#37 - Coveys Great Adventure - July 2017 - Oregon, Washington, Idaho

July 2017 - Oregon, Washington, Idaho

We wrapped up three months as camp hosts at Umpqua Lighthouse State Park and hit the road for 30 days much anticipated R&R before our next host gig in August. If you want a reservation in an Oregon state park over July 4th, you had better make it in February.

Boiler Point near Lincoln City

We needed someplace to stay to avoid the hordes that descend on the coast starting in July, but reservations were hard to find, especially because we procrastinated for months about making plans. Whapiti RV Park in nearby Lincoln City had one space left and we grabbed it. The park had everything we needed but nothing more, so we spent time in Florence and Lincoln City, mostly just driving around taking in the sites and avoiding the bumper-to-bumper traffic on US 101 as much as we could. The coach got cleaned and the car and the dogs got washed, and we enjoyed the first consecutive warm, sunny days that we had seen in quite a while.

One day we needed a Mexican food fix. Traffic through Lincoln City was awful,so we headed south to the Mazatlan Mexican Restaurant on the waterfront in Depoe Bay. Having picked it for its convenience we didn't expect much, but to our surprise we had the best Mexican seafood either of us could remember. We will definitely return. On another outing we took the dogs to Drift Creek Park and hiked in to see the popular waterfall.

With a month to travel until we were due to report to Collier State Park, we intended to see parts of the Northwest that we hadn't seen before. We planned a big loop through central Oregon, on to northeast Washington, then to northern Idaho and back to the Klammath Falls area. The next stop was Umatilla Marina RV Park on the shores of the Columbia River. The park is owned by the not-so-thriving town of Umatilla. We got a site with a great river view and set out to explore what the area had to offer.



The Umatilla Dam turned out to be much more interesting than we expected. The Corp of Engineers has incorporated a small museum devoted to the salmon runs that pass through the Columbia River dams every year, and the steps that the COE has taken to assist these migrations.

Yikes! Yes, that is a Suzuki powerplant

That afternoon we stumbled onto a  street fair just up the road in Hermiston. The big event was lawnmower drag racing. Before you yawn, think riding lawnmowers powered by 1,000 cc, 200 HP motorcycle engines. We didn't stay for the races, it was just too hot to hang around for a few hours. Check it out on YouTube.


We were pleasantly surprised to discover that the Columbia Crest Winery was just across the river in Washington. We really like their wines and got to taste several that don't make it to the places we usually shop. That proved to be a little expensive, because we couldn't leave without a few bottles that we have stashed away for special occasions.

Curlew River

We were both looking forward to our first visit to eastern Washington. As often as we have been to the coastal areas, we have never explored 90% of the state. Curlew Lake State Park in Republic, WA is about 50 miles northwest of Spokane and roughly 20 miles south of the Canadian border. It's a fairly small, lovely park right on the lake shore. The whole area is very scenic, and we spent a couple of days just following local roads to see where they led.


Republic is an old mining town that is worth exploring. It is also the main shopping area for miles around. One day we dug out our passports and headed up to Grand Forks, Canada for lunch and a look around. We enjoyed both, especially lunch at the Wooden Spoon Bistro a local institution. We were both struck by how clean the town was. We didn't see a spec of litter anywhere. I couldn't get a smile from either the US or Canadian border guards, though. I need to work on my delivery, I guess.

We have been looking forward to visiting Coeur d'Alene, Idaho for some time. Affordable camp sites were not available near the city, so we found one about 40 miles east at Bumblebee Campground in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. We really like National Forest Service campgrounds, despite the problems we have getting a rig our size into most of them. Bumblebee was no exception. These campgrounds were built long before 43' motorhomes were invented. We had to trim our way in and out of the campsite and we picked up a few more scratches from branches we didn't notice, but it was worth it.

Downtown Coeur d'Alene waterfront park

Coeur d'Alene is an small, attractive city on the shore of a beautiful lake. The lake would make a dump look scenic. The city has a great vibe to it. Northern Idaho College is located right downtown along the lake and clearly gives the city a vibrancy and upbeat tone that I didn't expect. We both wanted to stay longer but needed to keep moving to make our schedule work.

I've been through Salmon, Idaho a couple of times on motorcycle trips and had good memories of it, so we decided to spend a few nights at the Century 2 RV Park and explore the area. A little rustic, the park had all the services and was right on the banks of the Salmon River. After settling in we headed into town to get our bearings and to walk the dogs in the town dog park.

Salmon has changed little in the ten years since I was last through it. It's primarily a tourist town focused on fishing and river sports. I was disappointed to discover that the small family-run Chinese restaurant that I enjoyed on my last visit had closed recently. After looking around a little more, we went back to the coach and settled in for the night.

About 3:30 the next morning the phone rang. It was the hospital in Salt Lake notifying us of Liesa's accident. By 7:30 we were packed up and on the road. We spent the next two-and-a-half months in Salt Lake helping her recover.