August 1, 2013 Kennewick-Boise

Kennewick as a city does not entice a traveller; Kennewick Best Western Plus is a horse of a different color: super friendly, they even served guests complimentary dinner of soup and hot dogs. Premises are  spacious, with nice furniture in rooms and in lobby/breakfast room. Our refrigerator was not working well, they... changed it! Installed a brand new one within 15 min. after I spoke to the reception desk! They also have  a great (and warm - 80 degrees) swimming pool where you can actually swim laps... a swimming pool that does not stink of old chlorine...

I spent a blissful morning swimming in peace and solitude... Then - a fantastic breakfast ( I had to take a picture: waffles with freshly made strawberry jam, scrambled eggs and bacon, hashbrowns, uffins, etc.
I finished my breakfast with fresh grapefruit slices.

What was sorely lacking is tourist attractions. Even though the famous Kennewick man was discovered well, here, the remains are in Smithsonian. The small museum is supposed to have some amazing petrified trees floor - but the hours are 12 to 4 pm. Hardly helpful!

We left Kennewick at 11. The gusting wind chased us up the slopes of the approaching Rockies. Then the lightning soundlessly ripped the sky. And then torrents of rain came down from heavens like the great biblical deluge. I could barely see the road. I could not let my parents see how worried I was, so I just continued talking to them calmly, and gradually slowed down to 55 and changed to the right lane.
Passing cars were making it almost impossible to see, and the road that was steadily climbing was flowing with rundown waters. It felt as if we were swimming.... Then a brief respite, about an hour, past Powers in Oregon. We stopped at 2 o'clock at a rest area, but were forced to leave quickly because of the  storm  wind. The rain again caught up with us the minute we stepped into the car. The next hour I was again driving in a grey haze of rain, whipped up by the passing trucks into a dirty mist.

The rain left us on the border of Idaho. We crossed into a well tilled, beautifully laid out farmland, with fields of potatoes, wheat, corn, and sugar beats as far as your eye could see. Here everything looks cleaner, newer, more expensive then in Oregon.  More traffic. Last 22 miles to Boise we drove on a 4 lane highway (one way, and 4 more the other way) in heavy traffic.

Boise met us with a dust storm. It settled don by night. We can't complain: we are staying at Hampton, and they have a salt water pool... Mom and I went for a splash...

This is our most ambitious road trip to date. We hope to drive to New Mexico and return to Seattle in 17 days. Today we completed the first leg of our journey.

We left Seattle on a cold, gloomy, gray morning; the weather followed us over the pass. The humidity was opressive, the sun was hiding behind roiling clouds. But the thunderstorm that was brewing hit Seattle - and not Cashmere... We were happy to step into the cool air-conditioned halls of the Pioneer Village museum in Cashmere. This small museum boasts an amazing collection of Native American artifacts. Outside one can walk among log structures dating back to 1870s- 1890s - there are 20 original buildings brought in from different locations in the Cashmere valley. There is a barber's shop, a Mission hotel, a school, a saloon - and a jail!

We also explored the Aplets and Cotlets factory - they offer free tours and samples - what's not to like? Friendly girls with fresh faces welcomed us to the factory. We saw the vats where candy is cooked, wooden trays they let the mass cool, and then a freezer where the candy must freeze to 45 degrees. In the next room the air was thick with starch and powdered sugar -  the big flats of candy were cut and dipped in the sweet dust... next - packing , sorting, checking.. . and we bought a box, too!

From Cashmere we drove to Kennewick. We drove along Columbia river, crossed vast desert valleys, and entered into something that looked like one dull urban sprawl. Lots of highways, small homes, lots of grocery stores and Mexican restaurants, no visible urban planning. Tomorrow we want to explore Kennewick a little more - there should be a historic core somewhere...

From Yosemite to the Pyramid Lake, June 29, 2012

A horrible day: instead of 5 hours we drove for 8, with short stops, not even time to eat, but mostly on sharply turning, winding, precipitous roads, across mountain passes, where at some points there was just a one-lane road - and you could never tell what will jump at you from around that next corner. People say that the most dangerous thing on this road is to face a rented RV. I wish I followed the directions they gave me at the AAA office; instead, I trusted my GPS device.

Of course, crossing the Sierra Nevada is a beautiful, if harrowing, experience. The Ebbot's Pass takes you through alpine forests, along pristine lakes, untouched,wild nature.


In the evening we reached the Pyramid Lake. Peace, asolute quiet, beauty of pale blue and dusty rose colors around you. The lake is only an hour and a half from Reno, but as it is part of the Native American rezervation, it is untouched by civilization. There are a few hundred people on its banks, mostly in RVs - and the town of Suttcliff ( a dozen of small homes bunched up together ). One motel to offer lodging: Crosby's Lodge has 3 cottages, a lively bar fueled by modern country music, a few gambling apparatuses, and a store that sells everything a fisherman might dream of.

They took us in with genuine welcome and fed us! Finally! We each got a gigantic basket of fish and chips - even my father could not finish!
The cottage was fully equipped for a long stay: a full-size refrigerator, a full size gas stove, a microwave oven, pots, pans, siverware, salt, pepper, flour, - 4 beds - and a bathroom - for the price of meager 70 bucks a night!

We could not wait to see the lake. So, after dinner, we walked about 100 feet down to the water. There were white pelicans, moodily watching the waters, sandpipers running along the shore, rabbits, quail, quite unintimidated by our presence.

The lake is beautiful. I wish we could rent a boat trip - but the only rentals available were superexpensive speedboats that I would never dare to drive.

Even from this shore you could see an out-of-this world vision of a stone pyramid closer to the eastern bank of the lake, rising from the water, changing color every half hour in the setting sun.

Yosemite National Park, June 28, 2012

Today we took the Grand tour of the Yosemite Park. I was so happy I did not have to drive! First we headed to Maripoza, to see the giant sequoias. Then - to Glacier Point, 7 thousand feet above sea level, to feast our eyes on the Yosemite valley and the famous Half Dome Rock. Standing there, by the precipice,  you get an illusion of flight - and a feeling that you could embrace this whole valley with its waterfalls and endless forests, grey rocks polished by glaciers, and clear clean streams at the bottom.

Later we descended to the bottom of the canyon and admired the majesty of the Yosemite Fall and the Bridal Veil Fall. The Yosemite fall is the tallest - the water falls from the height of 2 thousand feet. In the end of June it was already shrinking, only to dry out in the middle of July. But the Bridal Veil never dries; it was ripped by the wind and tinted by the setting sun. At 4:30 P.M. one can see the  rainbow in its waters.

Ashland-Yosemite, June 27, 2012

The second leg of the trip - from Ashland to Yosemite - took another 9 hours. We whizzed through Sacramento - a huge modern city (that was a surprise) -  and turned towards the mountains. I particularly enjoyed the last hour and a half of our trip: we were in the rolling footsteps of Sierra Nevada. The road flowed between round dry hills covered with tall dry grass that, in the rays of the sinking sun, seemed more molten gold then anything organic. Every turn of the road opened a new vista, both rustic and wild, with small farms clinging to the hillsides and scant trees dotting the landscape.

Finally we reached the town of Fish Camp. It is the tiniest of townships one can imagine, a handful of homes, a couple of restaurants - and several inns. But this little town is historically significant: here the US government placed its cavalry and made a stand to defend Yosemite from loggers, pouchers and developers.

Tenaya Lodge - our destination - is a sprawling hotel complex with a majestic sentral hall, all decorated in roughly hewn stone and wood, outdoor and indoor swimming pools, jaccuzis, restaurants, and parks. It sits on a slope facing a picturesque canyon at 5 thousand feet above sea level. It is, of course, rather pricy (from $350 per night) - but so are all of the hotels near the gates or in the park itself. Just to think about supplying water, electricity, food, etc. this far into the mountains - no wonder the prices could be stiff.

Seattle-Ashland, June 26, 2012

My annual road trip with my parents began on June 26.  9 hours to Ashland, including a stop for lunch and a stop for gas...
We left fairly early - around 6:30, and was I glad we did! We flew through downtown Seattle, passed Tacoma and almost did not slow down near Olympia. Approaching Vancouver, WA, I spotted a policeman on a motorbike- as always, hunting around the curve in the road, where the speed limit suddenly plunges from 70 to 50 mph. Well, I have already learned my lesson.  I was demurely driving in the right lane, hiding between other cars.

And then - Portland! Portland is beautiful in any weather! It welcomes you with the futuristic glass towers of the Convention center, and then, as you are climbing the bridge over Colorado, it envelopes you in endlessly softly rolling vistas - tony downtown, lush parks and historic residential areas climbing higher up the green slopes.

The rain was on our heels: we had to eat our lunch in the car. Only by Grant's Pass we glimpsed some patches of blue sky... The temperature in Ashland fell to 48 degrees! That night we saw "As You Like It". We had warm coats, wrapped ourselves in blankets - even my father, who usually considers acknowledging heat or cold below his dignity, was glad to have a blanket that night!

Could it have been cold? The actors seemed frozen stiff. Singing was... no, I think my students did better. By coincidence, this semester's production was "As You Like It". I could not help comparing: mm - clever sleeves... I probably could do this... fighting scene - is too slow, movements too simple... my kids did better ... why is Jaques de Bois suddenly a woman? etc. I so much prefer their previous production of As You Like It about 4 years ago...