“The Fog”
Does anyone remember the 1980 horror film, “The Fog?’ I had a remarkable spooky experience last weekend. As my friend and I were returning from a trip to Portland back to Central Washington, we decided to take a little side trip to the metropolis of Bickleton, WA. We headed up the Roosevelt grade from the Columbia River. I was expecting some very interesting scenic overlooks as we drove up the switchbacks, but is wasn’t meant to be. Quickly after we started climbing up the grade, a thick fog engulfed us. I could see only about 20 feet ahead of me. Curves on the switch back were difficult to see. We crept along going about 15-20 miles per hour following two large trucks. I was hoping that another vehicle would not race up and rear-end us. My driving partner was a little relieved, she could not see the steep grades sloping down toward the river. All we could see were the lines on the road. Our gas level was getting low!
We finally reached the top of the grade and drove into Bickleton. It was like a ghost town. The town’s few buildings were all closed up. There were no signs of inhabitants. No gas here, we decided to drive on. About 10 minutes later, without any warning, we jetted out of the fog onto a wide open plain. It was bright and beautiful. We drove a couple of minutes, then looked back and saw the huge thick bank of fog from which we had emerged. I quickly stopped the car, got out, and grabbed my camera to try to record the sight. Too, slow … the fog was rapidly coming toward us. It engulfed us before I could click the shutter. I felt that I was being swallowed by the creeping fog.
We drove several minutes more and emerged from the fog again. We drove a mile or two this time before we stopped to photograph “The Fog.” This time, I was able to capture a few images of the moving fog. We quickly got out of “The Fog’s” path before it could engulf us again.
P.S. We made it to the next little town, Mabton, got gas, and then made it safely home. It was an interesting drive!