Camas Washington

Part of the day yesterday continued to be cool and overcast. Much as we were anxious to explore the nearby scenic rivers and gorges, we decided to wait for a sunny day. When the sun did come out the day was already half gone so we decided to tour the small town of Camas. The town is named after the camas lily. However, what dominates this town is the presence of something which I would not put together with the pure whiteness of a lily. I am referring to the presence of the Georgia Pacific paper mill located on the western edge of Camas. I could have taken a picture of its sign which is surrounded by flowering spring plants, but I chose instead to take a picture of its smoke stacks. The mill is quite large and has a very imposing presence in the town. And is not the only one owned by Georgia Pacific. It has other mills located through out the states.

 I did some research on the company and discovered that in the year 2000 it was the fifteenth largest corporate producer of air pollution in the United States. In 2005-2006 Georgia Pacific brought their total releases of chemicals into our environment down by twenty-six  per-cent. And in its defense it is the world's largest recycler of paper waste. The historic part of Camas is mainly one tree-lined street of botique shops, art galleries, and restaurants. It also has a fully restored theater, Liberty Theater, built in the late 1920s. Unfortunately it, and many of the shops in this historic area, are now closed. From this area we walked into the residential area of Camas. There we saw quite a few older homes with gardens which are beautiful now with their springtime flowers.

After climbing one of the higher hills in town we noticed that town does have a pretty setting with the many large fir trees located in the area, as well as the mountains which can be seen off in the distance.

One last picture I took in the town is that of a car repair shop. Its owner must have a sense of humor!