road trip

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 5

Posted on August 6, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Kamploops, BC Monday August 5

Glaciers along Duffy Lake Road in Coast Mtns

Today is BC Day in British Columbia. As far as I can tell it is mainly a day off from work and a chance for a long weekend. There does not appear to be any major events going on. A little research suggests it was made a holiday becuase all of the other provinces had one for the first weekend in August and so BC made one and dedicated it to the pioneers of the province.

We are doing our part by touring some early mining areas of the province. We left Whistler for Kamloops via the Sea to Sky highway which converts into the Duffey Lake Road, part of the Coast Cariboo Scenic Drive. (More simply, it is highway 99 from Whistler to Cache Creek.)

Along Duffey Lake Road in Coast Mtns

The road brought us back to mountains, forests, rivers and curvy two lane roads. Small waterfalls would pop up unexpectedly. Colorful wildflowers returned.

The bicyclists diminished after Whistler which is good because the shoulders are usually narrow. First Nations lands frequent the route. Services along the Duffey Lake Road are lacking for about 100 km; we gassed up the car and ourselvevs in the town of Pemberton before heading to Lillooet. This was the most scenic section of the road.

Driving to Kamloops

Lillooet had been the source for mining great quantities of jade. Japanese settelrs were responsbile for some of that and for the exporting of it to the East where it is prized. The town has numerous large jade rocks on display along the main street. Unfortunately it was also an internment center for Japanese Canadians during WWII.

Jade in downtown Lillooet

Lillooet has a long history with native populations for salmon fishing and was an early starting point for the Fraser River gold rush. This gold rush was a major factor in the settlement of this part of the province by Europeans.

As we left Lillooet, our drive returend to scenery not unlike other valley locations. Semi-arid land except when irrigated. High peaks to mountains on either side. A rushing river or large lake along the route. A hydro power dam. Train tracks paralleling the road.

We arrived in Kamloops in mid-afternoon. A relatively short driving day but the lodging options between Kamloops and Jasper are not numerous and we did not wish to make the drive to Jasper one without time to savor the sights.

Ed and Chris August 6 7:30 am

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Duffey highway, Duffy Lake Road British Columbia, Jade, Lillooet | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 4

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Whistler, August 4, Sunday

In reading travel literature about Whistler, we learned that the Rotary was hosting a pancake breakfast Sunday morning as part of a Bar B Q Competition being sponsored by one of the local bars. We put it on our list and Sunday AM we were the first ones in line for pancakes at 8 AM. The first pancakes were not ready yet and they had to find the money jar to take our cash.

The pancakes were great. However, we did think that there might also be at least a beverage provided, if not eggs or sausage also. Nope, just pancakes-and margarine and syrup and plates and napkins. The Rotary had not put one on for several years so while the food and enthusiasm were very good, the prep was a little lacking.

Lost lake with ski slopes in background

As you might expect,we talked with the people putting the breakfast on and complimented the Rotary for several nice projects we had observed here and elsewhere that had been Rotary sponsored. They did tell us where we could buy milk and coffee so we were able to wash down the pancakes. By the time we left, they had decided to offer coffee and had come up with plans to make it very soon. The size of the pancakes decreased a bit also from the gargantuan ones we were given. The line was a lot longer when we left.

We went to Mass in the local church. The regular Polish priest was on vacation back to Poland and we had a substitute. This was the first dramatic occasion we had to experience the use of the word “eh” in Canadian language. For those of you with strong memories, you might recall that on July 1, Canada Day, we went to a theatrical performance in Canmore called “Canada,eh” where they spoofed various Canadian habits. Evidently the use of “eh” periodically is common in everyday discussion. The priest’s homily was one of those where it was very common. Similar to how the Minnesota long drawn out “oh” in words like Minne’so’ta are spoofed (the actors in the film Fargo are a good example).

Tiny toad trying to cross the road

Our hike for the day was to and around Lost Lake close to Whistler Village. By now the crowds were out, free parking was gone, and we had to pay for the privilege to park. Darn those yoga people anyway.

Out on the trail we observed in person what a newspaper article had written. Tiny toads were moving from one summer location to another. Hikers and bikers were asked to use caution on certain trails so as to not squish the little things. Well the article and the signs on the trail were not too helpful. Most bikers just kept on roaring through the passage areas and we saw more squished toads than jumping toads.

Lost Lake, Dads at left working on grill

Alta Lake, Dads at left working on grill

BUT, Bernie would be proud, we spotted one little mite and guarded it on its passage, slowly, across the path to safety on the other side. Not sure how many we inadvertently squished though. I figured if the savers of the toads were really serious, they would have created little underpasses the toads could use out of wood that we big people could walk over or had volunteers at busy tiny toad crossings to stop pedestrian traffic.

Whistler Village entrance

Lunch was at a golf course overlooking a lake and a wedge shaped mountain that one of the Rotary organizers had mentioned. We spent several hours at Alta Lake near our lodging just relaxing, reading the paper and watching people. Like the dad next to us on the left who was trying to assemble the family’s first portable grill and could not do it. The dad next to us on the right was successfully cooking and eventually went over to help hapless dad but even he was unable to get the new grill fired up. Chris of course wanted me to help but I knew my knowledge level was as small as a tiny toad and I stayed put. Or the roller-blader who was zipping along with his left arm in a sling. Or the family enjoying the water despite the signs warning of swimmers itch. Or the stand up paddlers who knelt more than stood up.

We went back down to Whistler Village center for the evening. They were taking down a dome that had been one of the activity centers so we watched that-exciting huh? The line up at “Cows” ice cream store was out the door so we went to DQ instead. The plaza area was the location of one of the Olympic venues during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics so we took a picture of the rings and the sculpture of the Olympic icon.

Olympic Rings at dusk

Our airbnb lodging here was okay but not fantastic. It is a one bedroom townhouse, no A/C which is normal in numerous mountain locations but since the doors and windows on the other side did not have screens, it was difficult to get fresh air in. The lack of TV does not bother us, we have rarely watched it on this trip. But the lack of Internet was disappointing and expensive. I do not remember if the airbnb description mentioned this. When we met the host on Saturday, she said that it was available at many cafes, etc. But that is not my modus operandi so I suffered a bit.

Ed and Chris August 4 8:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Whistler British Columbia | 2 Comments

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 3

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Whistler, BC, Saturday August 3

The Mill at Britannia Mine, this concentrated the ore into marketable product for smelters

We checked out of Vancouver and met our airbnb host in a church parking lot in West Vancouver. We will be staying in a townhouse which is the family’s second home in the Whistler area.

Part of Sea to Sky road, Howe Sound as seen from Britannia mine

Our drive to Whistler is short, less than 100 miles. Once again the road is portrayed as “one of the most scenic drives in the world” and is called the Sea to Sky Road. This time the approbation is appropriate.

View from Sea to Sky road

View from sea to Sky

The road varies from two to three to four lanes so you are not stuck behind a slow moving vehicle for long. The asphalt is smooth, the hills and curves pleasant and not overly steep or sharp. Importantly, there is almost always a wide shoulder able to accommodate the numerous bicyclists.

The view starts with the Howe Sound on our left and mountains on both sides. Even though the marine layer of clouds is low, the combination of water, mountains, forests and clouds are very scenic. The water view continues as the sound drops away and the Squamish River takes its place. As we go further inland, the clouds lift and the skies clear. The road does not have many viewpoints and stopping on a shoulder for pictures is forbidden.

Inside Britannia mine

Britannia Beach is our first stop, at the Britannia Mine Museum. This mine, closed in 1974, was once the largest producer of copper in the British Empire. It also produced gold, silver and zinc. The only way to reach it until the 1950s was by sea.

The “honey pot”

Britannia was a true company town. You did not get off the dock if you did not belong. You bought from the company store and if you were fired, you were kicked out of the community. No union existed until World War II. The people were close knit except for the discrimination dished out to the Japanese not may Chinese were in the area.

Inside the mill, not all of it is visible.

We toured part of the underground tunnels using a mine car and walking. We heard the sound of the drills that had been used and found it hard to believe men worked without hearing aids for many years. The silicosis in their lungs from the dust killed many of them. We got to see the ‘honey pot’, the rolling toilet on wheels that would be brought to them twice a shift. All in all, a worthwhile experience.

Shannon Falls was to be our second stop, but with the time we spent at Britannia, the parking lot was full and there were cars waiting for an opening to occur. We turned around and headed for our next stop, the upper viewpoint at . This was just a brief picture-taking opportunity and then we pulled in to Brandywine Falls which were a pleasant hike through the woods. Brandywine is only a 100 feet or so,Shannon Falls was 1,000 feet. Oh well, we will see higher falls later going to Jasper.

Brandywine Falls

We arrived in Whistler with enough time to make it to the visitor center and walk around one of the town centers. Lo and behold, (actually we knew about it a few days before) the “Wanderlust” festival was occurring in downtown Whistler. This is a 3 day yoga, music, and meditation festival.

We watched a group yoga session of several hundred people and a couples yoga session. Some men and lots of women were participating so Bernie and Tony could come some time. Or, Bernie could do yoga and Tony could watch.

Couples yoga and impromptu yoga practice

Whistler town center was busy, women in bright pink or lime green tops were everywhere. It must be the standard color for yoga. People were carrying their yoga mats attached somewhere to their body as they walked or biked around town.

Dinner was at Earl’s, a regional Canadian chain. We had seen them before in several towns but this was our first time dining at one. Pleasant, but nothing to make a special trip for.

Ed and Chris Monday Aug. 5 4:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Brandywine Fall in British Columbia, Britannia Mine, Whistler | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 2

Posted on August 4, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Vancouver, Friday August 2

Chinatown gate

I spoke too soon yesterday. The rains came today, although more of a drizzle than a downpour. We broke out the umbrellas and had our jackets so the walking was not a problem.

Our primary activity today was the visit to Chinatown, in particular the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. This was the first such garden built outside of China. It is modeled on the type of garden/home that would have belonged to a scholar during the Ming Dynasty era, the 1500s.

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden

Our docent (Thomas) gave a very enlightening talk. You know I am not a feng shui type of person but he explained many elements that went into building the garden. The trees complement each other, the circle and square openings each have their purpose. The stones in the walkway represent ancient life meanings, etc.

The garden was modeled on a traditional garden in Suzhou, which would have been comparable to Venice during the Renaissance era.
The garden was built by 53 master craftsmen from China. The building was constructed in the traditional methods of the 1500s, no screws, nails, etc. The wood carving was detailed but not ostentatiously elaborate.

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden

A “scholar” in the 1500s was at the top of the pecking order and the garden allowed for reflection, public meetings, and private time. A scholar reached that pinnacle through study and had to be re-tested and re-certified every five years.

This being a rainy day, the docent explained that the weather in Vancouver (frequently gray, wet, and mild in climate) was not that different than Suzhou. The walkways had overhangs so you could walk without getting wet. Water is an important element in Chinese art and culture so the garden and rainy weather are good companions.

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden

At the end of the walk, they served us tea and Chris had an opportunity to talk with a woman from Rochester NY who is traveling around Canada. She is retired and has had some fascinating experiences, including time in Thailand at a yoga camp and elephant refuge.

We walked by another welcoming gate and the world’s narrowest building–6 foot. It does extend for a full city block. Our walk next led us to Gastown, the original part of Vancouver. As you might expect, the area had its beginning due to a man who set up the first saloon, Gassy Jack, which attracted the miners, lumbermen, mariners, etc. We had to make our way through Vancouver’s skid row district going between Chinatown and Gastown.

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden

Lunch was in Gastown. We ate at a cafe across the street from the Steam Clock. There are only two in the world, this is the original. It is powered by steam used to heat buildings in the downtown area. Steam erupts every 15 minutes and on the hour the steam plays Westminster chimes. Tourists, like us, flock around waiting for it to go off.

Gastown is a trendy area with shops, bars, and restaurants. Once again, our penchant to keep our money in our own hands meant we did not spend an inordinate amount of time here.

Steam Clock in Gastown

Our final stop was at Bill Reid’s gallery. We had discussed going to the Vancouver Art Gallery (Museum) but at $20 a head, we thought it a bit pricey. The Bill Reid is small and focuses on the art of the Northwest and First Nations. It was so-so.

We came back to the apartment and are spending the rest of the day in detailed planning for our next week and broad brush planning for the trip to Upper Michigan in early September.

As in any large city, there are other attractions in Vancouver which we did not see. They will have to wait for another adventure. The downtown traffic has seemed very slow at any time of the day, so walking rather than driving has been a wise decision.

Ed and Chris August 2 9 pm

Evidently this did not get published Friday night. Sorry about that. Ed Sunday 7:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: BC, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, Gastown Vancouver, Vancouver | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 1

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Vancouver, BC August 1, Thursday

Aquabus at False Creek marina

We are spending the day in downtown Vancouver. We are walking to locations, our airbnb host Lili’s apartment is centrally located for our activities. We have been eating in for breakfast and dinner, using MarketPlace grocery here in the downtown for our meals.

Granville Island juxtaposition; sculpture,grain elevators, highrises

We have not been everywhere and won’t be but our impressions of Vancouver are positive. It seems younger than many cities. The Asian influence is strong. The downtown is active and lively, much more so than Calgary.

art students trying to sell their work

Vancouver has been having beautiful weather in July although they say the first half of the year was consistently gray and/or wet. It is temperate like Victoria, snow in the town is rare although the mountains north of the city receive snow regularly in the winter.

Biking is very popular here, the temperate weather may be a factor. In the downtown area, there are frequent bike rental shops and not only do they have marked bike lanes, on some streets the bike lanes are separated from traffic by concrete curbs and/or concrete planters. Traffic is hectic. New building construction is frequent.

View of apartment

We spent several hours at Granville Island, south of our apartment, getting there by means of a quick “ferry” boat ride. The ferry is more like a large water taxi that goes around False Creek which separates the island from downtown. Granville Island is a redevelopment project that seems to be working. What was an old manufacturing area now combines manufacturing, artists and artisans, shops and restaurants and a small art college. The Emily Carr University of Art and Design is named for a Vancouver artist much loved in the area. The students were sponsoring a festival of their art work in a part of the island.

Float plane terminal

Given our proclivity for shopping, we did not enhance the economy much, other than lunch and a post card. I even turned down a chance to buy a chocolate mousse and bring it back to the apartment since I worried the walk might warm it up too much.

Canada Place was our next stop. This is north, on Burrard Inlet. Cruise ships dock in this area and it is not far from Stanley Park. The Olympic Cauldron from the 2010 Olympics is located here, as is the Convention Center.

Olympic cauldron from 2010 Olympics

We watched the float planes land and depart on the Inlet. Commuter planes fly out of here on a regular basis. We did not see a control tower but the landings and take-offs appeared to be coordinated.

We must be easily identified by type. Two young women in short skirts were approaching people and handing out free drink tickets to a new bar in town. They passed us by, not once but twice in two different locations at Canada Place. Hurts our pride but we probably would not have used them anyway.

On the way back to the apartment, we stopped at a cupcake store for dessert. Very tasty.

Tomorrow is Chinatown and Gastown. Vancouver’s Chinatown is the second largest in North America. We leave Saturday morning and will miss the Pride Parade which is being held on Sunday. It is supposed to be the fifth largest in the world. Last year they had over 600,000 spectators.

Ed and Chris August 1 9:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Canada Place, Granville Island | Leave a comment

Trip Six, The Northwest, July 31 B

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Wednesday, July 31

Sunset over English Bay, Vancouver

boats waiting for fireworks to start

This is a brief, follow up post for Wednesday. We spent the evening at the Honda Celebration of Light on the Vancouver waterfront. Not knowing how large the crowds would be, we left earlier than we had to but such is life.

We sat next to a woman who was a retired nurse from Vancouver who assured us the view from this location would be great. We spent the waiting time swapping tales and learning info about Vancouver and her travels. It made the wait go faster for her and for us.

fireworks 1

fireworks 2

We could hear music from a band playing farther down the beach in a more crowded area. We watched a prop plane perform aerial acrobatics. We watched the crowd grow and the boats of all sizes gather in the bay. There were kayaks, canoes and stand up paddlers among the boats which ranged from small fishing boats to yachts.

The Celebration of Light is put on three different nights, each one by a different country. The UK was last Saturday, Canada tonight, and Thailand next Saturday. Judges evaluate the fireworks and the coordination of music that is played also.

Fireworks 3

Fireworks 4

The Canadian show was quite good, the music coordination made it more interesting. The performance lasted 25 minutes which is long for fireworks but the fireworks themselves were not overwhelmingly spectacular. Still we are glad we chose to make sure we were in Vancouver for this.

Fireworks 5

Fireworks 6

Ed and Chris August 1, 4 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: fireworks, Honda celebration of Light | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 30 and 31

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Vancouver, BC, July 31

Fish ladders at Rocky Reach dam

In case you were wondering, we made it through customs smoothly. It did take 30 to 40 minutes this time, which was the same amount of time for everyone else. Except, of course, those people who justifiably use the Nexus lane.

Tuesday morning we left East Wenatchee around 8:30 AM. Before driving to Vancouver, we made a stop at another Hydro electric dam. Rocky Reach dam has a fish ladder built into the facility. This was the first one we had seen. It has fish viewing windows where you can watch the salmon swimming upstream.

At sea walk, Stanley Park

The fish ladder is constructed of 100 pools, each is one foot higher in elevation than the one before it. The viewing windows allow you to see the salmon fighting the current as they move back to their spawning grounds. We also walked over to the Museum of the Columbia which was housed in another part of the facility. It gave a very nice portrayal of geology, human development, exploration, and the impact of hydropower. Most of it was not new information and we did not spend a lot of time in the museum.

Totems at Stanley Park

We finished the southern section of the south Cascades loop by taking U.S. highway 2 west to interstate 5. As mentioned in the previous blog, we drove over Stevens Pass. For a traveler today, Stevens Pass is mainly anti-climactic. It may have been the site of great efforts for the early railroad, but there is no marker or pullover, you just keep driving.

Our arrival in downtown Vancouver was delayed due to urban rush hour traffic. Lili, our airbnb host met us and led us to a close parking lot. We are in downtown Vancouver, close to urban amenities. We have a very nice one bedroom apartment with kitchen and living room-and bath. The building was an office building but was converted to residences 15 years ago.We spent the evening buying groceries, eating, running errands, and getting organized.

Sea walk

Wednesday we spent hours walking around Stanley Park. This large park is on a peninsula jutting out into the water and has a 5.5 mile seawall walk that we took. Since we had to walk to the seawall and back again, we figure today’s walk was a good 8 miles. Good??

Stanley park is a very popular walk/bike/roller blade location. The views switch from downtown Vancouver to industrial and marine terminals, to the Georgia Strait with 10 freighters waiting for their docking space to become available, and then the south side of Vancouver across more water.

Penguin looking cairns

The park also is home to yacht and rowing clubs, rose gardens, a zoo, etc but we primarily did the seawalk. On a portion of the walk, there was a collection of cairns, those rock “sculptures” that seem to be everywhere nowadays.

Vancouver is a city of over 600,000 people and a greater metro area of 2,500,000. We will be going to the Honda Celebration of Light at 10 pm tonight, held at English Bay, probably less than a mile from here. (More walking.) We will send those pictures as a separate post.

Ed and Chris July 31 6:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Cascades loop, Rocky Reach dam, Stanley Park | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 29

Posted on July 30, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

East Wenatchee, WA July 29

Chris proposed it. Chris completed it. Chris did not complain about it.

Portion of Apple Capital trail along semi-arid grass land

Crossing over the Columbia RIver on the trail

IT was the 11 mile Apple Capital Recreation walk, a loop along both sides of the Columbia River encompassing a wildlife refuge, urban landscaped walkways, and semi-arid grass lands connecting East Wenatchee with Wenatchee.

We started at 8:30 am with temps in the high 60s and finished at 2 pm with temps in the high 80s. The cooling breeze was gone within an hour or two.

A few stops were included. A PBJ sandwich for lunch stop. A detour, mileage over and above the 11 miles, into downtown Wenatchee for a milkshake and malt at the Owl Fountain Shop, and finally a stop at the new indoor market, Pybus Market.

Trail through wildlife refuge

Sculpture along urban portion of trail

The Owl Fountain Shop was started in 1898. The shake and malt were large enough to fill your old style fountain glass three times. No wonder I like malts more than a dish of ice cream.

The trail was well used by hikers and bikers. Not too many Spandex bikers, mainly recreational bikers. A large percentage used the trail for only shorter segments, except for bikers.

Landscaped urban portion of trail

As you might expect, we were pretty proud of ourselves. For some of you, an 11 mile hike is minor but it still constitutes a major effort for us. It helped us that we did not have to worry about bears on this trail.

Well a good hike like that deserves a nap afterwards and we did not deny ourselves. For dinner, we drove to Leavenworth, WA, a town, like many here, founded as a lumber town and served by the Great Northern Railway. Part of the effort made by the Great Northern in constructing its line to the West Coast involved a major pass west of Wenatchee and Leavenworth, the Stevens Pass.

Leavenworth WA

Leavenworth, WA

The line was completed in 1893 and was considered an engineering marvel for its use of bridges and tunnels to effectively cross the Cascades. The Stevens Pass line was later replaced with a lower elevation line and is now the bed on which Highway 2 that we will be taking tomorrow to Vancouver is built. The pass has been the site for several deadly avalanches killing over 100 in the early 1900s when two trains were pushed off the track and killing three skiers just last year.

Leavenworth was a switching yard for the Great Northern and later the Burlington Northern. In the mid 1950s BN moved its switching yard to Wenatchee where trains were prepared for the trip over the mountains. Leavenworth began to deteriorate. The local government decided to try to increase tourism by re-making the town into a Bavarian themed community. It worked and is a pleasure to visit. We stopped at a German restaurant and had German food listening to live accordion music.

View from patio Sunday night

View from patio Monday night with increased smoke from fire

On the way home, we noticed a major increase in smoke. There had been reports of a forest fire south of Wenatchee. Evidently it has become much worse. We are including a picture from last night and one of tonight. Tonight’s you can not see the hills and mountains across the river. Glad we were able to take our hike when the air was breathable.

Ed and Chris July 29 10:30 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Apple Capital Recreation Trail, East Wenatchee, Leavenworth, WA | 2 Comments

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 28

Posted on July 28, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

East Wenatchee, WA Sunday July 28

Working hard on this post, Cascade Mtns and Columbia River in background

As the sun sets over the Cascade Mountains, I am dictating/typing this in the town of East Wenatchee, Washington at the home of our airbnb host on a hillside above the Columbia River. It has been a warm day but the evening breezes are cooling it down.

It is not a long drive from Mazama to E. Wenatchee. We took our time and enjoyed the sights. As mentioned in yesterday’s post, we are in a valley area between the mountains. We followed the Methow River until it joined the Columbia River.

Lake Chelan

We stopped at an overlook at one of the other dams on the Columbia River. There are eight power producing dams in the state of Washington and they generate over 21,000 MW of power. Hydro power produces 50-85% of the power here and this keeps the cost of electricity low.

This valley is a major fruit producing area. They proclaim thenselves the apple growing capital of the U.S. Vineyards and wineries are around every corner. The irrigation makes most of this possible. Numerous fruit stands are along the roads. Since we will be entering Canada shortly, we pass by the opportunity to purchase any fruit.

fruit in the fields of Blueberry Hills Farms

There is another large and deep lake in this region, Lake Chelan, supposedly the 5th deepest at 1500 feet. Boating is a major recreation activity on the lake. A boat trip up the lake to a remote portion of the North Cascades National Park is available. We decided against it. It is expensive and most of the day is consumed by traveling up and down the lake-which is 51 miles long.

By one list, we have been to the 5 deepest lakes in the U.S. Crater, Tahoe, Chelan, Superior, and Pend Oreille (ID). Not all were on this trip, however.

Some of Grampa’s stuff

We explored the southern end of Lake Chelan and had lunch at a local fruit farm/restaurant, Blueberry Hills. Besides food, Chris had a great blueberry shake and I had a very tasty piece of apple pie.

Blueberry Hills is a family operation located on the original homesite of the farm. The Barn has been converted into the restaurant and decorated with items from Grampa’s shed. Think 200 pairs of old glasses. A tin can collection. Junk from old tackle boxes. While the “kids” run the place, Mom, Dad, and Gramma are in every day. We saw ’em.

We arrived in East Wenatchee, WA and are spending the next two nights here.

Quiet day.

Ed and Chris. July 28 9 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Blueberry Hills Farms, East Wenatchee | Leave a comment

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 27

Posted on July 28, 2013 by Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk, MN travel bloggers; ckeh72@comcast.net

Mazama, WA Saturday July 27

Driving to Rainy Lake

A wonderful, relaxing day. The weather was pleasant up in the mountains and hot in the valleys. Plenty of sunshine. The area is dry, however, fire danger is high.

We had breakfast at the restaurant here. Unlike the cabins we stayed at in Lyman Utah back in May, this area is functioning. A family reunion of 39 people has taken many of the units and the restaurant for dinner Friday and Saturday nights.

Rainy Lake

Snow creep at base of front tree

Breakfast was open to all though and wonder of wonders, the milk was very cold and I got refills free. What a great way to start off the day.

We went for a hike to Rainy Lake. To reach it, we had to reverse course and go west over Washington Pass again. Rainy Lake (see picture) shows multiple mountain features; lake, cirque, waterfall, glacier, forests and mountains. Like winning the lottery!

This trail had a short description of ‘snow creep”, a term we had not heard of before. Evidently, in certain forests the snow exerts down slope pressure on trees, causing them to have a slight curl or bump in the trunk. The picture gives a better understanding.

Suspension bridge on trail

Our second hike took us along one of the community trails along the Methow River. A suspension bridge had been installed for crossing the river, wide enough for the horses to cross from the several ranches offering horse back rides in the summer.

Where we are staying is not part of the national park, or the surrounding national forest. Mazama, etc are located in a wide, high meadows area. The Methow Valley is “the” winter cross-country ski area in the country. The Cascade Highway west of Mazama is closed in the winter. Cross country skiers enter from the east and have over 120 miles of groomed ski trails. The snow is usually light and powdery.

Store in Winthrop

Our third hike was a short one to a nice waterfall. It was north of Winthrop, the more “urban” town in the area. We had a pleasant ride through the valley to get to the portion of the forest with the waterfalls. Horse ranches were abundant. THe fields were dry except where irrigated-which was frequent. Without the irrigation, the hills reminded us of the Santa Fe area; high desert, dry, rolling hills with mountains in the background.

Winthrop has re-themed itself as a western, cowboy town. The area had been home to mining which did not last real long. Access to the area has been difficult since it was settled. A friend of the founder, both graduates of Yale, wrote the book the Virginian. The old TV series was loosely based on the book and some of the scenes from the TV series were shot in Lone Pine, CA (back in Trip 4).

Dinner was in Winthrop at a Mexican restaurant and then an ice cream stand watching the world go by. Just a pleasant day overall.

Ed and Chris July 27 10 pm

Categories: road trip, travel | Tags: Mazama WA, North Cascades National Park, Rainy Lake Washington, Washington Pass, Winthrop WA | Leave a comment

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road trip

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 5

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 4

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 3

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 2

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, August 1

Trip Six, The Northwest, July 31 B

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 30 and 31

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 29

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 28

2013, Trip Six, The Northwest, July 27

Archives-trips start in Jan. 2013, some of earliest posts removed.

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