Our New Spot At Lake Pleasant

Today our new spot at Lake Pleasant became available.  It was sunny, if not warm and tomorrow is predicted to be wet again.  I checked with the office and was cleared to move so I got my neighbor to help me with the backing.  Unlike spot we have been in the last two months this is one we can stay in year round so I guess you could call this our permanent spot.  It is in a quieter part of the park and our back yard is right on the lake.  Above picture shows coach parked but not set up yet.

 Welcoming Committee in our new back yard.

 Set Up, at least on the outside.  The inside is another matter.

Walking Away From the Seahawks

We tried to stick with the Seahawks today but their offense, if you could call it that, was terrible.  On top of that there was this strange, bright orb in the sky and it warmed up to the upper 50's so we went for a nice walk through the state park to the beach and back.  Also got a chance to play with the telephoto lens a little.  Not very many people at the park today.

Birch Bay

After almost 3 weeks back at Lake Pleasant, and with the fall weather getting colder and wetter it was time to get Norv back on the road.  We made the two hour trip up to Beachwood RV park at Birch Bay where we will spend a few days not doing very much.  We scored a nice level site with 50 amps and room for the truck! 

Last Post for Fall Trip

Last look at Icicle River

Stevens Pass and ski area up ahead.

Back on the West Side

After our trip back from Leavenworth and two nights in the Tulalip Casino parking lot it is now October 1st and we are back in our winter home at Lake Pleasant.   It has been a very good shake down cruise and we are thrilled with how the new coach did our first time out.  We are also glad to be settled in for a while at Lake Pleasant although it would be even better if we were heading south for the winter. . . .

Leavenworth Continued

 These two pictures are of Icicle River at the RV park where we are staying.

 Salmon change color as the move up river to spawn.  I never realized how much

 they changed color or how big they got.

 ...not to mention aggressive!

Things were a bit more sedate in downtown Leavenworth.  This coming weekend is the beginning of OKTOBERFEST and the city is getting ready.  Probably a good thing we are leaving.  Arlyene might get carried away.

The Queen, Miss Gizmo was waiting for us when we got back.

When we went for our walk this morning we ventured over the hotel named "Sleeping Lady" which is very close to the campground.  This is a very cool place, open year round.  On the grounds are various sculptures and some great views of the river.

Mid 70's and clear here today.  Very pleasant.  Will be headed for Tulalip tomorrow.

Leavenworth, WA

Orchards along the Columbia River

Part of the Rock Island Dam on the Columbia.

We made it safely to Leavenworth, WA about 3:30 and are settled in.  It was about 230 miles and 5 hours from Coeur d'Alene including a short stop for fuel and another for lunch.  It is raining so we are going to just stay in the coach the rest of the day.  Tomorrow we will go into town and do some walking around.  Apples and Pears are being harvested locally now so we will also make a visit to a local fruit stand.  Hopefully I will have some more interesting pictures to post tomorrow.

Coeur d'Alene

Mostly just puttered Saturday.  It was close to 90 all afternoon. Arlyene cooked a great dinner for David and Colleen's visit in the evening and we had a good time.   We have clouds this morining and it is much cooler.  Possibility of thunder storms.  Heading into downtown today to check out the waterfront and the Olive Oil shop.  (That's olive oil as in cooking - can you visualize a shop based on Popeye's girfriend?)

Tomorrow we head for Leavenworth, for three nights.

SE Spokane County Fair, Rockford, WA

Two Tractors from the 30's.

Drove to Rockford, WA to visit with good friends David and Colleen Lura and attend the county fair there.  Saw cows and sheep and chickens and rabbits, lots of home made stuff for sale and a couple of 30's era tractors.  Had a great dinner at the Lura's and looking forward to having them visit us here in Coeur d'Alene for dinner aboard Norv.

Lewiston/Clarkston back to Coeur d'Alene

Note burned off field on the left compared to field on the right.  Ignore the dead bugs on windshield.

We made the 112 miles trip from Clarkston/Lewiston back to Coeur d'Alene today in good time through Idaho wheat country.  We are back at the same park where we stay on our way to Glacier National Park.  We will be here for four night and are looking forward to staying put for a few days.  Our parking spot looks out on the Spokane River right where it begins at Lake Coeur d'Alene.  From Wikipedia -"The Spokane River drains the northern part of Lake Coeur d'Alene in the Idaho Panhandle, emptying into the Columbia River at Lake Roosevelt, approximately 180km downstream.  

Tomorrow we will be driving back down to Rockford, WA to visit with our good friends David and Colleen Lura and have dinner with them.  Saturday they will be coming up here to have dinner with us.

Lolo Pass and Canyon and the Clearwater River

 The only Moose we saw was a little tiny stuffed one in a gift shop.

 Note snow depth marker in background.

 Loved the Lewis and Clark connection and the history in this area.

 Clearwater River in Lolo Canyon.

 Premier RV Park in Clarkston, WA.  and......

...our waterfront view out the windshield of the Snake River.

Drove Highway 12 from Missoula to Lewiston/Clarskston today.  A five hour drive over two lane highway for abut 230 miles.  Pooped but glad we took this route.  It is full of Lewis and Clark history as well as the Nez Pierce Indians.  The highway crosses the Bitteroot Mountians at Lolo Pass.

From Wikipedia - "The Clearwater River is a 74.8-mile-long (120.4 km)^[1] river in north central Idaho, which flows westward from the Bitterroot Mountains along the Idaho-Montana border, and joins the Snake River at Lewiston. In October 1805, the Lewis and Clark Expedition descended the Clearwater River in dugout canoes, putting in at "Canoe Camp," five miles (8 km) downstream from Orofino. By average discharge, the Clearwater River is the largest tributary of the Snake River, although the Salmon River is longer and drains a greater area."

Wish we had more opportunities to stop but Norv is a bit too big for many of the historical sites, which were mostly on the other side of the road anyway.  The weather was GREAT!.  All the rain and nasty stuff from yesterday was gone and we had clear skies and sunny weather.  Ended the day in T Shirt and shorts sitting by the river.  We are going to spend two nights here before heading back up to Coeur d'Alene.  Hope to get both the coach and the truck washed tomorrow. 

Camp Jellystone

Everbody loves Yogi and Bo Bo. . . . .

. . . . EVERYBODY!!

After a wet and windy 3 hour/142 mile drive down from Glacier National Park we made it to Camp Jellystone.  Not much going on here and it looks like Bo Bo and the gang have all left town or gone to hibernation  The only one left here is Yogi.  He'll be going in to hibernations at the end of October when the park shuts down for the winter.

After fueling up in the morning we will head for Lolo Pass and follow the Lewis and Clark trail down Lolo canyon to the Lewiston/Clarkston area where we will spend two nights.  That's about all the news for today.