You really had to be here to get a sense of what a compassionate, yet strong woman Cathy is. She runs Quilcene's Mount Walker Inn on her own and has faced some incredible hardship along the way. She didn't blink an eye at jumping in her "crummy" to go out to look for me when Kelley told her I'd taken a deep cut to the knee. After getting me patched-up at the fire station, Cathy drove me 50 miles round-trip to and from the Port Townsend Hospital, and waited for me for two hours while I was there. Wait, there's more! When I woke up in my room the next morning, there was a bucket of ice sitting out on the front step for me. Finally, Cathy wouldn't take my money. She wanted it to be a donation for Lindsey. After everything she told me, I understood. But you had to be here. Cathy is quite the animal lover. She has 6 cats, a dog, a horse, a goat, and probably more. The goat has a bad cut that Cathy has to tend to daily. The cats look like they pretty much run the joint. Cathy is saving up and putting money back into the Mount Walker Inn every year. The rooms are clean, comfortable, and a great deal. She lives on the property herself in a nice house overlooking her property. Of all the wonderful things about Cathy, I might have loved her truck the most. She calls it her "crummy". Hey, it got me to the hospital and back, just fine! I've always wanted a crummy. Cathy built a little building out front of the Inn, right on the highway. Her dream is to start a little espresso bar/coffee house there. I think it's a great idea and I hope she does it. If anyone is reading this thinking they might spend the night in Quilcene some day, stay at the Mount Walker Inn and tell Cathy that the guy she took to the hospital who fell on top of his bicycle while walking it onto the Port Townsend ferry sent you.
3 Comments
Ellen
8/16/2013 03:27:36 pm
Spent a wonderful evening with Kelley. She filled us in on your angel Cathy. It's nice to see her photos. The dog, horse, cats and other critters reminds me of the Fredericks zoo. I bet you had a real kinship. All of your photos are fabulous!
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Kelley
8/16/2013 04:14:32 pm
Oh man, love seeing the pictures of Cathy, the angel from Quilcene. I knew there was another reason I loved this woman and now I know why after seeing all of her animals!
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David Strobelt
8/16/2013 11:54:48 pm
Your first day was frickin' hilarious! How could Jeff Fredericks start a journey off from Canada to Mexico any other way other than tipping over (on a seemingly harmless FERRY RIDE)...smashing his leg, gashing his knee...and then spending the rest of the day trying to get stapled, wrapped, wrapped again...driven to a hospital...driven back to the Inn.
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Jeff FredericksOn August 14, 2013, I'm flying to Vancouver, British Columbia and beginning a 29-day, 1,880-mile bike ride from Canada to Mexico. Archives |