My Seattle friends Deb and Amy treated me to a day trip to Roslyn, WA, also known as “Cicely, Alaska.” It is always such a treat when anyone offers to drive me ANYWHERE, as I am always behind the wheel, missing the scenery as I am too focused on the road… Never mind that I am doing all the navigating, but also constantly scanning for “Who is stopping in front of me? Is the Tracker still behind me? Are there obstacles ahead? Bumps? Railroad tracks? Bridge joints? Deer? Road Alligators?” (tire debris.) So I am always ready to go at the first mention that someone else is willing to drive!

A stop by Snoqualmie Falls…

I had no idea that Roslyn, WA was the actual filming location of Cicely, Alaska, the fictitious town in the TV series, “Northern Exposure.”  I was a huge fan of this show during it’s five seasons, from 1990 to 1995. I even have the first two seasons on DVD. I never missed an episode back then. In fact, it was one of the few programs my “ex” Scott and I actually watched together. He was much more of an “Archie Bunker re-run” kinda guy, whereas I would sneak the remote away and turn to the Travel Channel while he was sleeping. But when it came time for the weekly Northern Exposure series, we were there side-by-side in our twin Queen Anne wing-back recliners. (By the Grace of God, however did I ever escape that??)

I wanted to be Maggie O’Connell, professional Alaskan Bush Pilot, when I grew up. I even sported a super-short hairstyle like hers back then. I don’t think I ever went so far as the down-filled vest, though. Maybe.

Downtown Cicely…er, uh, I mean “Roslyn.” Village Pizza sign is still there…

Roslyn Cafe makes a mean cheeseburger to go along with the local brew.

“Chris-in-the-Morning” was my favorite character. I would swoon whenever he would begin to wax philosophical. A silver-tongued mountain man who loved and lived for music and poetry?….AND lived in an Air Stream trailer?? Ahhh, a man after my own heart…

By coincidence, I had the good fortune to visit Alaska right during the height of the Northern Exposure run. My brother Don, his wife and I went on a 10 day car-camping trip in 1993, visiting Anchorage, Denali, Fairbanks, Homer, and the Kenai Peninsula. We remarked over and over how the “kookiness” of the local residents was spot on. It seemed like every bar we entered (what few and far between there were) was an exact replica of “The Brick,” complete with moose heads and colorful characters.

The Brick, oldest operating saloon in the state of Washington.

Built in 1889, the back bar was shipped from England around Cape Horn to Portland over 100 years ago.

Don’t you think with a few highlights, she would look like Shelly Tambo?

I was surprised by how much the little town of Roslyn still resembles Cicely. The Brick is still there and going strong. The original Village Pizza sign still hangs on Main Street. Dr. Fleishman’s office is now the Cicely Gift Shop. And the “Roslyn Café” mural is as still as big and bright as ever…although now without the possessive apostrophe “s.” The possessive form was added for the show in keeping with the storyline that the town was named after two “free thinking women,” Roslyn and Cicely, ergo the name change to “Roslyn’s Cafe.”

Inside Cicely’s Gift Shop

But conversely, there is not as much hype as one might think. The only references to the show are the gift shop, and a replica of Chris-in-the-Morning’s KBHR (“K-Bear”) studio in the front window of the Roslyn Museum. Given the success of the show, I would have expected more tee-shirts. I did inquire in Cicely’s Gift Shop as to what percentage of tourists are there because of the show, versus those who consider it just a day trip to a funky, old-time mining town. She said the show was making a great resurgence outside the US. Good to see there’s still some accounting for good taste in TV!

“Rain usually makes me feel mellow: curl-up-in-a-corner time, slow down, smell the furniture. Today…it just makes me feel wet. What is it about owning things? Why do we feel the need to own what we love, and why do we become such jerks when we do? We’ve all been there, you know: we want something; we own it; and by owning it we change it. When you finally win that girl of your dreams, the first thing you do is try to change her. That little thing she does with her hair, the way she wears her clothes, the way she chews her gum. Until, eventually, what you like, what you don’t like, and what you change, all merges into one. Like a watercolor in the rain.” ~ Chris in the Morning