Thursday July 19, 2007 – Issaquah, WA

After a beautiful, sunny morning, we pulled out of the Wenatchee River County RV park. This site came as a surprise to us because although it is a county government-run park, it is nicer than most of the private / commercial RV parks in the USA with expanses of green grass, large shade trees, the nearby Wenatchee River, free WiFi (that worked), generous spaces, all in all very nice.

Today was a short drive – only 126 miles – with the first 47 miles through the Wenatchee Nat’l Forest, just southwest from Leavenworth. A typical northwest forest with the road following streams and cascading brooks and ragged clouds hanging in the tree tops. We picked up I-90 in Cle Elum (meaning "swift water" in the language of the Kittitas Indians) and headed west to Issaquah (a native name meaning "the sound of birds". Another version of the name is said to have come from the pioneers, who, being impressed with the multitude of wetland birds, called the area Squak Valley. When the next wave of settlers came and asked for the name of area, the natives told them, "Is Squak."). Who knows?

Although we drove in partly cloudy conditions across Snoqualmie Pass (elevation 4,102 ft), it wasn’t until we were in the RV park and I got out to hook up electricity, water, etc., that the rain started coming down seriously. But it didn’t last long, so I finished my tasks, mostly dry, and we settled down to watch cable TV – haven’t done that in a long time. Margaret is busy with her sudoku puzzles. And I’m drafting this blog.

Didn’t have a chance to do any photo stuff today, so I’m going to include some from earlier during our last day in Summerland, BC, Canada. The day’s highlight was the visit to the Ornamental Gardens. We included several photos from that visit, but there were so many, I’ve decided to include a few more.

The first – of the bench – was representative of the garden’s approach. While surrounded by beautiful flowers, towering trees, and vistas, there were several benches in strategic sites where you could just sit and enjoy the ambience.

The second is whimsical – the first time we saw tented fruit trees at a distance, we thought it was something from a sci-fi movie; Return of the Pod People or similar. Although we may not be accurate in our assessment, we concluded it was a form of organic gardening. By enclosing each fruit tree in a tent (mosquito netting?), they avoided spraying pesticides. But it sure looks funny.

Lastly, a classic of the soaring Sequoia – at least that’s what we think it is. Has the right kind of bark – might be a Red Pine? Neither of us is much at botany. At one point we learned, through an educational sign, the difference between Lodgepole Pine, Douglas Fir, and Spruce. But that learning quickly evaporated as we were inundated by the many varieties in various forests. And of course that all changed as we drove south and west – with different climates. Sigh… If the photo is not a Sequoia, please let me know and I’ll correct the nomenclature.