Hikes

A Regal Island, Unforeseen Carnivores, and an Infestation of Bloodsuckers

uniquelytheo2 Comments

The next day was a travel day from Thunder Bay to Duluth MN for the beginning of a highly anticipated week with two of my adult children who were flying into Duluth and the subsequent visit to Isle Royale and Voyageurs National Park with me.  It was a beauteous day with great panoramas of Lake Superior as the road hugged the shoreline. However, as on most two lane roads, the fast surges forward and the great feeling of “alas I am finally making good time”  and then stomping on the  brakes to a slow crawl  in the touristy small town traffic was the pattern.   I am not sure most of the time why I am in a hurry but old habits and cultural norms of living frenetically seem to control my inner driving guide. 

I had been so disappointed when planning this trip that I was unable to get a flight out of Grand Marais to Isle Royale. As I crawled through this very popular destination for tourists, that disappointment dissipated quickly as it was overflowing with tourists looking for their tchotchke with Grand Marais imprinted on whatever or anything else their inner consumer desired at the moment and nary a spot to park. Continuing south I cruised by what was a bizarre looking yard and decided I definitly need to do a U-turn to get a better look and a couple pictures of it. I could not quite decide if this fell into the in the realm of quirky art or collection of pure junk and a poor attempt meant to create art.

Along the way was a beautiful waterfall tumbling into Lake Superior at Cross River. I took a break to experience its beauty and energy. When en route my daughter Tasia, who was meeting me that evening in Duluth, called to say her plane was delayed in Salt Lake City and she would miss the Minneapolis flight. So began the saga of whether she would arrive tonight or tomorrow. I arrived at the Comfort Inn in Duluth negotiating a maze of highway construction, weaving many a loop successfully thanks to Siri. What a stark difference this Comfort Inn was from the one in Thunder Bay, with friendly staff and an elegant feel. I was desperate to do laundry and “twas a good way to pass the time while I waited for updates from Tasia about her arrival. Finally about 1:00 am I went to sleep knowing that she would either get a flight in or I would drive Minneapolis to get her.

I had set my alarm to make sure I was up and had all options open to retrieve Tasia  and learned she would be arriving  in Duluth at around 10:15 (12 hours beyond the original arrival).  So I breakfasted, packed up, and headed to the airport and eagerly heard the story of her  bad travel karma. The choice point for her was sleep in the Minneapolis airport or get a motel room with the airline  voucher.  Had she known where she was going to end up ( a dodgy Super 8 in a smoking room for 4 hours), I think the better choice might have  been to sleep on the airport floor.  With four hours to fill  before retrieving Jamie we headed over to Canal Park, the #1 choice on the  “What to do in Duluth” lists.  It turned out to be a bonanza of a choice.

Duluth has a great Lake Superior Waterfront and since it wasn’t yet too blistering hot we walked the multi-use path along the inland sea to enjoying the breezes off of the lake and discovering some of the industrial history as we observed stacks, the historic Finger’s Brewery Complex, Enger Tower in the distance and the landmark Aerial Lift Bridge. Once back we went to Gramma’s for lunch – the first good meal I had had since leaving home and also to cool down and rehydrated after a hot walk.

Exiting the restaurant near the Canal Business District we observed a significant number of people gathered along the canal … quite puzzling… surmised it was such a pleasant Sunday that folks turned out to enjoy the lake shore. It turns out they were waiting for the Aerial Lift Bridge to slowly ascend, allowing the sailboats and other craft to enter and exit the harbor. But most interesting was the arrival of the ship Burns Harbor, a massive lake freighter carrying coal or iron ore into port. Its sheer length (1000 feet long and 105 feet wide) was astounding to see. A football field is 360 feet. A bit of research showed that it was close to the same length as the Dali (984 feet long and 158 feet wide) , the container ship that took out the Frances Scott Keyes Bridge in Baltimore last year. Determined to become knowledgeable of vertical lift bridges since we found its operation fascinating, I discovered there was one in Portland which I had traversed but not knowing that it was this type

After walking the length of the breakwater/pier it was time pick up Jamie at the Duluth Airports and set out for the 4 hour drive to Houghton /Hancock Michigan for our departure to Isle Royal the following day?

It was a relatively easy drive on two lane roads with low volume traffic. Lots of banter and laughs were so welcome after being by myself traveling for two weeks.

We arrived at the Ramada Inn in Hancock around 7:30ish and were quite astounded to see that right there by the motel was yet another Vertical Lift Bridge. I was pleased with our hotel room overlooking the Keweenaw Waterway, a partly natural, partly artificial waterway connecting at both ends to Lake Superior despite the room being on the second floor with no elevator… not to worry… I had my two “sherpas” with me to haul my stuff. Needing dinner and discovering few restaurants were open past 8:00 on Sunday pm, we selected a pizza restaurant across the Keweenaw River. Since it was only about 1/2 mile away (on the other side of the river), I decided that a walk across the Vertical Lift Bridges was the best mode of transportation. Easier said than done as we had to climb over a highway guardrail, cross highways etc. since the side we planned to travese was blocked off. But I made it over with a bit of help from my longer legged and stronger adult kids. After an excellent meal we headed on back and enjoyed the views of the vertical lift bridge (our new found obsession) lit up.

Our flight the following day was not until 2:00 pm so we opted for a hike to the Hungarian Falls in Hancock MI proximate to the Sea Plane Base.  It was a pleasant hike with some even terrain and other part of the path full of tripping roots and rocks.  It was a lovely way to spend the time with nature but nothing  particularly spectacular about the falls. 

We grabbed some lunch at the Grub Drive Thru and headed over to check in at Isle Royale Sea Planes for our flight.  Checking in was quite painless- as they only weighed our luggage and NOT us as well. On some small plane excursions in Alaska we had to be weighed as well.  The 45 minute flight was quite uneventful and for the most part was over Sea Superior. Superior could technically be considered a sea due to its incredible size and its weather patterns. Like the ocean, the weather on Superior can change quickly. Since it holds such a striking resemblance to the ocean, some believe Superior should be classified as an inland sea. It was a cloudy rainy day over the Isle and it was almost impossible to see where the water ended and the sky began – as completely blended into each other. We glided into Rock Harbor and were shortly about to began the Isle Royale National Park adventure.

This would be the 55th park visited . After checking into our hotel room Tasia and Jamie suggested we take a short hike around the Lodge area.

I should learn not to follow Tasia without a clearer knowledge of what I might be getting into. Her definition of short is not even close to my definition of short. We were on the Stoll Trail towards Scoville Point and opted for a portion of it figure eight configuration . The trail wound back and forth between the forest and the shoreline, with marshland and exposed rocky outcrops on the Rock Harbor side and primarily forest on the Tobin Harbor side. About 2-3 minutes into the hike it began to spatter and then drizzle rain which was definitely a whole lot less annoying than the legion of mosquitos which had been dispersed in thick swarms throughout this boggy area by Beelzebub and who were trying relentlessly to do their life’s work of sucking blood from human hosts. Though I am not too fond of hiking in the rain (though in the last couple of years this seems about the most frequently experienced weather systems I have encountered) nor fond of flailing my arms and hat to avoid being eaten alive, even through the thick fog of Deet generously applied, it was an exhilarating time. There were many stellar views of both the shore of Lake Superior and the Harbor shore and there is something enlivening about putting aside that which is unpleasant and appreciating the flow of the natural word with its beauty and curses. Though the hike felt like a 10K to my legs it was a bit less than three miles and set me up with a good appetite for dinner at the Rock Harbor Lighthouse Restaurant and for the challenge of drying out three sets of very wet clothing.

Tasia spied a fan in the closet area and set everything on hangers in the bath room area with the fan sitting on top of the toilet blowing air – an indoor clothes line in the wind. We headed to dinner and all ordered fish and chips and water! They don’t believe in club soda or sparkilng water here. After unsuccessfully attempting to sign into the wi-fi here to no avail it was back to our lovely lakeside room to enjoy the rest of the evening.

I can’t say that I am addicted to cell phones and the internet but I arrived here assuming there would be no cell or wi-fi. Definitely no cell but the park service had internet available for a few hours a day and the Lodge had it for 12 hours a day for guests. So I thought I could connect to family but internet availability doesn’t necessarily mean it is available. I say this because I was feeling annoyed that they promised me something, raised my expectations, and then reneged. I was totally unable to log in but being okay with that and being annoyed by it can co-exist.

I awoke the next morning to a blue sky and calm seas. It was so peaceful to sip coffee, hearing the lapping of the waves outside our lakefront room. Once the coffee jolted us awake we headed to the grill to get some mighty big breakfast burritos and consumed them lakeside. It looked like a beautiful day for a hike so we suited up (i.e. anointing ourselves with a substantial layer of Deet) and headed out for an out and back hike to Susie’s cave along the Tobin Harbor Trail.

It seemed like almost a miracle had happened overnight and the swarms of mosquitoes had migrated elsewhere. It was pleasantly cool, a shaded and moderately difficult trail, and though not bug free, much more pleasant than the mega-swatting hike yesterday… at least, that is until the mosquitos finally woke up around 11:00 and were ready for their bloody breakfast. But we cruised along thoroughly enjoying the harbor views, the array of wildflowers, the bird song and the occasion wildlife which was primarily red squirrels and a jackrabbit. The moose wanted no part of our visit and the grey wolves clearly visited earlier as evidence by their scat. The hike ended up being 4.75 miles of wilderness connection.

Back at the Lodge area, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and afterwards it was time to spend some money at the park store and secure the park stamp for my NPS Passport book, and rest the legs for an evening hike and sunset boat cruise.

Within 5 minutes of when we sat down, to dinner at an outdoor table harbor-side, it started to sprinkle. My immediate inclination was to stay put but everyone tore into the grill dining area and it was a good thing we followed suit as a heavy drencher followed …which was followed by a burst of sun and then a rainbow. It cleared nicely for our scheduled sunset boat ride to Raspberry Island for a 1 mile hike about the island and then a cruise out to see the sunset over Sea Superior. A one mile hike around Raspberry Island more than met our expectations. We yearned for a bog as we itched for an encounter with the pitcher plant (a carnivorous plant). Luck was on our side. After making our way through the boreal forest, we came upon a bog with paths and planked bridges leading past many of the insect-eating pitcher plants that thrive in this acidic bog environment and supplement the available nutrients and minerals needed with a constituent of insects that have the misfortune of taking a moment to pollinate this vicious flower .

The cirque was actually only .61 miles but upon our return the boat was mostly boarded and we were on our way for a cruise out to the Superior Sea to watch the sunset.

Our travel karma turned positive and we were treated to a magnificent array of golds, pinks, purples, reds, oranges and a slow setting sun at this latitude. We returned to the dock about 10:30 and gazed at the moon with its shaft of light arrayed on the water. Returning to the room it was time to pack up shower and get ready to depart by seaplane at 9:00 am the morrow.

It was up a seven to be set to depart from  Isle Royale by 9:00 am. Bags were to be retrieved at eight so after packing up we headed over to the Greenstone Grill for coffee and a breakfast of yogurt, fruit and granola.  It was time to meander down to the seaplane dock area for the flight back to Hancock.  This overcast day with thunderstorms visible in the distance did not pose any flight delays. Jamie was assigned the copilot seat while   Tasia myself and another young girl were very tightly squeezed into the rear seat .  Even with the impending weather the 45 minute flight was smooth and uneventful. 

Rushing to Find the River, No Thunder in Thunder Bay, and a Lying Giant

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It was July 9th and I needed to be up and organized and hoped to hit the road by 9:30 as Tuesday was a travel day. The screeching of the crows and/or vultures made sure that I would catapult myself out of the tent by 7:00 am. I have achieved some level of proficiency by laying out all of the things for my oatmeal concoction and coffee in the back of the car (would prefer the picnic table but alas the park rangers are a bit squeamish about attracting bears to one’s tent site.) Once up, all I need to do is heat water! So breaking camp is also getting easier and more organized, assuming I could stay focused while swatting mosquitos all of the time. These are the moments when I begin to understand the preference for an RV’s (and if you invite me on trip in your RV I will not decline!).

Today’s drive would again mostly be through the flatland of southern Manatoba. I had a few “hitch-hikers” that I had to deal with along the road— 3 massive bees and several mosquitos signed on to travel to Ontario with me. The challenge is how to pass the time while appreciating the surrounds but not finding much differentiation mile upon mile.  I listen to podcasts but not being of a generation that grew up with earbuds or anything other than AM radio while traveling in the car, I can get very weary of constantly having auditory stimulation. But the miles clicked on by and by 2:45 ish when I stopped to get some gas, about 90 miles from my destination, my car would not start.  Now the screen said my car was running but clearly it was not.  It would shift gears but go nowhere.  The parking brake would not release.  After numerous attempts to get it on the move, I gave up and called AAA. After about 15 minutes on the phone a tow truck was going to pick me up and take me to Kenora Ontario, the town closest to where I was to camp.  I said to the agent “Before we hang up, let me try to start it again.”  Why hadn’t I trusted that “Lady Spitfire” could fix herself.  It started right up so I cancelled the tow but was on edge the rest of the trip and did not turn the car off until I was at my campsite. at Rushing River Provincial Park.

I lucked out again with the campsite. It is a wooded unserviced site in a tent only area with a perfect spot to put my tent on a bluff overlooking Dogtooth Lake. Traveling east has brought warmer temperatures but the- mid 80’s wasn’t bad given my at home Oregon temperatures between 100-111 this past week. Another upside was that there were fewer flying critters to inject their venom. No slapping myself silly tonight. The downside was I discovered that the loo servicing our circle of sites was probably one of the worst I have ever come across in a campground. Of course I needed to befriend my trusty Coleman stove yet again but I was having no inclination whatsoever to prepare anything beyond the basic “just add water” or “dunk in boiling water” food.

I have entered into a new era of my camping rituals or rather non-rituals. I have foregone the “traditional” nightly campfire so far on this trip. One of these nights I will feel motivated but probably not a good plan for me to be chopping the purchased logs into more burnable sizes. Just sitting and immersing myself in the sounds of nature has been quite satisfying. Somewhat related to campfires is a silliness moment when at the last couple of campgrounds I would hear what I thought were people playing paddle ball well into the evening. I finally dawned on me that it was the Paul Bunyans in the camp thwacking at wood for their ritual fire. It was uncanny how it sounded just like the crack of the paddleball. Sitting, gazing at the lake and the sitting sun was enough to slake my thirst for calmness and it colored down nicely to a pleasant 70 degrees for sleeping.

What a delight it was to awaken, unzip the front “window” of my tent and see a shimmering lake.  I  welcomed this day off from driving but decided I needed to go into the closest town, Kenora,  to make some phone calls etc and would thus need better cell service that the almost nothing service here at the camp. But 12 mile is not 300 miles and I was hoping to send some emails as well… eventually I realized I was dawdling away the day in an ordinary anywhere USA or Canada, I headed back as I wanted to do a hike to finally have an up close encounter with the Rushing River. Once back at the Campground, I found the trailhead and started off on this tripping root and muddy path adventure. It had been a while since I had to very cautiously watch every footfall so as not to either slide flat on my derriere in the mud or fall flat on my face with the toe of my shoe attached to a protruding root…all the while flapping my hat around to ward of the mosquitos. Great hike!


I am sure by now some of my readers must wonder about my sanity and have yet to figure out how any of what I describe could be enjoyable or why I would even voluntarily choose to do this. There is something so empowering for me in both the physicality of the endeavor but also being so in touch with the natural world with all its delights and annoyances. It is the real world I thrive in not the virtual world. Since I was very young I loved being physical and for many years I lost that aspect of myself. As a kid I climbed trees and scooped up pollywogs from a pond behind our property. I embraced scouting and earned just about every badge there was that had to do with the outdoors and natural world. I lost my way for many years and I found it again by signing up for a three week Outward Bound. That awakened the long dormant side of myself that craved the outdoors.

So I cautiously stepped over the roots and up the steps and over the boardwalks to see and hear the power of the water that the campground was named for: It indeed was a “rushing river. ” Satisfied I returned to my campsite and embraced the regular routine of cooking, organizing, writing and relaxing lakeside. A perfect end to the day was laying on my cot peering out of the window of my tent drinking in the delicious hues of a lovely sunset.

The following day was a travel day. I really hated leaving this large quiet private lakeside campsite (except for of course the very rank outdoor privies servicing this area but the Sleeping Giant awaited my arrival so I was on my way up through Thunder Bay Ontario to Sleeping Giant Provincial Park and the Marie Louise Lake Campground. Much of the terrain through Ontario appeared to be bog and marshland. The trees reminded me of the stunted evergreens on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. I was really looking for to another good camping experience and had reserved another lakeside spot. I somehow had romanticized this park for no logical reason what-so-ever other than the name Thunder Bay intrigued me and I imagined a quaint town up on Lake Superior and the campground would be beautifully forested and … Much to my chagrin, upon arriving at my campsite I was quite dismayed. It was high on a ridge and though “lakeside” it would involve bushwacking down the steep forested hill to get to the lake. The site was narrow (I could hear the whole conversation my neighbors across the road were having in their tent.) and in full sun.

The best part though was that it was beloved by hundreds of tiny black flies (buffalo gnats) which were intent on biting me around my neck and ears and hairline.  With a lot of flicking, slapping, fanning, and swatting I managed to get camp set up though suffering several nasty little bites on my neck and behind my ears.. The only cell service was accessible down by the lake. I decided not to bush-wack down but took the car instead.

I sent a few text and enjoyed the cool breeze and mostly freedom from the vicious insect world up yonder. I made a very impromptu but wise decision to only spend one night in this fly infested space and made a motel reservation in Thunder Bay for the next evening. As soon as it was cool enough I retreated into my tent for the evening feeling a bit despondent and quite itchy. The view was less than stellar. What a difference a day and 300 miles can make.

Since I had the campsite for two nights I did not have to break camp but headed out early for the one hike I wanted to do which was to visit the Sea Lion Trail. It was a 1.5 mile round trip from Kabeyan Trail Parking lot and considered a moderate hike but took me to an overlook of the Sea Lion Arch on Lake Superior. Though the trail was relatively easy, and thus relatively crowded, it still had a couple steeper bits and loose rocks, roots, and bugs! My imagination could not conjure up a sea lion in the rock formation but I was delighted to have made the trek to see this rock layer cake.

Following the loop road and definitely the end of the road for any cars wishing to travel further south, I stopped at Silver Lake at the only store I saw on the whole peninsula. It was named for the extracting of silver from the area in the mid 1800’s. I then headed on back to extricate my belongings from Marie Louise! I would definitely give her a 1 star out of 10 though admittedly I did see some very nice lakeside campsites (but perhaps they also had bug swarms to accompany them).

On the way out I stopped at Marie Louise Lake to get a better picture of the “Sleeping Giant” for whom this park was named. He sleeps on his back with arms folded on his chest. and is a massive formation of mesas and sills.

Then on the way out I spotted a road called Thunder Bay Lookout Road and of course made a sharp left to access it. The sign warned of the very steep hills, its narrowness, and of course bumps and ruts, potholes and washboards and in general serving up any other bone jarring road irregularities. Just my kind of road though I must add that I was glad to have a trail ready four wheel drive vehicle. The Thunder Bay lookout has a platform that juts out over the side of the cliff with an unobstructed view of Thunder Bay and Lake Superior. My legs got quite shaky and wobbly as I walked out onto the platform seeing nothing beneath me though it would probably be a softer landing if it extended out over the water should it give way rather than the jutting rocks below.

It was finally on to Thunder Bay. My primary impression of Thunder Bay, which is a hub of commerce with a deep water port, was that it appeared very utilitarian. It very much reminded me of cities like Anchorage and Fairbanks Alaska with buildings being more functional than architecturally appealing with very many structures looking like warehouses. I am sure some of this relates to the massive amounts of snow these cities get. I did not give it much of a chance because I was happy to go straight to my motel ( with a very surly desk clerk) and then get a bite to eat. I saw a Pizza Hut across the street and thought perhaps I would get something there but their dining room was closed and I did not want carryout. There was nice looking Chinese restaurant next door to that and the parking lot was crowded so I thought it might be a good choice. NOT. It was the worst Chinese food I have ever had. I would not even be able to describe what I was eating in the egg roll and entree. So even though I was quite glad to be out of the swarm of black flies, I wasn’t exactly enlivened by the thunder of Thunder Bay .

The next morning my major task was to get an oil change for my car and have it checked out after the incident a few days ago. The good news was that everything looked fine but the lube man kept upselling me on all different services I might want. So to be on the safe side I did have a few things done and was then on my merry way, heading south to the USA and Duluth.

    To Tent or not to Tent, a Conga Line Hike and a Non-Creek

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    It is now July 13th and I left Ashland Oregon on June 28th on a mega journey to the coast of Maine and back.. But first a stop on my way to the  Columbia River Gorge in Salem OR to visit with my daughter and my grandkids, Kira and Connor.  After 2 fun filled days of pool swimming, good eats, grand dog walking and  an afternoon at the World Beat Celebration in the Riverfront Park in Salem, I bade good-bye to family at around 1:00 pm on Sunday the 30th.  I was headed off on  the “real” beginning of  an ambitious journey to visit the last six of the continental USA National Parks I had not yet been to. I would be out 63 days  with 36 of them tent camping  and of course no RV-ing for this former Girl Scout, Outward Bound graduate, and backpacker. I am hoping I don’t regret this stalwart attitude.  Given that I am staying in both USA and Canadian National Parks with no access to wi-fi and minimal if any cell coverage, posting blogs will be quite intermittent.

    Since I would be traveling along the Columbia River Gorge, I wanted to visit Multnomah Falls, a very popular site along this corridor.  I was forewarned that there was quite  limited parking available.  So I secured a time entry permit that gives a specific hour you can enter the parking lot (though space availability was not guaranteed).   Driving the narrow highway heading east to reach the  falls,  I began to see cars parked along the road at all kinds of jaunty angles and pedestrians risking their life by walking along this squished road. I began to worry about parking. Just opposite the  entrance to the falls was a sign for parking and I didn’t know if this was the place I had reserved but when the  attendant said there was space and the parking fee was 20 dollars (this was a private lot). I figured  for $20.00 and a whole lot of convenience,  I would pony up the fee.

    Being mid-summer and the week-end before July 4th,  I think half the population of Oregon decided to visit this falls and many taking the hike to the top of the falls. A very diverse cadre of people were all vying for a spot on the railing for a perfect photo op. I would join the mob but I knew realistically it was impossible to get the full height of the falls in a photo so even though I asked an individual to take a photo of me, it was awful but decided it was not necessary to prove that I indeed had been there.   There were hiking options and the hike up to the bridge was . 2 mile and then to the top 1 mile.  I was game…not really anticipating that not only people but signs often lie ( a national pastime at this point in history) and my rational brain did not engage enough to consider that perhaps hiking to the top of the falls was not the sanest of plans.

    But not to be daunted, I trudged on up and up and up around the 11 switchbacks at the hottest part of the day with numerous hikers inquiring how old I was and was I really planning to hike to the top! It still didn’t register that perhaps I was probably taxing my body to its limits. Glad this wasn’t a 5K race as this 5K hike took 2 hours 17 minutes and a pace of 44’28” per mile The finish line would have been removed and the venue deserted.Once back at the trail head, i was exultant that I had the made a very wise decision of parking close. My legs were aching and spent.

     I headed down the historic Columbia River highway, made  a quick stop at Horsetail Falls, and on to The Dalles and a night in the Columbia River Hotel. I was patting myself on the back for cancelling my camping reservation along the gorge since the site description warned of the high noise volume there from the highway next door. The loud highway rumble was the background music  hiking to the top of the gorge. So I was glad for a comfy and nice quiet hotel room until I discovered the air conditioner did not work. Since I did not want to pack up and move to another room I decided to tough it out since I needed to “practice” dealing with the hot and cold temperature options I would encounter in my tent. Besides I was not sure I could walk one more step. The next morning I eased into the day by walking the grounds, observing  the Dalles and marveling at the clarity of the 11,217 feet Mt. Hood in the distance before I headed out to  travel  along this canyon that “houses” the Columbia River. 

    The western gorge eco system of lush green forests gave way to a semi arid eco system — a mosaic of mostly treeless hills\ peppered with sagebrush, sporting an array of tans, golds, browns and rusts. There was a certain beauty to this National Scenic Area if you can reconcile the hydroelectric power plants serviced by the 4 dams (Bonnevile, The Dalles, John Day , McNary ) of this section of the gorge with the concomitant high voltage transmission lines. Additionally in the last few years the proliferation of wind power as a source electricity has resulted in this area of the grassy savannah of the Columbia Plateau being dotted with windmills. I often lament the price our planet pays for our relentless need not only to survive but to increase and multiply and grow the domestic product index the huge need to consume, consume, consume ad nauseam.

    The destination on July 1st was Beauty Creek Campground in Coeur d’ Aline. So far the drive on this trip has been nerve racking. For expediency it was necessary to take the Interstates which were abuzz with every assortment of cars, regular semi-trucks, semi’s with two or three trailers, wide-loads, self contained RV’s, RV’s pulling boats, 4 wheelers and an array of other conveyance. All were very much in a hurry to get some where or to start their vacation now. I, who promised myself to follow the speed limit on this trip, was the “little old lady” driving the Model-T surpassed by almost all but a very few other Model-T drivers. When I hit Kennewick heading up into Washington I was forever grateful that I did not have a Model T but an SUV with a screen upon which my iPhone displays the iMap route I selected and Siri tells me step by step the distance and which lane to be in…I have no idea how I would have negotiated the lanes and interchange that i would encounter to head up to Spokane. I have no desire to drive through the maze of horribly designed interchanges in Kennewick WA. ever again. I recall the AAA Triptiks of days of yore but one really needs a navigator who can understand maps and has a good sense of direction…but i guess back then there were less travelers and less complicate interchanges – mostly stop and go lights!!!! Once I neared Spokane the traffic was less frenetic and I was entering mountainous terrain and gaining a bit in elevation and arrived at Coeur d’Aline Beauty Creek Campground around 5:45.

    I was pleasantly surprise to find #19 at the end of the line, with plenty of distance between campsites and nature’s “privacy screens” of thick vegetation and trees.  Reserving a campsite online is a crapshoot.  What you hope you are getting and what you actually get are often two different things.   I won at craps this time since many of the sites were in an open field. Though I reserved a creekside site, Beauty Creek was no beauty and no creek but a dry bed of stones and decaying logs,   This was to be my first go at setting up my campsite – new tent, new cot etc. and I was racing against an ominous looking sky ready to dump. I fumbled about but eventually managed while encountering only a few spatters of rain.  My weary body said enough.  Tonight is not the night to cook a hot meal.  So began the challenge of how to organize all of my necessary and not so necessary stuff in the tent and what stuff would rest better in the car. It began by tossing everything in all direction all over the car  which I had so meticulously organized prior to departures. The upside was I was able to select only the necessary items for this one night stand and not have to drown inside the tent in my piles of stuff. I’d like to report that I slept well in my new digs with my traveling Squishmallow., Banks the Badger. Banks loves to camp.