Our second camping trip.
Since we are new to camping and are having so much fun
we are trying to get a little more camping under our belt,
before we have to winterize it.
This was a one night sleep-over at Bank's Lake, Coulee City, WA.
The lake is 30 miles long and is actually a reservoir
created by water pumped from Lake Roosevelt at Grand Coulee Dam.
Banks Lake is the start of the huge irrigation project
that waters the deserts of Washington State
and creates fertile farm land from desert soil.
Friday afternoon when we arrived the lake was still as glass.
I love the reflections on the water.
Isn't this beautiful :)
This is what I found.
In the 1870's this portion of the state (then a territory)
was inhabited by Native Americans and an occasional white man.
McEntee came to this area as a surveyor with the job of planing and building roads.
He fell in love with the area, and when his job was finished he
bought cattle with his earnings and started a cattle business.
He started from where Coulee City now stands with his herd,
and drove them across several hundred miles of unbroken wilderness
up into British Columbia.
There he would sell them to miners, together with his pack horses,
and make the returning journey on foot.
This photo is of Coulee City in 1907.
Today it is still a very small town. The 2010 census says, population 562.
The next day was the opening of hunting season.
We are not hunters, but we wanted to walk the trail.
So, we bundled up in warm clothes and took an after breakfast walk.
Hunting season started at 12 Noon . . . Good reason to walk early, right :)
We are not hunters, but we wanted to walk the trail.
So, we bundled up in warm clothes and took an after breakfast walk.
Hunting season started at 12 Noon . . . Good reason to walk early, right :)
come walk with us . . .
The many varieties of sage brush, desert grasses and tumble weeds,
are all showing off their fall colors.
Back at the campgrounds.
I love trees . . . and this one is a beauty.
Look at all the patterns in the bark.
Heading home . . .
This road winds around and passes several small lakes.
It is a lovely drive and one of our favorites.
Thank you for stopping by.
I absolutely love having company.
Oh, how I wish I could invite you to sit and have a warm cup of spiced cider
and a piece of apple cake.
Keep Smiling
&
do something wonderful that fills your heart with joy today.
Your blogging sister,
A wonderful post! So beautiful and welcoming. How fun it would be to have a hot cup of cider and go for a walk with you. Looks like a beautiful area and the perfect weekend with all the fall colors and crisp morning air. Thanks for sharing the story and beautiful photos.
ReplyDeleteIt was a lovely walk . . .wish you were here :)
DeleteWOW! Everything looks and sounds fabulous! Have fun.
ReplyDeleteThanks, we had a very nice time.
DeleteOHHHH, the TREE!!!! The bark the limbs the leaves...What kind is it, do you know? I travel far to find trees like this.I also love the picture of you in your snappy red and white. And those bushes growing in the water with the reflections, truly beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Ginny, I am not sure about the tree, just that it is beautiful. I love the reflection photos, too . . . the lake was still as glass that afternoon, when we arrived.
DeleteThe photos are lovely Connie. What a wonderful place to visit!
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Beth, thanks so much for stopping by, this lake is one of our favorites, and now that we have the camper, I'm sure we will be visiting here more and more. It's only a 45 minute drive :)
DeleteJust beautiful Connie. I enjoyed my trip with you. x
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you came along :)
DeleteI envy you. This is what my hubby and I want to do when he retires.
ReplyDeleteHi Betty, Oh, I hope that you do . . . we are enjoying our little home on wheels.
DeleteOh Connie! Such a feelgood post today! I love it and the walk was so interesting and on top it was so nice to see you!!! I'll come over later to have a piece of that applecake and sip of cider! ;o) Christa
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Christa, you just pop in anytime, if I don't have apple-cake and cider, I'll get busy and bake something:)
DeleteHow fun! So glad that you were able to squeeze in another camping trip, before you have to winterize.
ReplyDeleteYou see things through an artists eye; great pictures.
Enjoy this week, my friend.
Kerin
Good Morning Kerin, we had a lovely time. Started winterizing and tonight we have a young high school girl that is coming over to help us put the cover on. This winter I'll be Googling campgrounds in our area and making plans for spring :)
Deletewhat a beautiful spot for camping. I'm on my way over so we can have some of that warm spiced cider and apple cake :)
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Ann, that would be wonderful . . . we have so much in common and I know we would have a lovely time chatting, sipping and eating :)
DeleteIt filled my heat with joy to stop by and visit with you! Loved seeing all the sights:)
ReplyDeletexo
Leann
Good Morning Leann, thank you so much . . . what a lovely thing to say. You put a smile in my heart and on my face :)
DeleteConnie- What a beautiful post- The pictures are gorgeous and you look like you are having a wonderful time. You were smart to walk early! If you weren't getting along you could always send your hubby out in a brown shirt with sticks tied to his head! Just kidding- xo Diana
ReplyDeleteHi Diana, as you could see I was wearing red . . .Steve had on his brown jacket (not to smart, right) that was what he packed, not ever thinking about hunting season. I might need to pack a couple bright orange construction vests in our camper, for times like these :) The season didn't start until noon, and you can't shoot in the parks, but some people don't obey the laws and bullets do have a way of traveling long distances when they are shot on flat prairie land.
DeleteConnie,
ReplyDeleteOh, this camping trip looks like so much fun. I remember taking the kids on camping trips and they used to love it. Is that you in the red - how wonderful you look? Nature is so beautiful to me, and sometimes I hear it calling my name, so I take visits to the mountains and countryside. Loved your pictures today.
Love,
~Sheri
Hi Sheri, yes, that's me. As you can see by my figure, I need to get out and walk more. All the good places to walk around here are a drive to get there . . . this walk was beuitful. I know exactly what you mean by nature calling your name :)
DeleteI found you after you left that lovely comment for me on tag Tuesday, thank you! It would appear we share a lot of interests, your blog is lovely, I like what you do with your 'finds'! We have a camper van but want to trade it in for a motor home now we are nearly retired as we are both six foot and the older we get the more we want a bit more room, I love yours, I hope you have a lot of fun in her. You can't beat the smell of outdoor cooking can you? Best wishes, barb x
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Barb, it is great to have you visit, I always get exciting when I have the opportunity to make a new friend. It sounds like you and your hubby do a lot of camping . . . we are new-bees and having a wonderful time of it. I remember visiting your blog and your tags . . . you've got a real talent, I love all the details and artistry :) Do come again, I adore company :)
DeleteWhat a wonderful place to camp with lovely scenery! Thanks for taking us along you your walk.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Barb, I am delighted that you enjoyed the walk. Our desert is the prettiest in the fall and spring :)
DeleteI just love coming along on your road trips! So glad you left before the shooting started! The lake WAS gorgeous, great pictures.....So glad you are having fun!
ReplyDeleteCarol
Hi Carol, this is one of our favorite lakes . . . the water is clear and cold and swimming is only comfortable between late July to mid September. Once Steve jumped off the boat for a morning swim in April, and we had two fishermen come up to the boat to help. They thought he had fell . . . because no one swims in April . . . not even Steve after his cold surprise, LOL.
DeleteReally enjoyed the walk....a very lovely place, I can see why McEntee fell in love with the place. Those pictures of the lake and reflections in the water are beautiful. It's nice you can do something that both of you enjoy and your doggie Butchy too!!!
ReplyDeleteI am so happy that you enjoyed this post. It is fun to research some of the history of our area, I've not done it much, but I think I'll start doing more.
DeleteWhat a beautiful spot! Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos.
ReplyDeleteHello Carolyn, I am delighted that you joined me on this autumn walk. It is a beautiful place :)
DeleteGreat post, Connie. I loved your pics of the tree bark. We drove home to the Methow Valley after camping north of Spokane this weekend. We stopped at the Crown Point overlook outside of Grand Coulee for a lunch break. I took pics and hopefully they will turn out. It was kind of hazy this afternoon.
ReplyDeleteHi Sally, I hope that you are doing a post on your trip . . .I'll be over to visit. I was amazed at all the orchards and vineyards in the Methow, did you stop and get apples? The autumn color was just starting when we were there, oh, I can just imagine the colors that you saw :)
DeleteI so enjoy seeing your camping pictures. They are lovely.
ReplyDeleteLesley x
Hi Lesley, i am so happy that you enjoyed this post :)
DeleteThis is so beautiful Connie, and brings back so many happy memories of camping in the USA! We didn't have an RV, just a tiny tent that we packed in our luggage and flew over from the UK with us. Cooking stove and lamp bought from Walmart and we were good to go :) Your campgrounds are in such beautiful and wild places, I really enjoyed taking your trip with you today.
ReplyDeleteOh, to be young again. This is exactly how my daughter travels. Bare-bone and simple, letting the people she meets and the adventures she plans be her main concern. As you get up in years, the comforts of a little home on wheels makes the difference between going and staying home. My old bones can't sleep on the ground anymore. LOL. Thanks so much for visiting and sharing your story with me :)
DeleteThat looked such a lovely place to visit Connie. So glad you're enjoying the camping. We've not got any weekends planned in ours but hopefully will take her out on some days out during the Autumn. Love all your photos. I'd love to join you for a cup of spiced cider and apple cake, it sounds delicious and so welcoming. Bye for now.
ReplyDeletePatricia x
Hello Patricia, I can not think of anything nicer than sitting around a campfire with you, sipping cider, eating cake, and getting to know each other better. Thanks so much for stopping by. Enjoy your autumn camping :)
DeleteI loved this post Connie! Thank you for inviting me along on your walk. I love, love, love trees too and the patterned tree is awesome!
ReplyDeleteI will have an imaginary cup of cider with you right now and a piece of apple cake but I confess that it looks a LOT like water, Malt-O-Meal and peanut butter toast.
Have a most glorious day!
D~~~~
Hi Donna, the best part about imaginary cake is the calories, LOL. I'm so glad you could join me :)
DeleteI'm so happy to see you and glad that you enjoyed our little walk :)
ReplyDeleteGreat Pictures...what a beautiful landscape. Could really use that warm cider today !!!!
ReplyDeleteHi Donna, oh, I wish that I could hand a cup through the screen to you :)
DeleteOh I love that drive past all the little lakes. What a fun little over night camp trip!
ReplyDeleteIt's fun to get away even when it is just for one night . . . just a little "pick-me-up" in nature.
DeleteWow what a beautiful place and you have certainly captured it with your gorgeous photos. Thanks for the walk too!!! Stunning xx
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Teresa, welcome to my blog and thank you so much for following. I get so excited each time I have the opportunity to make a new friend:) Thanks for the sweet comment, too :)
Deletelucky you to live in such beauty! gorgeous pics, connie! (i use photoshop to replace the green color in my dog's eyes in picture) if you have some sort of graphics program, you can change the color that way)
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Lynn, I will have to try that . . . I was hoping for a button and not a lot of erasing and coloring in. It's hard for me to get it to look natural, maybe I just keep to slow down and practice. Photoshop does have a large learning curve :)
DeleteWhat a lovely place to camp. I love that picture of the lake with the mirror reflections.
ReplyDeleteI love that photo, too. It was a treat to have the lake so smooth that I was able to get those photos :)
DeleteGreat photos, especially the fourth one down. It is indeed beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, I'm delighted that you enjoyed my little walk through the campground :)
DeleteOh, what a beautiful spot. I love the photo of the lake with trees reflected in the water. Steve likes to do paintings of scenes with reflections.
ReplyDeleteHi Carol, I'm happy that you enjoyed my little walk along the water. I sure have been enjoying your photos of decorating your daughter's new place :)
DeleteHi Connie! we go "camping" too! we have a pull-behind 29'. Such a lovely place to see.
ReplyDeleteHi JoAnn, before buying our little motor home the last time we camped was about 20 years ago, in a tent and when we broke camp we found that just under the floor of our tent in the corner, was a mama snake and her new babies. That was it for me! Camping in the motor home gives us so much more comfort, and when your in your 60's comfort is of the utmost importance :)
DeleteOh wow, Connie, I'm in awe of your fantastic campervan, and the lovely camping trip that went with it. We crossed the globe a couple of years ago and did a camping trip in New Zealand. Certainly one to remember. Thank you for your kind comments on my blog, Miss Connie.
ReplyDeleteIt is so sweet to hear from you and to hear about your camping adventures as well. We are new to camping and enjoying it so much . . .looking forward to spring when we can go again.
DeleteIt's a lovely area, not sure if I have been there or not. However, I have stayed at Steamboat Rock, near there and it is so lovely. Check it out sometime. My last trip out was last weekend and since we had a bad windstorm this Sunday, I was glad I was back home. All done for the year....but what a year it was!
ReplyDeleteHi Karen, we are planning on camping at Steamboat sometime next year. My hubby's sister and her husband were telling us that the campsites there are very nice. We missed having a grassy lawn at Coulee City and I know that Steamboat has grass, it's much nicer on a doggies little feet. . We had that wind storm here too . . . it took a couple of branches out of our trees in the backyard. Thanks so much for visiting. I enjoy company.
Delete