Our main purpose for stopping here was to visit our wonderful friends, Everett and Nancy. We met them a few years ago in Yuma at the RV resort we now live at. They lead the hiking club, and have a park model two spaces over from ours. They have become good friends of ours.
They invited us over for a delicious dinner on Monday. Nancy is a great cook. They have a beautiful home on a golf course in Meridian. Everett is quite the hunter and showed us his sheep trophies in his office. I know one is from Alaska, another from the Yukon, and I don't remember the rest. The hide is from a goat.
It is high on my bucket list to see Big Horned Sheep in the wild. Over the years, we have hiked in several areas where they can be seen, but no luck. Maybe this is as close as I'll get.
On Tuesday we golfed with them at the course they live on, Lakeview Golf Club. We had a fun time, and really enjoyed the company and hospitality of such a great couple. In fact, we were having so much fun, I forgot to take pictures. That's a shame, as their house and yard are beautiful.
Wednesday morning before we left, we did a quick drive into Boise to visit the Idaho State Capitol building. We don't go out of our way to tour capitols, but if we're nearby, why not.
Although the Idaho Capitol is an impressive building, it was pretty much a ghost town. It was eerily quiet and empty. We found the visitor desk, but it was unmanned. There was a brochure that said a free tour booklet was available at the gift shop. The sign on the gift shop door said they open at 9:30 am. We were there ten minutes after, but it was closed up tight.
We wandered around on all four levels. The rotunda is impressive with a huge Idaho flag hanging from the top. No paintings or murals though. Most other rotundas we've seen are more decorated.
The walls, stairs, and floors are made of four types of marble. The 219 pillars look and feel like marble, but are artificial. Really pretty and impressive. I did a little research and discovered this building was completed in 1920 at a cost of $2 million. It was restored in the early 2000s. The bronze eagle on top is nearly six feet tall.
Wednesday was another new state for us. We have never been to Oregon. One thing I really noticed in both Idaho and Oregon were the many rose bushes. Absolutely beautiful!!
We drove to Farewell Bend State Park in Huntington, Oregon. Although we had a pull through site, it was tight getting out of it because the end of it was on a turn in the road. There are seven foot tall bushes all along the sides of the roads. This park is on the Snake River and was a wonderful setting. However, it was very much in the middle of nowhere. At our site we had no TV or cell signal. That rarely happens. No problem for one night. I was amazed at how mountainous Eastern Oregon is, part of the Cascade Range.
Thursday we arrived in Washington State. We spent a week in Seattle in April of 2010 with our boys on a family vacation, but this is the first time we'll be here with our RV. More hills and mountains. We stayed at Yakima River RV park in Ellensburg, west of Yakima. The views of the Stuart Range were fantastic. This was a no frills, very clean, park; but perfect for an overnight.
A short walk down the entrance road is the Yakima River.
Yesterday we arrived at Pleasant Lake RV Park in Bothell, Washington where our fifth wheel will be until July 8th. This afternoon we put it in storage here at the park, and begin our Alaska adventure. This park caters to RVers travelling to Alaska, allowing you to park in the storage area and keep your refrigerator plugged in for $10 per night. We return from Alaska on June 23rd, and then plan to explore northwestern Washington State for 2 weeks.
I must say that the scenery all the way from Yuma to Bothell has been amazing. So many beautiful sites all the way, with hills, mountains, lakes, rivers, open range and forests.
We are very excited for our Alaska trip!! I will probably do some Facebook posts on the trip, but no blogging until we return.
Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!
