Last day - heading home

Friday July 16, 2010

We had another nice breakfast at the inn. Upon checking out we were given a bag with bottles of water and some mint chocolates (if I remember correctly) inside.

We've stayed in some nice places in our time but for the combination of peace and quiet, comfort, lovely decor, relaxing atmosphere, good food, friendly people, superior service and an outstanding view, the Stephanie Inn might top them all.

We stopped up the road and had a last look at Haystack Rock...

... and The Needles. It was probably just as well it was overcast, otherwise it would have been harder to leave.

After a brief stop at a stationery store in a small outlet mall in Seaside, we carried on to Astoria. I wanted to drive up the coast of Washington part way because I haven't been in that southern corner of the state for a long time.

The 4.1 mile long Astoria-Megler Bridge connects Oregon to Washington over the mouth of the Columbia River.

Once into Washington the scenery almost immediately becomes ugly. In place of soft sand there was dark, boggy looking mud. It looked as if the ground had been gouged by something huge and it felt kind of creepy. I don't remember seeing any birds around and we didn't stop to take a picture. Eventually we veered inland and connected with the I-5. At Maxine's in Marysville we stopped for another inexpensive turkey dinner.

We had to cross the border by midnight because that's when our medical insurance ran out. We were well in time and amazingly got through the border crossing in a mere six minutes!

The End.

North Cascade Highway & a big boulder

Monday July 12, 2010

Washington state does something that I think every state and province should do. They offer 'free' coffee at their rest stops. These are manned booths run by charities so there are donation boxes. The ones we stopped at offered free cookies too. A nice touch.

Driving west, we were now climbing into the mountains where Glenn snapped this picture from the car. The elevation at Washington Pass is 5477 ft.

At some point while driving along the highway, I managed (still can't figure out how) to drive over a shred of tire, a piece of branch/log, I-don't-know-what that made a resounding thunk under the car. We were concerned enough to pull over so Glenn could check the car. It seemed ok so we carried on.

Shortly after, we rounded a bend and saw a huge boulder in the middle of our lane. This wasn't a rock that could be pushed off the road - it must have been 3 or 4 feet in diameter. Glenn said it was as high as the car window as we passed by... but I had other things to look at. The road ahead was straight enough to see that no traffic was coming so I got into the farthest lane while keeping an eye on the smaller rocks still tumbling through the dust down the mountainside, and once I determined that no huge rocks were on their way, I put the pedal to the floor and sped past.

It would have been great to have a picture of that boulder, but we weren't about to stick around and see if a major rock slide would follow. Whenever I saw those "watch for rock on road" signs, I didn't picture a rock that could crush your car or knock it right off the cliff. I'll probably be a little nervous driving through mountains from now on.

Glenn figured the boulder probably rolled down just moments before we got there since rocks were still tumbling behind it. We'll never know if our unscheduled stop saved us from disaster.

It was icy cold in the Cascades. Down near the other side the weather was wet and miserable.

I would have stayed in the warm, dry car if Glenn hadn't told me about this view. Couldn't decide on which picture to use so am including both.

It was 6:00 pm or later by the time we got back to Marysville. We got a room again at the Holiday Inn Express, this time one with a bathtub. Good news - it was about $20 cheaper on a weekday. Then we went to our favourite restaurant, Maxine's, where we shared a good turkey supper for only $8!

The next morning we'd have a long, boring drive down the I-5 to northern Oregon.

Lake Chelan, Washington

Monday July 12, 2010

Lake Chelan looks like a nice resort area similar to towns in our Okanagan. We only stopped for a snack and a browse in a kitchen shop.

All three pictures above were taken in relatively the same spot. I think that's Campbell's Resort on Lake Chelan in the top photo. It has a restaurant with patio seating but we ate down the road at a nice coffee shop / bakery.

It was so windy that we didn't see anyone in or on the water except for a lone wind surfer.

Most of the town looks fairly modern and well-kept (with some nice houses) but there is this old church.

After our break we drove up through Twisp, which did not look too interesting in passing, and Winthrop where the western theme is really played up.

A canyon fire

Monday July 12, 2010

Cherries were $1 a basket in this area so I don't know why we didn't stopped to get some.

It was cooler than the day before and also very windy. Continuing toward Wenatchee we couldn't help but notice a large section of cloud to the left in the otherwise clear sky. Or was it fog? It didn't look right for either. That's because it was smoke. While gassing up in Wenatchee I happened to overhear someone talking about 'the wildfire' and she said it had jumped the highway. It was ten miles north, in the Swakane Canyon. We hadn't heard about it and didn't know that the highway had been closed the day before. Hundreds of firefighters were involved with the fire that apparently covered 20,000 acres. I think it was about 30% contained when we were there.

Our route north would take us right through it... if the highway was open. If not, we'd have to come up with another plan. We saw cars driving the highway so we pressed on. I must say though, it is a little daunting to head into a wall of smoke not knowing how far it goes or if it will bother your lungs. We closed the car's vents and hoped for the best.

Glenn snapped this picture from the car as we slowed down for firefighters who were just ahead on the road and up the slope.

As we drove along we could see some flames on the hilltops. We didn't stop until we were well past the fire, then carried on to Lake Chelan.

Peshastin Pinnacles

Monday July 12, 2010

We had breakfast and checked out of the inn after chatting with the friendly owner, stopped at a small grocery store for water and a box of Rice Chex (can't get them at home) and were on our way. Heading eastward, the land starts to open up. The tawny, velvety hills reminded us of the Kamloops area in the interior of BC. Glenn and I like that dry, open kind of country. It was also similar to our Okanagan Valley for its orchards and wineries. Americans have an Okanogan County, with an 'o' instead of an 'a'. This is a big apple growing area. I read that Wenatchee held the record for the world's biggest apple pie, weighing in at 17 tons.

Before long we noticed some interesting land formations beside the highway. From the net:
Peshastin Pinnacles State Park is a 34-acre desert park featuring a group of sandstone slabs and spires called "the pinnacles." Climbable spires reach 200 feet into the air. Rocks and trails provide views of surrounding orchards, the Enchantment Mountain Range, and the Wenatchee River valley.

The park is two miles east of Cashmere, geographic center of Washington state.

A diagram in the park shows names for the formations such as: Orchard Rock, Grand Central Slab, Martian Slab, Dinosaur Tower, Church Tower, Austrian Slab. There is also a reasonably decent washroom here.

You would think the power lines could have been put somewhere else though, like out of view behind the ridge!

I climbed up the hill and enjoyed the view. The air was warm & dry and there was a strong breeze blowing. The rocks in this park are popular with rock climbers.