North Cascades National Park, WA, Part 1

When Dave and I arrived at Marblemount, WA, on Monday, we headed to the national park in the afternoon.  It wasn't raining then, so we knew we should try to see and do as much as we could.

The visitor's center was our first stop.  We always try to see the movie first, but on Tuesday they were doing a ranger training about bears, so there was no movie.  We came back on Wednesday to see the movie, which had some nice scenery but didn't tell us anything about the park, even when it was established. 

We walked on the short Sterling Munro Trail to the lookout area near the visitor's center.  Even though it was cloudy, we had a spectacular view. 

This is the same view as above, but I focused on the snow and clouds for this photo!

We walked on part of the River Loop Trail, but decided to come back another time when we were wearing our bug spray.  We encountered mosquitoes.  We never did get back to do this trail since it rained all day on Wednesday.

I got my national park passport stamped with four different stamps.  By the way, there is no charge for any part of North Cascades National Park, except for the campgrounds.  Here's a view of the art work located just inside the door of the visitor's center.

We drove further east on Highway 20 and saw the village of Newhalem where the dam workers lived while they were building the dam, and where workers still live.  Then it was on to the waterfall area.

What is it about tunnels?  They always fascinate me!

Gorge Creek Falls as viewed from the trail.

Gorge Creek as seen from the paved Gorge Overlook Trail.

One of the dam powerhouses along Gorge Creek.

This waterfall was across the highway and was very long.  My picture only shows the top fourth of the total waterfall.

And another waterfall run-off from snow melt.  We couldn't stop to get a picture of all the waterfalls that we saw along the highway, but these three were accessible from a parking area.

A view from inside the tunnel.

Even though it rained on Wednesday, we took a drive to see some more of the national park.  I'll share those photos next time.

We're On the Road Again!

Yesterday Dave and I traveled north on I-5 and then I-405 and stayed overnight at Lake Pleasant RV Park in Bothell, WA.  It was a lovely day, but I didn't have a chance to take any pictures.  I've written about this park in the past because it's where we stay when we visit the Seattle area.  The price is $44 per night, but it's a peaceful oasis in the Seattle area.  Their Tengo internet is not adequate, and the 1 hour free per day is not adequate, either.  Dave used the MiFi on his phone to connect to the internet and I made do with the free 1 hour and checking email, Facebook, and blogs on my smartphone. 

Today we headed further north on I-5, past Everett and Marysville, and turned off on Highway 530 at Arlington. After checking my phone's Gas Buddy app, we got gas at a former Shell station at the exit.  Alas, the $3.63 price was for cash only, so we paid the debit card price of $3.73.

See the phone booth at the bottom of the picture?  Does anybody use phone booths any more?

Between Arlington and Darrington, we crossed this bridge and saw some great scenery.  It was sunny when we left Bothell, but cloudy when we turned onto Highway 530. 

Yes, you guessed it!  We reached WA State Highway 20 and headed east to Marblemount and North Cascades National Park.

The collapsed bridge on I-5 at Mount Vernon hasn't been fixed yet (later this week, they say) and we didn't want to deal with taking the motorhome on the detour route, so that's why we got off at Arlington and took Hwy 530 to Marblemount.  We missed seeing the towns of Burlington, Sedro-Woolley, and Concrete.  We really only missed out on seeing Concrete, because we had visited the other two  on previous trips. 

This part of Hwy 20 was new to us, as was Hwy 530.  The Skagit River runs along the Highway 20. 

We are staying at Alpine RV Park, located a couple of miles east of Marblemount.

 

The RV Park has grass sites, as you can see in the picture, which aren't our favorite, especially when it rains and the ground gets soggy.  Our "lego" jack pads are already buried in the grass/dirt.  But the price is right here, at $12.50 per night (Passport America) for full hookups with 50 amp power, free internet, and a two-bar Verizon 3G signal. 

Our destination after we got settled and had lunch was North Cascades National Park, located on Hwy 20, about ten miles east of the RV park.

The weather is still cloudy and it has rained some, with a predicted low of 35 degrees tonight.  Cold temperatures and more rain are predicted, so we'll see how much more of the national park we are able to see from this end of the park.  I'll share my pictures from today's explorations of the national park in my next blog!

Waterloo County Park near Lebanon, OR

When we visited Lebanon, Oregon, during Memorial Day weekend, I went for a walk at Waterloo County Park, located in the tiny village of Waterloo.

The South Santiam River runs along the park.

When I took my walk through the park, there was an antique car club sharing a meal in one of the group picnic shelters.

For a while, I walked along the river path.

Then I walked through the campground.  The park has two camping loops with some partial hookups.  One of the loops is reservable.

The camping prices are a bit high unless you can take advantage of the senior prices.

A recent addition to Waterloo County Park is an 18-hole disc golf course.

The day use area adjoins the camping area and has a playground for kids as well as group day-use shelters.

Pets have their space to be off-leash.

We ride our bikes around the park and go for walks there, but we stay a mile or two down the road at the very fine Mallard Creek Golf and RV Park.  I didn't take any pictures this time, except for the entrance sign.

In Lebanon, I parked at the library and walked in the downtown area.

I found a few houses to take pictures of.

I visited the quilt shop.

The rhodies were still blooming.

Our next trip is coming up shortly.  Stay tuned to see where we go! 

Silverton, OR

I'm way behind in posting my pictures of our trip at the end of May.  Besides visiting the lovely Oregon Garden, Dave and I went for a walk in historical downtown Silverton.

Silverton is known for its many murals.

The four freedoms featuring Norman Rockwell.

"The sky is the limit" features local astronaut Don Pettit.

"Silverton Bob" 

The "Mammoth"  1900-World's Largest Camera

I like to take pictures of interesting houses.

We didn't eat at O'Brien's, so we missed out on the plenteous hospitable cheer.

A little city park next to the river.

Our next stay was an hour south of Silverton at Mallard Creek Golf and RV Park in Lebanon, Oregon.  I'll share my Lebanon pictures in my next blog.