CASCADIA–A PICTORIAL PREVIEW
This blog is different from most I write, in that it’s built around pictures and photographs rather than words.
Cascadia, my forthcoming novel, is set primarily along the spectacular and rugged northern Oregon coast. I grew up not far from there in Portland, and I know I didn’t fully appreciate the magnificence of the region until after I’d left and returned for visits.
One of the most iconic features along the Oregon coast is Haystack Rock near Cannon Beach. In the novel, you’ll spend a lot of time around both places, Haystack and Cannon Beach.
Farther north, along the southern Washington coast, you’ll visit a place called the Ghost Forest, integral to the discovery that the Cascadia Subduction Zone presents an immense earthquake and tsunami threat to the PacNW.
You’ll also hike up Neahkahnie Mountain not far from the small coastal town of Manzanita, Oregon. The mountain, according to legend, harbors a cache of gold and silver that has remained hidden for over three centuries.
There are variations on a theme when it comes to the legend. One of them is that a Manila (or Spanish) galleon ran aground along the coast in the late 1600s. Sailors from the wrecked vessel allegedly buried a treasure chest on or near the mountain.
In the book, an elderly man and his best friend, a huge Bernese Mountain Dog, spend their days searching for the rumored riches.
You’ll meet many other unique characters, including some from three centuries past—-a young Clatsop Indian and his father and grandfather. They resided in a small village near the present site of Seaside, and were among the first North Americans to experience a massive quake and tsunami triggered by the Cascadia Subduction Zone.
You’ll tag along with a retired Air Force colonel, once a shit-hot fighter pilot, as he searches for a woman he jilted 25 years earlier. You may not like him initially, but give him a chance.
And of course, you’ll meet Rob Elwood, the novel’s protagonist, a respected geologist who himself is a pilot. Never in his imagination, however, did he think he’d be called upon to attempt the aviation challenges he’s met with in Cascadia. (This is Rob’s plane, a Cessna T182T Turbo Skylane.)
The stories of all these characters swirl together as the novel thunders to its tumultuous conclusion.
Just remember, when you pick up a copy of Cascadia you’ll be embarking upon a journey from which there may be no return.
Buzz Bernard has done it again. He’s taken the “what if” and planted it so deep in our minds that now we are constantly looking over our shoulder for hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards in the south and thankful all of us don’t live on the Northwest coast. Be the first in your neighborhood to grab his books so you can crow about it at the next cocktail party.
Hi Buzz, I would like to know if you would give me permission to use the beautiful photo of Haystack Rock as inspiration for a watercolor painting. I have not been able to get there myself lately and I just love that picture! Thanks for your consideration.