Cedar Falls Getaway!!!

Today, I had occasion to visit the City Light generation facility at the Cedar Falls Municipal Watershed: A vast wilderness enclave up in the Cascades that supplies most of the water for the Seattle area.

It's pretty high security, but there were some electrical services to inspect, so off we went in the Prius: Myself, a senior electrical hostess, and a crusty old engineer who has been with The Major Concern since the invention of electricity.

We toured the remains of the original company town, we visited the powerhouse, We looked at the Dam (The Major Concern's original dam!) and it was all quite interesting. The powerhouse, one of those turn-of-the-century industrial brutes, has high palladium windows with absolutely breathtaking views of the forests and mountains. Some of the windows maintain their WWII era coating of black paint, which only serves to remind how dreary the war must have been, even in remote locations like Cedar Falls.

The Penstock Tubes, which carry water from the dam to the powerhouse, run along supports that at points are high above the ground. An open grate walkway runs between them, so you can look down at the river as you walk alongside the gigantic pipes.

But the best part was when we took a side road down to the namesake of the town: Cedar Falls. Despite it being a wet and dreary day, the falls were gorgeous.



But all good things come to an end, and we had to go back to Seattle, where I had to rush down to a dismal new apartment complex, and visit a damaged meter at an adult bookstore in White Center.