Road Trip 2016 - part 4 Hells Canyon

Leaving Missoula, we headed down Lolo Pass and cruised into Clarkston, Washington. A few years ago my dad was on a guided fishing trip in Hells Canyon, so we wanted to take a jet boat ride. We booked a half day trip with Snake River Adventures and had an awesome day.

We left the dock about 10 am. Our group had about 25 people in it. It was a beautiful day on the river. The boxed lunches were generous, we learned a lot about the history of the canyon and saw some wildife. It was just a great way to spend the day.

Snake River

Rafters

Mirror Image

Mama Bighorn with babies

Chillin in the shade

Gobbler

Petroglyphs

Leaving Clarkston, we headed home. 

Road Trip - Travel

Today was another travel day. We headed out of Twisp on Highway 20. Our day took us through Okanagan, Omak, Tonasket and Republic, where we stopped to eat our leftover lunch. We also took a couple hours to check out the town. It was nice day, and the people were so friendly.

Tonight we're staying in Kettle Falls, on Lake Roosevelt. Many years ago the family spent some time on the southern end of the lake; near Electic City. That's about a hundred miles south of where we are tonight. Lake Roosevelt is over one hundred and thirty miles long!

Road Trip - Winthrop, WA

We spent the day in Winthrop. It's a cute little Old West theme town with a few shops, restaurants and a museum. We wandered through town, ate lunch at the Old Schoolhouse Brewery and then had ice cream. It was so nice to just sit back and relax for the day. Tomorrow we continue east.

Road Trip - North Cascades

We woke up to a few sprinkles, packed up camp and hit the road. Our destination was the little town of Winthrop via North Cascades National Park. I’ve spent lots of time in the Oregon Cascades, so there were times when I felt a little déjà vu.

The weather wasn’t great today. There was some rain and clouds, so the views were a bit obscured. Plus, it’s a long trip in the motorhome, which made for a very long day. We limited our stops in the park to a few scenic outlooks and the visitor’s center.

Road Trip - Mt. Rainier

So, the parents and I took off from home yesterday for a little road trip into Washington. The first jaunt was to the Seattle area, where we spent the night. Today we got up and spent the day exploring Mt. Rainier National Park and the surrounding area.

I love the national park system. I’ve said that before, but I really mean it. Every site has something special about it. Mt. Rainier is big. Really big. And the surrounding landscape is pretty awesome. There are waterfalls, glacier paths and alpine meadows. The weather was perfect. It was the kind of day that photographers love. After a few hours in the park we headed back out the way we came. We had passed a couple interesting looking spots on the way in, and decided to visit. We had to check out the Ashford General Store. It’s got a little bit of everything. I love exploring places like that. Then we stopped at the Ex-Nihilo sculpture park just outside of Elbe, Washington. The artist, Daniel Klennert, asks that you use photos for personal use only. Check out his website. He’s got some really cool stuff and it’s all made from recycled materials.

Another interesting spot we saw was the Hobo Inn and Historic Mt. Rainier Railroad Dining Company. The entire complex is train cars. We chose to try the restaurant for dinner, eating burgers and fresh cut French fries. For dessert we had blackberry cobbler ala mode. It was yummy.

July Road Trip

Sometimes I just feel the need to drive. So, last Friday I packed up the car and headed west to the Coast taking Highway 30 from Portland to Astoria. I'd never taken that route before, and while I enjoyed it, it's longer than taking Highway 26 I think. I stopped briefly in Columbia City to see the Caples House, another of the Oregon Society DAR museums. Further along the way I contemplated taking the Ferry from Westport across the Columbia just because I could, but I didn't want to wait forty-five minutes, so I just stayed on the Oregon side of the river.

In Astoria I went see Fort Clatsop, which is part of the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park. My last trip there was in 1994, and the fort burned a couple years ago necessitating that be rebuilt. It was as I remembered, which was reassuring. I love to visit National Park Service sites.

So, spending the night in Astoria required finding a good place for dinner. Following some signs, I found the Ft. George Brewery. Good beer and good food. It was definitely a good choice. I had the homemade sausage with sauerkraut and fries, complemented with a pint of Divinity.

Saturday
morning I crossed the Columbia and hiked to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. It was cold, foggy and misting rain. Typical coastal weather, but it was a nice mile hike. Then it was back to the car, where I worked my way inland to Bremerton where I caught the ferry to Seattle.

Seattle is a great place to visit, and to all my friends and family there, I didn't call because the trip was very last minute with a very loose itinerary. I only spent a couple hours in town. Just long enough to visit the new (opened earlier this year) Hard Rock Cafe. I like to visit them, have a snack and buy a guitar pin. I have now been to the HRC's in Las Vegas, Louisville, Baltimore, Washington DC, Gatlinburg and Seattle.

It was a good trip, and nice to get away for a little while.

Fort Vancouver & McLoughlin House

You know how people so seldom visit the sites close to home? Today I set out to partially remedy that. I drove north today and visited Fort Vancouver in Washington and then circled around to McLoughlin House in Oregon City. Both sites are part of the Fort Vancouver National Historical Site and they tell an important part of Oregon's history; the time when Britain claimed what is now Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, as well as all of Canada, placed it under control of the Hudson Bay Company with the goal of harvesting as many furs as possible.



British fashion dictated that the most fashionable, and richest, wear firs. Beavers were highly prized for making gentleman's' hats. Hats that cost more than the average working man could make in a single year! Dr. John McLoughlin began his career with HBC as a trapper. He worked his way up in the company and retired as the Chief Factor of the Fort Vancouver unit. As chief factor he was responsible for the well being of not only realizing a profit, but also the well-being of more than 2000 employees and their families spread across the Columbia District.



Dr. McLoughlin was very well known. The HBC had issued a directive that no trading with the Americans was to take place. McLoughlin disobeyed and carried non-repayable debt for many of the pioneers. I think the case could be made that without Dr. McLoughlin, Oregon might still be part of the British Commonwealth.