It was a day of long hot miles and wide dry expanses.
We left Memaloose fairly early, knowing that we had about
300 miles to cover. The route continued
along I-84 and followed the Columbia River.
A stop in the town of The Dalles allowed us to restock groceries and
fill with diesel and we continued on our way.
There was a striking contrast between the blue of the river
and the brown of the hills on either side of it. The hills were dry and rounded with some dark
rock outcroppings. There were several large dams along the way, and there were
large barges transporting loads along the Columbia. Wind farms were frequent along the
ridges. After almost 100 miles, the
road left the river and we drove through typical western landscape, flat and
dry, taking I-395 northwest and connecting with Route 730.
Route 730 again ran along the Columbia River, and here the
contrast with blue and brown was even more pronounced. The road ran high above the river, and in one
place we passed a marina with sailboats and saw people windsurfing----both
seemed strange in this desolate landscape.
Eventually the hills became lower again, and we were back to flat, dry
land.
Where the Walla Walla River entered the Columbia, we turned
onto Route 12 heading east. This was
agricultural land, with rolling hills and small farming towns. We weren’t sure what crop had already been
harvested here, perhaps wheat, but the fields had been cut and there were many
boxy straw bales piled along the way.
There were no rest areas and really no place to pull off for lunch, so
we refueled both RV and us at Walla Walla, a rare lunch at McDonalds.
Where Route 127 went off to the north, the hills began to
increase in size, and the road began to be windy again. We climbed to Alpowa summit (2785 feet) and
the long, long drive down hill from there ended with, once again, the surprising
blue of a wide river, this time the Snake River. At the town of Clarkston, on the Idaho
border, we turned off on state route 129 for the last 27 miles.
That road started out fine, but after about five miles, it
turned into the hills and climbed…and climbed…and climbed, switchback after
switchback. When it seemed we could go
no higher, the road straightened and flattened, and we were, I assume, at the
top of a butte. Shortly before we
expected to see the park, we noticed that there was the dark green of trees up
ahead, and yes, Fields Spring State Park is shady and green. When we stepped out of the RV at our site,
the air was cool.
This is not a park you would just happen upon----it’s way
off the beaten track. The campground
host said that it would not be full for the holiday weekend (amazing), even
though there are only twenty sites.
Indeed, by nightfall, there were only about six sites occupied (others
had reserved signs on them, so a few more may arrive still). The host explained that this park gets its
greatest use in the winter months when it’s very popular for cross-country
skiers. At this time of year, of
course, the ski trails are hiking trails, so we will get out and about a little
tomorrow.
Meanwhile, while Dan was chatting with some neighbors about
fishing, Ranger went crazy barking and pointing toward the woods behind the
RV. There was a group of ruffed grouse
moving through the underbrush. We also
saw a flock of wild turkeys, and the campground host said we would also see
chukars. So the bird-watching here will
be somewhat better than in some other places we have been on this trip.
No electricity, no water hook-ups here, but what a contrast
to our campsite at Memaloose. After
dark, the only light to be seen was at the bathhouse----no car and truck
headlights shining into the RV window.
And total silence!
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