We are heading south.
We leave Brian and Sharon and Lake Pleasant RV Park in Bothell, Washington on Monday, September 19. The route should be simple…405 south to I-90, and the first night will be at the KOA in Ellensburg ($36 with KOA membership).
I avoid Seattle, but the 405/90 traffic isn’t fun. Heading east on I-90 I think we are past the hard part, but now I’m in the Cascade mountains and the weather is deteriorating. Fog, light rain, then heavy rain, big trucks rushing past leaving us in their wake, dropping temperatures….down to 41 degrees. I’m concerned about sleet and the like, but it doesn’t happen.
Some of my pictures today have nothing to do with the text. I have some nice pictures from walks around Lake Pleasant RV Park I’d like to share. Lots of nice trails there.
And eek! lots of slugs on and around the trails. They are big! Joy and Shiloh want nothing to do with them! (Neither do I). Did I say ‘nice’ pictures? :-))
Back to the story….
We make it safe and sound to Ellensburg and the KOA. It’s cold and windy but, hey, I have a cable hook up and they have the USA channel, and YAY! NCIS is on, over and over, Monday afternoon and again Tuesday morning. I’ve missed my NCIS marathons, and this is great! Other than 2 dog walks beside the Yakima River, all I do is watch TV. Don’t know when I’ll see NCIS again, so have to take advantage of the opportunity!
Oh yeah. 🙂
The new season starts tonight, September 20, on CBS but alas…I no longer have cable. I guess I will survive though. I have been so far.
Our campsite at the KOA in Ellensburg, Washington.
I drag myself away from the TV at 10:30am on Tuesday morning, and we leave at 10:45. Check out is 11am. I never even unhooked yesterday.
Rather unusual dog run at Lake Pleasant RV Park. About 5 feet wide and 150 or so feet long.
Duck action on Lake Pleasant.
We continue south through Yakima, to Plymouth, Washington where we stay at the Plymouth Park Campground, a COE park on the Columbia River and the boarder with Oregon. COE parks accept the senior pass which gives half off the regular camping fee. I pay $13.50 for full hookups for one night. (I also stayed here in early June when I left Sisters, OR.)
Our campsite at Plymouth Park. Shiloh is out front, Joy is in the lower left corner. Again I don’t unhook.
I wanted to mention my GPS, and let you know….I love it!! I would not want to be without it on a day to day basis, traveling, but also when I’m staying somewhere (like Bothell) for awhile, and need to find my way around. I happen to have a mid price Garmin, and yes, it’s made a few mistakes over the more than 2 years that I’ve been using it, but not NEAR as many as I would have made without it. I’m not particularly bad about directions, and I love studying maps, but the GPS makes life SO much simpler. Highly recommended!
Tomorrow I set my GPS for the campground at Sisters, Oregon, where I’ll get to hang out with my friend Kerry, and Joy and Shiloh will be reunited with their friend Annabelle….and this particular pack will be intact again!
Annabelle and a stump!
Wandering Spirit 
Which GPS do you have?
Virtual hugs,
Judie
Hi Judie,
It’s a Garmin nuvi 2597. I bought it about 2.5 years ago though, so there must be newer versions of it. It’s not one that is specifically for RV’s….and it’s the 5 inch screen.
Thanks. I have a 760, I think, but am looking for a replacement. The big screen sounds fabulous!
Judie I think the ones that are for RVing have 7 inch screens!
So glad you are meeting up with ‘Kerry’ and Annabelle. Hope all is well with Kerry’s injury. Give them a hug for me. Hope we can all meet up again….possibly Quartszite!
Hi Sharron, glad to hear that Q is looking good for you! SO glad! I’m planning on the fiberglass rally in Feb. Kerry plans to stay in Oregon this winter.
Hugs will be delivered and sending a big one to you!
Hi – I don’t post often but love reading your blog and the pics of the fur babies. I am curious about the sr. pass that you used. I have one for the national parks is that the same that you use for the COE parks? thanks,
Hi Alice, yes! The America The Beautiful senior pass also works for half off the COE parks! Isn’t that great? It’s about the best $10 we can spend when we hit age 62!
So glad to hear you enjoy the blog and the furry pictures. I sure enjoy sharing them!
Glad you arrived safe. Rain and semis are no fun when towing.
What a silly dog park, couldn’t they have used the same amount of fence and made one that didn’t look the exercise area in a supermax? But my old German shepherd would have loved it. Nothing made that dog happier than having a fence line to patrol. No idea where he learned that but he would just do laps of our garden fence happy as could be. Such funny creatures.
Nice to hear that you like your Garmin. I have an illogical aversion to them. But my GF loves hers and we will be using it in a few weeks when we head to Smoky Mountain N.P. so perhaps I’ll convert. But as I understand it (which ain’t much) the difference in the RV specific ones isn’t the size it’s the programming. The RV ones are supposed to direct you away or at least warn you of low bridges, steep grades etc. Happy travels, hope you have a great visit with friends.
Hi Badger Rick, it is a silly dog park….but better than many I’ve seen. It has gates at both ends so we would just make it part of our walk sometimes…go in one end, out the other, and on our way.
Yes the RV GPS’s do have the programming you mention…you are supposed to put the dimensions of your RV into it. Also at least one brand puts a lot of RV parks into it so they automatically show up. But the size is larger too…at least on some of them, and I think it’s because it’s easier to see sitting on the dash of some big Class A RV.
You two have a great time in the Smokeys! Fall colors should be a blazin’ !
Dear Micky, I swear I can faintly hear Roy Rogers and Dale singing “Happy Trails to you” when I am reading your blog. Have fun in Oregon!
Hi Elinor, yup I’m safely in Sisters, OR again and we should be having quite a time this week. And maybe the week after that. More in the next blog. 😀
I am in awe over what you pay for camping out west. Here it is MUCH more expensive, even in the summer when the snowbirds aren’t here. In fact, that was one of the reasons we sold our RV, the cost during the winter months will run on the average of 80 a night and Disney of course runs 125 and UP.
Hi Pam, I knew FL was high but oh my gosh, that is just crazy. There are places in the west that are fairly high too, some along the coast and near Yellowstone for example, but there are always options….even in those places. Also it’s possible to camp free at BLM land and Some places on National Forests.
I’m now in a city campground in Sisters, OR in a site with no hookups. Water, showers and bathrooms available. The rate is $15 a night but seniors get a $5 discount so I’m paying $10 a night for 10 nights. I have some solar and a generator if needed, so it’s all good, and the little town of sisters is a block away. $45 a night is the highest I’ve paid anywhere and $0 is the lowest!