to all
Dear Editor:
It is 2 a.m. and I can’t sleep. Bob and I are being sheltered by a dear friend. The bed is soft and warm. But my heart has been racing. I take breaths, I stretch. I drink more water. For a while nothing seems to help, but it is getting better. When the mud and sticks and stones raced through the house, Bob and I experienced the wildest ride of our lives. I am so very grateful that we are both alive and that we escaped without being hurt. Our beautiful home and farm, our little oasis of spring water, beautiful land, fruit trees and lush vegetation, is over. They say that change can come in the blink of an eye, and it did!
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to all our beautiful friends and neighbors, as well as complete strangers, who came to our aid. I could see that your hearts shone like suns. I will never be able to express, in words, to each and every one of you, how much it meant to Bob and I. We feel totally enfolded in your big love.
In closing, I would like to also add a thank you to our trees. I know they will not be reading this, but I wanted you to know all about them. As the debris roared by on both sides of our home, as well as through it, taking pines, 60-year-old lilacs and our concrete wall, the grand old white oak held the ground. Holding fast, the oak took the brunt of it. It lost its bark on the front side. It secured the vulnerable corner, which was revealed to be nothing more than a pillow of sand. The big willows had our back. They held the land from being washed away, thus keeping the house on top and saving our lives with their great strength.
Our future is a vast, new horizon. We will make a new home here in the valley. I will be sure to include some willows and a white oak in our yard.
Janie Lewis and Bob Elk, Carlton
Appreciated support
Dear Editor:
We would like to send out a huge thank you to Okanogan County Commissioner Ray Campbell for his site support of local resources fighting local fires.
Dale Konrad, Joe Cole, MVP Team LLC, Kamiah, Idaho
