When I was a child, I would lay on my back in the grass envisioning land, with a rim rock above, a river in front and open rolling land between. I drew this picture over and over as a child.

In my mid 20’s my dream resurfaced. I now dreamt of finding land that would feed my soul; Land on a river in the country with wide open spaces, sunshine, and long sight lines.

In 1997, I began my search. One day, I was flying up the Gorge with a friend, telling him about my search, how I had not found my dream property yet. He suggested that I go further up the Columbia on the Washington side. He told me what I was describing existed along that stretch of the Columbia River.

The next week end I drove up to a real estate company in Goldendale. They told me they had nothing like I described, except 420 acres of remote land on the river with no water, no power and no road.

I headed up there. When I pulled onto the property, I saw instantly it was the land as I had drawn it as a child. I had found my dream.

Now to turn it into my home. At first that home was two wall tents; The frequent wind was not my friend. Soon the spring was developed, the first grape vines planted, a road put in, electricity installed, and a well drilled.

Progress slowed through the 2008-2012 downturn, but my vision stayed clear. It was during this time that I built a small home on my land.

What I learned during my journey sculpted who I was, yet I still believed my dream of living on my land full time was in the distant future. However, when the uncertainties of 2020 arrived, I moved onto my land.