We had just spent a few days in Lincoln City, and on the way back there’s a place called Fort Yamhill.

This is part of our Oregon State Park challenge! Check out our progress here.

It’s a pretty interesting walk through history. This is where a garrison of soldiers, isolated from the rest of the U.S. Army during the Civil War, spent a couple of hard winters keeping the peace between white settlers and native Americans.

As we walked the trails and looked at the foundations of ruined buildings, it was easy to imagine being stationed here, nearly going crazy from boredom and hunger. Refreshingly, the story was told from all sides, warts and all; there were accounts from soldiers, settlers, and natives. Well worth a stop if you’ve got an hour to spend.