We were headed out for a short camping
trip with Marilyn and Gene, and decided to add an extra day to go to
Battleground. Judy wanted to visit her brother, Ralph. Monday was a
gorgeous warm day, and we had a leisurely start....meaning we left
around noon. We weren't expected before dinner, so that was all
right.
As we neared the town of Kalama, our
little sat-nav, Tom-Tom, told us there was a traffict jam up ahead,
that might add an extra 20 minutes to our trip, so we decided to ask
Tom-Tom to find us a detour. Hmmm. We left the freeway and climbed
and climbed and climbed on a road up Green Mountain, then came down
and down and down back to the freeway about 3 miles further than we
had been....a detour that took us 20 minutes! But we did get to see
this gorgeous view of the valley.
Ralph and Charlotte fixed us a great
dinner of salmon, corn on the cob, sweet potato julienne fries, and
homemade rolls. They had their granddaughters from New York visiting,
so it was an extra special visit for us.
We camped in the driveway, and the next
morning Judy talked the girls into playing Banangrams with her. It
was fun watching them come up with words and they did a great job
with very little help.
We left Battleground around
11 and drove north about an hour and a half to meet Marilyn and Gene
at our campground at Mossyrock. This is a Tacoma Power Park, not a
state park, and is situated on a lake formed by the Mossyrock Dam.
The loops by the lake were
pretty full, but our loop, up above was full of open spaces..and much
quieter.
This little deer was
browsing near our spot when we drove up.
We took a short walk around
the campground and down the road about a half mile to a quilt shop we
had passed. This house along the road obviously doesn't welcome
people!
Judy couldn't resist checking out the quilt shop just outside the park entrance.
Marilyn made us a terrific
dinner of beef fondue, salad, garlic bread and fresh tomatoes from
her garden. As we've said before, camping with her is definitely
gourmet all the way!
The sunset was made dramatic
because the clouds were rolling in. It started raining in the night,
and kept it up, all the next day!
So, on Tuesday, we decided
to put off the planned hike and drive up to Mt St Helens, even though
we knew we wouldn't see the mountain itself. We stopped at one
visitor “center” (more of a gift shop) and we all bought these
great jackets that were on sale. We decided to wear them right there
and then, because it was definitely getting colder...and rainier....
At the Johnson Observatory
Center, we watched a movie about the explosion in May of 1980. At the
conclusion of the movie, the screen recedes, the curtain opens, and
you're supposed to be awed by the sight of the mountain...which was
covered in clouds at this point!
But, on our way back down
the road, the clouds began to lift and we had to stop to take a few
shots of the mountain...quickly before it got covered up again!
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