Road Trip: Maryhill Museum and Stonehenge

Back in October, the family went on a road trip.  It was a week-long road trip through south-center Washington, down into Oregon.  The week was plagued with a few problems - all related to the weather - but considering it was October - we're lucky the weather was as good as it was.  That said, I thought I would share a little of our trip with you.

The first official stop on our road trip was this fabulous place outside of Goldendale, Washington... Maryhill Museum.  Nestled in the hills along the Columbia River, Maryhill Museum sits within the borders of an impressive park-like setting.  The park provides lots of benches and picnic tables for outdoor fun, but to enjoy the outdoor art pieces that litter the grounds.

 Impressive, isn't i? Maryhill Museum of Art was once the home of Sam Hill and was turned into an art museum by Loie Fuller - who filled it will a lot of work by Auguste Rodin.  In 1926, it was dedicated by Queen Marie of Romania (granddaughter of the United Kingdom's Queen Victoria).

Here is a small sampling of the outdoor art scattered throughout the grounds.  When I say "small," I do mean small.  There are dozens of pieces and some are bigger than 20 feet.

And these are the bathrooms.  I know... I know... I'm weird.  But look at these bathrooms.  Tin ceilings, real wood stalls and doors, art deco floor tiles and fixtures.  I found a lot of inspiration in this bathroom.

One of the several exhibits was chest sets from around the world.  Many of those chess sets were hundreds of years old.

My favorite was this chess set.  It reminded me of King Author and Camelot.

Another exhibit was from Africa.  I loved the carving and stylization.  In fact, some pieces reminded me of puppets more than wood carvings.  But, I suppose, puppets could literally be wood carvings.

As we left the museum, I stumbled upon this bronze statue of a heron.  My little family loves heron.  Their isolated lives, graceful flying, and stealthy and cautious approach on the ground is as impressive as their beauty.  So, of course, I had to take this photograph.

About four miles east of Maryhill Museum of Art is a Stonehenge.  Not the real Stonehenge (which you'll find on Salisbury Plain Wiltshire, England), but a replica that was built by Sam Hill.  His replica has Stonehenge as it would most likely have looked when it was originally built.  This one is made of concrete, though, and not the blue stones (among other materials).

Of course, here is Mum trying to photo bomb one of my shots of the very tall outter walls.

This is Stonehenge's view.  Not too shabby.  Here you'll see the Columbia River and either Mt. Rainer or Mt. Hood in the background. 

To give you an idea of just how tall the outer wall is, Mum and Dawn are standing in one of the stone's openings.  They're both 5-foot-7.

This is the heart of the Stonehenge replica.  Unfortunately, Sam Hill mistakenly thought Stonehenge's purpose was for sacrifice and built the sit on that basis (as a tribute to war veterans and their sacrifices).  However, this mistake does not minimize the amazing feat he accomplished.

And finally, here is a few of the inner and outer walls of this structure.  Pretty fantastic stuff and well worth the visit.  If you're interested in paying the place a visit, you may want to hop over to the Maryhill Museum of Art's website.  It will not only give the details about the museum, but also provide information about Stonehenge.

Tomorrow I'll tell you about our next destination... Multnomah Falls, Oregon.