The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1881-09-08
a Trip to. Puget sound.
".

Persons intending to go down the Sound
from Seattle have to get ON board the boat
the night before departure, as the boat
leaves her dock at three o clock In the morn
ing. Consequently we went at night to sleep
on board the AHnis .Sterayt. At ) O'Clock
A. NJ, the boat arrived at Port Madison and
later In the forenoon we visited In turn
Port Gamble and Port Ludlow, three places
which OTTER nothing particularly remark abie
to the tourist; being simply saw mill points
where vast Quantities OF lumber are manu-
featured. Some OF the mills are equal to
the cutting OF zoe, 900 feet per day, guam
tlty truly enormous when We consider the
fact that the tlr timber OF this country is
quite as tough and almost as hard to saw as
the oak timber OF Michigan and Wisconsin.
at Port Ludlow, which, ike the other places
just named, Is situated on a very pretty and
secure bay, brook OF fresh water is con-
Quoted into a tank from the country. From
this, vessels are supplied with water tor
steam because salt water, for obvious reasons,
Is not considered desirable for that purpose
when fresh water can be procured The
bronx which supplies this water is filed with
trout and Captain Jocelyn is my authority
for stating that last year, himself aud four
or live friends caught three hundred trout in
three hours Ill this identical brook, about
three miles back from Port Ludlow Con-
tinuing our way, We had occasion, few
miles before reaching Port Townsend, Of OBJ
serving a singular phenomenon, or at least a
sight not very often met with. We were
then at the north point, called Marrowstone,
and i'll sight OF Port Townsend. The tide
was rushing III from the Strait and the water
level OF the Sound was some live feet lower
than that OF the Strait, on account of an in
tervening island or peninsula impeding the
free flow of the tide. When the latter met
this difference OF level it tumbled down pre-
cisely IN the same way as cataracts do in
rivers, making pretty tumbling surf called
| "rii. which at times must be dangerous
for small boats.
Port Townsend is a small place for which
| population Of 500 is claimed. 1t is port
OF entry. 1t has safe harbor, az indeed
| every point on this inland sea can be said to
have; the question OF safety and shelter in
different places Is only one OF degree and the
word port" which precedes SO many points
on the Sound, might As well be dropped,
since, every shore Of this favored channel
from Townsend to Olympia and also along
Hood canal, one hundred miles long is q
safe harbor. Ii would he difficult to get ut
a sea hard enough to wreck a vessel. II
may be safely asserted that Puget Sound,
the Straits OF Fuca aud the Gulf OF Georgia
are the safest navIgabie waters OF the same
extent IN the world, not only because of su.
Perior natural shelters, but also because
storms, or even hard squalls. are very
rare in this favored section About three
miles across the bay from Port Townsend,
IN a conspicuous position. is Fort Townsend,
military post where the United States
usually keeps couple OF companies of sol.
dasrs. The barracks and parade ground,
which do not occupy over fifteen or twenty
acres. are kept very neatly as is the case
with most military stations. the view ID
line and the hospitality Of Captain Jocelyn
and Lest Truirt snd other officers made
our short stay extremely pleasant; but We
confess that We would not like to 10 coopsd
| up in ssch lonesome place whole winter;