On the Sunny Side of the Mountain

Mt. Rainer
Towering Wind Turbine
Unwelcome visitor that tried to crawl up onto the engine
Wiley Coyote
Along the bike trail.
Historic Wallace; Notice the interstate that is raised for a mile to go over rather than through the town.

After leaving Ft. Lewis we spent three days at the Wanapum Recreation Area in Vantage, Washington on the Columbia River and have now moved to Big Creek RV Park in Kellogg, Idaho. As we drove over the mountains the weather changed completely to blue sky and warm temperatures which we took advantage of to dry out after two weeks on the cloudy and rainy side. We even got to see Mt. Rainer, which we barely saw on the west side, from about 75 miles away. Even at that distance it is quite impressive towering over the nearby mountains. While at Wanapum we toured the Wild Horse Windmill Facility where 127 wind turbines produce enough electricity to power 55,000 households. At the park we had an unwelcome visitor (see pic) who tried to get into the motor home but with the help of a kind soul working there it was removed from underneath and sent along its way. Not far from the park we also saw a coyote on the hillside. We took a hike in the Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park on the Trees of Stone Trail. These petrified trees were not nearly as interesting as the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. The Big Creek RV Park is located on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes, a paved rails to trails which follows the route of the old railroad across the entire panhandle of Idaho. We took advantage and rode a total of 5o miles in two days which included a visit to the historic mining town of Wallace. This area is called the Silver Valley because more than a billion ounces of silver was mined here as well as large amounts of zinc and lead.