Potholes State Park, WA, Yurt Camping Trip, Day 2

Potholes State Park, WA, Yurt Camping Trip, Day 2

Potholes State Park, Eastern Central Washington State

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge - Wikipedia

"Birdsong by day, coyote chorus by night. Dramatic cliffs and rimrock sit side-by-side with lakes, potholes, and marshes. Desert denizens and waterfowl sharing the same rugged landscape.

Comprising nearly 30,000 acres, Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is a scenic mixture of rugged cliffs, canyons, lakes, grasslands and sagebrush. The combination of lakes and surrounding irrigated croplands, combined with generally mild winters and the protection provided by the refuge, attracts large numbers of migrating and wintering mallards, Canada geese, tundra swans and other waterfowl."

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is a scenic mixture of rugged cliffs, canyons, lakes, and sagebrush grasslands. Formed by fire, ice, floods, and volcanic tempest, carved by periods of extreme violence of natural forces, the refuge lies in the middle of the Drumheller Channeled Scablands of central Washington. The area reveals a rich geologic history highlighted by periods of dramatic activity, each playing a major role in shaping the land. The northern half of the refuge, south of Potholes Reservoir, is a rugged jumble of cliffs, canyons, lakes, and remnants of lava flows. This part of the Scablands, known as the Drumheller Channels, is the most spectacularly eroded area of its size in the world and was designated as a National Natural Landmark in 1986.

Moses Lake City, Washington, (27,000 Population)

Othello, Washington

Potholes State Park, Washington, Day 1

We have a cabin/yurt booked for a camping trip to Potholes State Park.

We will be yurt camping for three nights.

We are going as a group; with Mick, April, Karen and I.

Sightseeing, fishing, family meals, walks, campfire fun, reading, exploring ...

We will return home in Thursday.

Potholes State Park, Eastern Central Washington State

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge - Wikipedia

"Birdsong by day, coyote chorus by night. Dramatic cliffs and rimrock sit side-by-side with lakes, potholes, and marshes. Desert denizens and waterfowl sharing the same rugged landscape.

Comprising nearly 30,000 acres, Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is a scenic mixture of rugged cliffs, canyons, lakes, grasslands and sagebrush. The combination of lakes and surrounding irrigated croplands, combined with generally mild winters and the protection provided by the refuge, attracts large numbers of migrating and wintering mallards, Canada geese, tundra swans and other waterfowl."

Columbia National Wildlife Refuge is a scenic mixture of rugged cliffs, canyons, lakes, and sagebrush grasslands. Formed by fire, ice, floods, and volcanic tempest, carved by periods of extreme violence of natural forces, the refuge lies in the middle of the Drumheller Channeled Scablands of central Washington. The area reveals a rich geologic history highlighted by periods of dramatic activity, each playing a major role in shaping the land. The northern half of the refuge, south of Potholes Reservoir, is a rugged jumble of cliffs, canyons, lakes, and remnants of lava flows. This part of the Scablands, known as the Drumheller Channels, is the most spectacularly eroded area of its size in the world and was designated as a National Natural Landmark in 1986.

Moses Lake City, Washington, (27,000 Population)

Othello, Washington

Photos from the Internet

Belfair State Park, Washington

I have reserved a Yurt for camping at Belfair State Park along the Hood Canal.

I will arrive there at 4 pm on Monday, September 9th, 2024, and will leave at 11:00 am on Thursday, September 12th, 2024. I usually camp in a Yurt for 3 nights.

I will bring my harmonicas and music books, fishing gear, kites, string figures kit, MP3 music, books, laptop computer, maps, guide books, camera, and writing tools.

I'm sure there will be a ban on campfires from May to October.

Right now, in the summer of 2024, the Hood Canal is so polluted that you cannot safely let the water touch your body. No swimming or wading in the Hood Canal or incoming streams.  Nearly the entire west and south side of the Hood Canal have thousands of summer homes along the shore line.  Leaking septic systems are the primary cause of the pollution. Forget about harvesting shellfish. Scary!  

I mostly eat unrefrigerated and uncooked foods when camping. I plan to enjoy a 6 pack of tinned Santo Amaro Sardines from Portugal on this trip. I will also probably eat some meals at a cafe or restaurant in nearby Belfair.

I do some qigong and tai chi chuan and many longer walks.

I plan to drive around and explore the Kitsap Peninsula along the Hood Canal.

City of Belfair, Washington, Population 4,500

Kitsap County, Washington

Belfair State Park

South Puget Sound Travel Day Three

We both continued to struggle overnight with coughing, sinus pain, tiredness, aches and other cold sypmptoms.  We gathered our belongings and left for Vancouver early in the morning.  

When we got home we both were feeling quite ill.  We tested and found that we both had the COVID 19 Flu virus.  

Mima Mounds, Tumwater, WA

Tumwater, WA

City of Olympia, Washington  Images

Weyhauser Rhododendron Garden and Pacific Bonsai Garden

Little Creek Resort and Casino in Kamilche

Squaxin Island Museum, Kamilche

Shelton, WA  Images

South Puget Sound, WA

Hood Canal   Images

Skokomish River   Images

Skokomish Indian Cultural Center

Potlach State Park

Hoodsport

Over the past three decades, Karen and I have stayed overnight, dined and/or played
at numerous Indian Resorts and Casinos in Washington and Oregon:

Little Creek Resort and Casino in Shelton/Kamilche,
Little Skookum Inlet, Totten Inlet, South Puget Sound WA;

Ilani in La Center WA; Wildhorse in Pendelton OR;
Seven Feathers, Canyonville OR; Northern Quest, Spokane, WA:

Legends, Yakima WA; Spirit Mountain, Grand Ronde OR:
Mill, Coos Bay OR; Chinook Winds, Lincoln City OR.

Hood Canal: Adventure I, Day 2

 Hood Canal: Adventure I, Day 2

Day 2

Breakfast at Halfway House.  Drove up Dosewallips Canyon Road.  Drove up to Lake Cushman from Hoodsport.  Stopped at Hoodsport for coffee, supermarket, and at Hamma Hamma for book, shrimp cocktail, salt.  Hiked around campground.  Dinner at Halfway House: Captain's Fish Dinner.  Campfire till rain puts it out.  

Here are some of my photographs from the area:

I will be posting my comments and notes, as well as my own photographs to this blog after May 9th.  Internet reception varies in these mountainous locations. 

Settled into my yurt at Dosewallips State Park, Brinnon, Washington.

Photos below are from the Internet.

Walked around the State Park with my Day Pack.  I place my Sling Bag inside my Day Pack. Used my old long staff as well as my cane.  Cool.

Weather: Low of 34F, and high of 47F.  Cloudy and 50% chance of rain.  Winds light at 6 mph.

Vancouver WA  110 miles north to Olympia

Olympia WA  23 miles north to Shelton

Shelton WA  41 miles north to Brinnon

Shelton WA  - Images

Shelton WA  - Information

Hood Canal, Fjord, WA

Lake Cushman, WA

Skokomish Twana Native Americans

Skokomish River, WA, Images

Potlach State Park

Hoodsport WA

Liliwalup

Hamma Hamma

Duckabuch

Brinnon WA

Dosewallips State Park WA  39 miles north to Port Townsend

Dosewallips SP Images  13 miles north to Quilcene

Dosewallips SP Campground

Dosewallips River Images

Dosewallips Oyster and Clam Harvesting

Quilcene

Dabob Bay

Port Townsend  215 miles south to Vancouver

Four Days at Grayland: Extensive Travel Guides, Yurt Camping notes, local cities and villages, reports, commentary, Yurt Camping Information, Native American Information.  Yurt camping on the coast in Oregon and Washington.  

Tai Chi Chuan at the Beach: Please join Michael P. Garofalo for a Taijiquan Meetup/Gathering/Retreat at Dosewallips State Park, 7 am, Yurt C.  I hang a kite on my Yurt that is shaped like a Salmon Fish.  Campfire chats and a little practice sharing.

The best book I used to study general travel options for the Hood Canal
for my trip in May 2024 was:
Olympic Peninsula with Olympic National Park. By Jeff Burlingame.
Moon, 5th Edition, 2024.

Shelton WA  - Images

Shelton WA  - Information

Hood Canal, Fjord, WA

Lake Cushman, WA

Skokomish Twana Native Americans

Skokomish River, WA, Images

Union WA

Hoodsport WA

Brinnon WA 

Dosewallips State Park WA

Four Days in Grayland  Camping at the Beach
Yurt Camping in the Coastal Pacific Northwest by Michael P. Garofalo.

Books I have found useful in my study of the Native American People of Olympic National Park (fournded in 1938) include:

Olympic Peninsula with Olympic National Park. By Jeff Burlingame. Moon, 5th Edition, 2024.

Images of America: Hood Canal.  By Michael Fredson. Arcadia, 2007.

Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula|: Who We Are.  By the Olympic Prninsula Intertribal Cultural Advisory Committee.  University of Oklahoma Press, 2015.  This book covers S'Kallam, Skokomish Twana, Sqaxin, Quinault, Hoh, Quileute, and Makah Native Americans in the area. 

The Olympic Peninsula. By Ericka Chickowski.  Moon, 2009.

Longstreet Highroad Guide to the Pacific Northwest.  By Allan and Elizabeth May.  Longstreet, 2000.

Tai Chi Chuan at the Beach: Please join Michael P. Garofalo for a Taijiquan Meetup/Gathering/Retreat at Dosewallips State Park, 6 pm, Yurt C.  I hang a kite on my Yurt that is shaped like a Salmon Fish.  

Four Days at Grayland: Extensive Travel Guides, Yurt Camping notes, local cities and villages, reports, commentary, Yurt Camping Information, Native American Information.  Yurt camping on the coast in Oregon and Washington.  

Images from the Internet