Respite at Maryhill State Park, WA

Dave has a few days off from officiating football, so we drove out to Maryhill State Park to spend a few days.  Now that it's October, Dave's Senior Off-Season Pass is in effect again.  We paid $50 for the season, which lasts until May 1.  The pass allows us to camp at any Washington State Park for $6 a night if we have hookups, and camp for free if we don't have hookups.  It's a terrific deal, but alas, the pass is only available for Washington residents 62 and older.  This park costs $28/night without the senior pass.  We like to use the pass as much as possible in October, because many of the inland parks turn off their water beginning November 1, and don't turn the water on again until March or April. 

Maryhill, located along the Columbia River,  is only two hours east of where we live in Vancouver, and it's one of our favorite parks.  This time of year the park's campground is first come-first served.  We arrived at 4:15 pm on Monday and had no trouble finding a nice big pull-thru where we were able to get a satellite signal.  This park has a lot of large trees, so some sites are more satellite-friendly than others.  Cell service is 2 bars of 1x Verizon service, but that's enough signal to be able to (slowly) use the internet from the comfort of our motorhome. 

Dave woke up this morning with a cold, so we didn't do much today.  Mid-afternoon he felt a bit better, so we went for a short drive east on Highway 14 to John Day Dam.  There were signs pointing to a COE park called Celilo Lake, but when the paved road ended, we turned around and didn't find the park.

John Day Dam

We also saw some buildings that looked abandoned but with several nice signs that indicated that the buildings were aluminum plants.  We spotted some salvage aluminum and a few cars in the area, so maybe that's what was going on.  Don't you hate it when you can't quite figure out what's going on?  That was us today.

Aluminum Plant--abandoned or not?

A view of the Columbia River east of the dam

Two forms of transportation along the Columbia River

We made a quick stop at the Stonehenge War Memorial, which is located just above Maryhill State Park.  It's a fun stop, with a great view of the orchards and vineyards which, with the help of irrigation, grow in this somewhat desolate terrain. 

Stonehenge

A closer view of Stonehenge

A view of the fertile valley below Stonehenge 

Chelan, WA

Highway tunnel along Alt Hwy 97 from Wenatchee to Chelan

We are still staying at Wenatchee Confluence State Park, but today we drove north on Alternate Highway 97 to the town of Chelan and the lake that the town is known for, Lake Chelan.  Someday I'm going to go for a boat ride on Lake Chelan up to Stehekin, but today wasn't the day.  Instead we went on an errand to Walmart, bought some lunch at Subway, and ate at Don Morse City Park beside Lake Chelan.  It was windy and a bit chilly, so we ate in the car. 

Our first view of Lake Chelan from Alt Hwy 97

This city park has a 9-hole putting course, tennis courts, basketball area, playground, skateboard park, and a very nice campground with full hookups and quite a few trees.  Someday we'll come back and stay in this campground for a few days.  In the RV Park Review site, this campground is called Lakeshore Park.

Playground at Don Morse City Park with Lake Chelan and the Cascade Mountains in the background. 

After lunch, we decided to take Highway 97 (not Alternate 97) from Chelan back to Wenatchee.  The Columbia River spans the two highways, so it's a very scenic drive both directions.  The east side, Hwy 97, has more orchards and the west side has more rocky hills. 

Dave told me that we were going to Chelan Falls, so I said, yippee, I like to see waterfalls.  Well, there weren't any waterfalls at Chelan Falls, just a PUD powerhouse.  It had stolen what once was falls.  However, we saw several very nice county PUD parks, one of which we plan to camp in in the future.  Beebe Bridge County PUD Park's address is Chelan Falls, but don't be fooled, there's no falls and no town, unless you count it as a town if it has a post office, which it does.

The powerhouse that stole Chelan Falls

Beebe Bridge crosses the Columbia River near Chelan and divides Hwy 97 from Alt Hwy 97.  Beebe Bridge Park does not have sewer hookups, but it's a lovely park right on the river.  Again, this park has a tennis court with basketball area, a nice playground, soccer and baseball fields.  The best part is that the off-season senior rates are $12 per night, and you don't have to be a Washington state resident to take advantage of these rates.  The regular off-season camping rate is $23 and the summer rate is $28 per night, which is kind of high for partial hookups, but the setting and location of this park is worth a stay.  Here's the review for this campground: Beebe Bridge County PUD Park

There are lots of interesting sights and many parks along this stretch of the Columbia River

Some of the scenery from the road on the way back to Wenatchee

Our final two stops were to check out Daroga and Lincoln Rock State Parks.  Both were nice parks but we liked Lincoln Rock better.  Daroga has camping, but no sites with sewer.  Lincoln Rock has full hookups sites.  Both parks are right on the Columbia River and have lots of amenities like tennis courts, soccer fields, etc.  At Lincoln Rock we saw the following small creatures all over the place, but we couldn't quite figure out what they were.

Marmot, maybe?  Definitely not a squirrel!

Wenatchee, Washington

Thank you very much to all who commented on both sets of my Sophie pictures.  As much as we would like to see our new granddaughter every single day, we thought we had better let the new parents settle into an at-home routine.  We decided to go on a ten-day trip with our motorhome.  Our destination was Wenatchee, the apple capital of Washington state.  Wenatchee is a good six hour drive from our home in Vancouver, WA, a bit further than we prefer to drive in a day, but definitely do-able.

We took Highway 97 north from I-90 to Highway 2, then east to Wenatchee.

The scenery was spectacular while traveling on US Highway 97.  Those are the Cascade Mountains in the distance.

  

One of the highlights of a trip to Wenatchee is staying at Wenatchee Confluence State Park--a confluence where the Wenatchee River meets the Columbia River.  When we arrived yesterday, the sun was out, the temperature was fairly warm, but it was windy as it often is in this area. 

We are taking advantage of the final three days of using our senior resident off-season state park camping pass.  We are camping for $6 per night, but not on weekends in April, and not after April 30--until October, that is, when we'll buy another pass for $50 and start the process again.   As Dave mentioned in his blog, this park is fully booked for this weekend because of Wenatchee's Apple Blossom Festival which starts tomorrow.  When we come back here next week, we will have to pay the regular rate of $28 per day. 

Pull-thru site #13

Our view of the Columbia River

More from Cape Disappointment

I've been lax with my blog posts for two reasons--lack of internet service and rain.  The rain means that I don't have very many pictures to post.  The lack of internet is bearable because we have found three places in town (Long Beach, WA) that offer a good, free WIFI connection (McDonalds, Hungry Harbor Cafe, and Lost Roo Restaurant).  I can also go to the jetty or the boat dock at Cape Disappointment State Park and connect to the internet using my cell phone. 

A morning view from the boat dock

I've realized that as much as I miss having constant internet available, I've become too dependent on checking my email and reading blogs several times a day.  It's kind of liberating to check just once a day. 

One of the tsumani warning signs at Cape Disappointment State Park 

I spent the weekend in Long Beach while Dave made a quick trip home.  The motorhome was parked at Sand Castle RV Park which isn't much of a park, but it is located within walking distance to town, and offers free wifi along with full hookups.  The neighboring RV on our left was very close, but no one was parked on our right side, so we had some breathing room over there.

The drive into the state park

We are back at the state park now and I'm enjoying our last few days here.  On Thursday morning we leave to go visit Jonathan and celebrate his birthday with him on Friday.  We'll get to see his new apartment, the first one he's ever lived in all by himself.

One of the views in the park

Today's rain wasn't quite as annoying as yesterday when it rained all day long.  Today we had some sun breaks in between the rain showers.  Boy, that sun feels good when it's out! 

We're still waiting for news about the birth of our granddaughter, but so far it looks like we will be home in time for the good news!

Cape Disappointment

We get teased when we tell people that we are going to Cape Disappointment.  They say, how could you go to a place with that name?  Well, other people must agree with us, because the full-hookup loops of this park are almost full.  Rain, wind, chilly weather--they don't stop people from camping at this Washington State Park. 

My view of Cape Disappointment Lighthouse while connected to the internet at North Jetty.

The lack of cell signal almost stopped us this time, especially since we are waiting for that oh-so-important call about the birth of our first granddaughter.  If we are willing to drive to where there's a signal, we can still get calls, emails, and read blogs.  So it's not too much of a disappointment to stay at this park.  We'll be here for a couple of weeks.  We're using our senior off-season discount, so the cost is only $6 per night.

Waves and driftwood

Driftwood at Cape Disappointment's Waikiki Beach

On our 3 to 3.5 hour drive from home to Ilwaco, WA, where Cape Disappointment State Park is located, we usually stop half-way at a deer viewing area.  We have never, ever seen deer there!

Fort Flagler (1897-1953)

The rain abated enough to take some pictures of Fort Flagler State Park today.  Due to its location on the northern tip of Marrowstone Island off of Puget Sound, this is a cold and windy area but it is steeped in military history. Fort Flager(1897-1953) was a coastal fort located on Marrowstone Point in Jefferson County, Washington.  The fort was established in 1897 and activated on 27 Jul 1899. It was named after Brig. Gen. Daniel Webster Flagler, Chief of Ordnance, U.S. Army, who died on 29 March 1899.  The fort was closed 7 Jun 1953.

One of the batteries with Puget Sound in the background.

Part of the Harbor Defense of Puget Sound. Fort Flagler, along with Fort Worden and Fort Casey, guarded the entrance to Puget Sound. These posts, established in the late 1890's, became the first line of a fortification system designed to prevent a hostile fleet from reaching the Bremerton Naval Yard and the cities of Seattle, Tacoma and Everett.

Initial construction of barracks and support facilities (12 buildings total) was complete in June 1899 and the Post was activated 27 Jul 1899. The first garrison was a detachment of 86 enlisted men and three officers from Battery B, 3rd U.S. Coastal Artillery. Fort Flagler was made Headquarters of the Harbor Defense Command of Puget Sound because Fort Worden did not yet have permanent facilities complete. On 4 Sep 1904 the headquarters of the Harbor Defense Command of Puget Sound was transferred from Fort Flagler to Fort Worden.

Part of the parade grounds

Looking over the parade grounds, the volunteer campsites have a wonderful view of Puget Sound and the ships that pass by.  Judy, who writes a popular blog called Travels with Emma, volunteered at Fort Flagler for a month when she first started full-time RVing.

During World War I eight of the fort's guns were sent to Europe and converted to field or railway guns and 2 were sent to Canada. After World War I Fort Flagler was used as a ROTC training center. 

Fort Flagler map--click to enlarge

During World War II and the Korean War the fort was used for training in amphibious warfare.  At the end of the Korean War Fort Flagler was deactivated.  The property was purchased by the State of Washington as a state park in 1955.

Henry Bankhead Battery, where outdoor concerts are held during the summer months

Our Fort Flagler State Park campsite has full hookups including 50 amp power.  Because we have a Washington State Parks Off-Season Senior Pass, (available for WA residents only, sorry) we are paying $6 per night for this wonderful, spacious waterfront site.  The regular price is $28 per night.

Fort Flagler campground, site #113

Fort Flagler State Park, Washington

Dave and I have been home from Pismo Beach for 2 1/2 weeks, and I've been itching to get back out in the motorhome again.  After many negotiations with the Norcold, they finally agreed to replace the cooling unit in our motorhome refrigerator.  Now that it's repaired, it's time to take another short trip. 

The weather forecast is for rain, rain, and more rain, but somehow I don't mind the rain as much when we're on a trip and out exploring new areas.  We decided to  drive north to Fort Flagler State Park.  The park has a seasonal camping area that opened up on March 1 and closes again on October 31.  We were here on a day trip last February when we were staying in Port Townsend, and saw that the campground looked like a fine place.  I'll take some pictures if and when it stops raining.  In the meantime, here are a couple of maps to show you where we are.

Washington State

A more detailed view of the location of Fort Flager. 

An online spiel about the fort:

Fort Flagler State Park is a 784-acre marine camping park surrounded on three sides by 19,100 feet of saltwater shoreline. The park rests on a high bluff overlooking Puget Sound, with views of the Olympic and Cascade Mountains. Many historic buildings remain at this 19th-century-established military fort. This historic fort offers gun batteries to explore and guided heritage tours. Panoramic views of surrounding mountains and Puget Sound add to the attractions.

Power? Who Needs Power?

This morning, Friday, just as we were getting up, the power went out.  It turns out that someone had an accident and hit a power pole.  Even though we prefer to have power for our motorhome, we can get by just fine (for a while) without power.

Yesterday we made the 45 minute drive north from Grayland to Ocean Shores.  We are staying at another state park, Ocean City State Beach.  We had a lot of rain yesterday and there were puddles everywhere since this is another older state park which doesn't have sufficient drainage.  But, again, we have full-hooks and are paying the off-season resident senior fee of $6, so we aren't complaining.

Our friends, Charlie and Pam, arrived at the park a couple of hours after we got here.  We visited for a while and then decided to go to Quinault Casino which is located near the state park for their $4.95 dinner special.  The portions weren't large, but were adequate.  We also decided to go back today for the $1.99 breakfast special. 

Quinault Indian Casino in Ocean Shores, WA

This morning after we this area lost power, we were glad that we had decided to eat breakfast at the casino.  The casino didn't have power either, but they had generators going, so the slot machines were all working.  Breakfast was served by candlelight, and the toaster didn't work, but we were served eggs, sausage, and hashbrowns.  Dave won $12 while we waited for breakfast, so he was able to treat us all to the breakfast special. 

After Charlie played some blackjack and Pam won $5 playing a slot machine, we all drove north on Highway 109 to Taholah where the maintained road ended.  We checked out a few RV parks, including two Camp Club USA 1/2 price parks, and enjoyed some views of the Pacific Ocean.

We stopped for lunch at a little place in Pacific Beach.  The weather was so nice today that we were able to eat lunch outside in the sunshine.  Pacific Beach State Park is one of the nicest parks in the state system, located right on the beach.  This park is always full in the summer even though it doesn't have full hookups. 

Charlie places his order at Falcon's Nest

When we got back from our drive around 2:30, the power was back on, so we are once again happy campers!