Last night we bunked down in Ennis, MT. I am not a fan of much in Ennis. It is a beautiful place, but there is only one establishment there that has a halfway decent level of service.

The gas station with the ExxonMobile colors, I forget the name, is staffed by a bunch of monotonous drones. There was barely a word of welcome between the three of them.

On the way to dinner we spotted some cool metal horse and cowboy sculptures. Sadly this was my only picture from the day.

Banditos (the sign says “Southwestern food”) restaurant at the far end of town is a bit of a sham. The owner (or maybe just the host) seems to like greeting people at the door. Conveniently, before the customer gets the chance to look at the menu and the prices. A Southwestern Cobb salad (really just a Plain Jane Cobb Salad) was $14. House salads were $4. The menu claimed all the dressings were made in house, which I do not doubt. They were all watered down and boring as hell. I had the berry and sage dressing (berries with water?) and Mom and Ashley shared a tiny salad (think: served on a saucer) with ranch dressing. Apparently it tasted just like watered down ranch. Dinners came, they were mediocre and small portioned. The wait staff was quite friendly. I got a kick out of this: the special was enchiladas with crab and a lemon cream sauce. In Montana.

After dinner we topped the a little stand selling Wilcoxson’s deilicious ice cream. There were two girls behind the counter. One was working (sort of) and the other was doing nothing. As we approached to order the girl who was working promptly picked up her iPod touch and played around for about 45 seconds. After that she looked up and said, literally. “What do you want? I am waiting.” What the hell?

Upon checking into our room we were told we would be getting a two bedroom cabin for a certain price. We accepted and drove over to discover a one bedroom room with two beds. This was in a small hotel where it would be quite conceivable that the host would know the layout of all of the rooms. Oh well. We slept soundly and with exception of the used bandaid stuck to the disabled bar in the shower the room was clean. The staff was nice.

Our hotel, The Riverside, was at the far end of town just before the river bridge. Next door is a little park with a couple of baseball diamonds, some play equipment and a nice (if short) walking trail. Oh, and lots of bugs. Cute walk, and since the spring has held on so late this year the river was flowing quickly.

Overall, Ennis is set into some of the most beautiful country in Montana. Sadly, the little tourist trap of a town is kind of a disappointment. My favorite part about Ennis? It is 71 miles to the Yellowstone National Park West entrance.

Goodnight!

From Ezra Moore

Wow, what a day!

We woke up from our lovely campsite (Clearwater River on one side, Highway -12 on the other) and struck camp quickly. No breakfast or coffee this morning, we wanted to make it to Missoula in time to spend the afternoon with friends of my parents, Abbott and Jacque Norris or Norris Woodworking. We did stop at the Lolo Pass Visitor Center, just this side of Montana, where we discovered what Ashley dubbed “the anti-cuddling benches.” Mom thinks they were armrests, I am not convinced.

Lolo Pass Anti-cuddling Benches

Abbott and Jacque. Talk about fantastic, interesting, and good hearted people. After settling into our first (and probably only) hotel for the trip (thanks mom and dad!) we headed over to the Norris’ house. Everything inside, down to the furniture, was designed and built by Abbott. The table in the entryway was a beautiful combination of (what looked to my untrained eye, like) Maple and Wenge that had been bleached by the sun.

We sat out on their deck in the 80 degree Montana evening sunshine talking while my parents and Abbott and Jacque. Abbott showed me his Austin-Healy 3000 MK3 which has been fully restored. It was beautiful!

Abbott's beautiful Austin-Healey 3000 MK3.

After we relaxed and had a Pellegrino with lime (Abbott, Jacque, Mom, and Dad had Prosecco with raspberries grown in Jacque’s garden) we headed out to a nearby restaurant. We walked from Abbott and Jacque’s, it was a short walk, but the weather was still great and Missoula was beautiful. They have enough roundabouts to really rile the PT whiners. One in particular caught my eye. Painted along the rim were the words “I treat my objects like women.”

"I treat my objects like women" roundabout.

The restaurant, Cafe Dolce, was very nice. We sat outside in the warm evening air with some other folks from Norris. Matt, Robyn, and their daughter Bella joined us. We were served grilled bread made in-house, to start. We had antipasti and baba ghanoush platters as appetizers. The main course was incredible, I had rib eye with a balsamic glaze and grilled asparagus. Ashley had Pappardelle  Ragu with game hen. This was another meal I wish I had taken more photos of. This time, all I got was the bread.

Grilled Italian bread and olive oil at the Cafe Dolce.

We hung around after we had finished dinner for coffee and chit chat. Bella was a riot. A beautiful little curly-blonde haired kiddo with a ton of energy. After things had slowed down a little we said goodbye to Matt and Robyn and walked the short trip back to the Norris’ beautiful house. In the backyard they have big open mineral oil torches and a water feature, which makes a pleasant sound. As the evening wound down we talked about the places we had been and places we wanted to go. We also talked about books. Dad is currently reading Fordlandia, a biography of Henry Ford, and we both just recently finished In the Plex a book about Google’s history. I am looking forward to reading In The Land of Beasts, a book by Eric Larson (author of Devil in The White City), next.

Around 11 o’clock we headed back to the hotel and slept like a ton of bricks.

From Ezra Moore

Alright, that’s it Washington. We headed out for Montana this morning at about 10:30 AM from our sweet campsite in Chelan. We are stopped right now at a roadside dinner called The Viking. Haven’t received our food yet, but the air has a slight vinegary smell to it. Regardless, I am looking forward to my Viking burger and Ashley is looking forward to her (in her own words, sexist) Lady Viking burger. Mom and Dad ordered mushroom swiss and grilled chicken burgers.

UPDATE: Turns out the burgers were quite delicious. Despite the looks of the joint it was pretty awesome. The young guy that waited on us was a great host.

Before we stopped for lunch we explored the city of Sprague. Not what you call bustling, but we did find a dirt parking lot full of old trucks (from the 1930s through the 1950s) which made for a cool photo opportunity. My road trip flip flops (purchased in Missoula in 2007) finally gave up the ghost in Chelan last night, so I am on the hunt for a new pair.

Antique trucks in Sprague, WA.

Montana ho!

From Ezra Moore

“Chief Joseph Dam, I’ll bet Chief Joseph is thrilled about that!” – Dad

“I’ll no more forever, but I’ll build a goddamed dam!”

From Ezra Moore

I love this place. I love it so much that it pains me to pull myself away and write about it. If it weren’t for a slow, lazy evening, and about four authentic Mexican tacos (from a real truck) I probably wouldn’t have even charged my laptop.

Today we woke up and decided that we wanted to spend another night here. Since camping is scarce in the summer (some people book nine months in advance) we had to move to another campsite. Out of 41 into 49! There is a loop at the far end of the state park campground here that has about 30 walk-in campsites. Some are 100 feet down a steep path (like 41) and others are only about 15 feet down (like 49). The sites closer to the camp store are preferable due to their distance from the shared docks that always attract a louder crowd.

Mom and Dad camping in Chelan

Around one o’clock we headed into town for a burger and a swim. Lakeside Drive-In has decent burgers. Their patties are extremely thin, so order the Double Mack Burger if you’re hungry at all. Their fries and shakes are also pretty decent, and they have their own special blend of seasoning salt. After lunch it was time for some napping/swimming.

Sweet, sweet campsite #49

Chelan City Park has a nice beach with a plastic floating dock and a fantastic lawn. A little goose poop didn’t keep us from finding a nice spot to take a nap. The water is a bit warmer here. It is usually pretty crowded here, but today wasn’t too bad. After our first dip, as we were walking out of the water Dad found an army man in the surf. A guy named Michael asked us if we wanted to “play ball” (football) with him. We tossed the ball around with Michael until he grew tired of us and moved on to the volleyball crowd. We took off for a walk in town, and to find a new bauble for Ashley’s belly ring, which mysteriously disappeared at the city park.

Our little swimming army guy.

We walked around the little park surrounding the overpass and the channel to the hydroelectric dam at the outflow of the lake, then into the city. Walking the sidewalks we saw a restaurant called the Blue Moon that had burnt in early March. There was a sign out front indicating their plans to rebuild, and the plywood erected to shield the worksite from the public had eyeholes drilled into it a various heights to allow people to get a look at the damage/new construction. Once back at the car we headed for Safeway, and then to dinner at the aforementioned taco truck.

YUM!

From Ezra Moore

Started out pretty sunny this morning in Bellingham, but it didn’t last long. By 10 AM we were driving through Sedro-Wooley in the rain. Behind a logging truck. Stuck.

The North Cascades were beautiful as usual. I love them. Once we passed Ross Lake we encountered the ever-present road construction of the summer season.

Currently we are sitting in Winthrop, WA at a pizza restaurant. Delicious!

From Ezra Moore

Car packed.

Campsite in Chelan booked (the day before even, how often does that happen?!)

All that is left is departure. I didn’t realize I wanted a vacation this badly!

From Ezra Moore

Do you want to go somewhere outdoors this Summer to hike or fish or camp? You better plan some pre-activity suffering on your computer. Why? Washington state, in an effort to prevent the closure of 100 of our 119 state parks, has implemented a new paid access plan for parks. For $30 a year (I’ll come back to this) or $10 daily per vehicle per visit. No problem. I usually donate about $55 a year to the state parks system (typically by way of $5 when I renew my vehicle tabs, and various small cash donations at parks). I love to donate to state parks because I love to visit them. I could almost go on forever about how important parks are, and how blessed Americans are to have such a diverse array of culturally and geographically significant regions to experience. But I wont.

What gets me about this park pass is the overall feeling that the parks system is trying to screw the very people who want to support them.

Price
When the flyers, the newspaper articles, and the signs all say that the annual fee is $30 what would you expect to pay for an annual DiscoverPass? Thirty dollars? Me too. The only way to get the $30 price is to find an open ranger booth at your park. Good luck. Better get online and buy your pass ahead of time. Whats the price online? Thirty-five dollars. Where does that extra money go? Not to the parks, it is a “dealer fee.” You can also go to various businesses and get a Discover Pass if you’re willing to pay a dealer fee. Fees vary as the dealer sets their own fee.

Availability
What if you want to pull out on the side of Chuckanut Drive to hike into Fragrance Lake or similar locations? Sorry, you need a pass and the ranger station/camp manager doesn’t even have hours posted. Want to go to DNR lands with no ranger station or management? Remember to purchase your pass online or wherever you pick up your hunting/fishing license.

Transferability
Once you’ve bought the pass you’re free to go. Stick it on the windshield of your Prius and take off, headed for a park. Next weekend, pack up the boat and larger vehicle (more people exposed to our state parks!) and head off for a longer trip. Just don’t forget that you have to buy another Discover Pass. That’s right, each vehicle regardless of the owner, needs its own $30 annual pass.

Now allow me to ask you a simple question. Does any of this make you want to visit one of our state parks? Do you think this encourages new visitors to the park? I don’t. I think the only people that will put up with this hassle will be folks who already have firsthand knowledge of the beauty of our parks. If you enjoy Washington’s state parks, or just the outdoors I urge you to make a donation to the parks by clicking… Oh wait, the state parks system doesn’t have an easy link so that people may donate online. I suggest you still make a donation by sending a check to the address below.

I urge you to buy a Discover Pass and use it. If you get the chance buy it from a ranger and tell them you think that this is the wrong way to go about keeping our parks open. Show the state parks system that we support them. Spread the word about the wonders of Washington’s state parks. Take someone who has never been to a state park to your favorite park! Help instill in people the desire to preserve and protect this gift. Consider joining the Washington Trails Association. Visit their website and find a new hike near you.

Above all, get out there and have fun. Use the parks, or lose them.

Washington State Parks Donation Address:

Washington State Parks
Attn: Park Donation
P.O. Box 42650
1111 Israel Road S.W.
Olympia, WA 98504-2650

From Ezra Moore

Oroville, CA to Oroville Lake State Park, CA

We woke up around 7:30 this morning to the sound of Harley-Davidsons starting up in the driveway. Both Amber’s parents are long-time riders. Rhonda was on her way to work, at the local hospital, and Mark was on his way to the gym. We ate some breakfast and watched a little T.V. before we got ourselves all packed up. We hadn’t brought much inside the house, so packing was finished quickly and all that remained was to lower Scrap from his blocks and take him for a test drive.

We all went outside and took Scrap off the blocks. He and I went for quick drive to bed the new brakes pads and rotors, and then we were off to town as well. We visited Amber’s sisters, got more gas, shopped for groceries, and then followed Amber’s sister Chelsea out to the lake. I tried to get the lady at the gatehouse to accept my National Parks annual pass, but she was too quick for my tricks. We drove down a long boat ramp to the water’s edge and unloaded everything we were planning to take out on the lake with us. We are staying on Amber’s aunt Christie’s houseboat so we took everything but the camping equipment.

Christie arrived shortly after I parked Scrap at the top of that long ramp, he wanted to go out on the lake too, until I reminded him that he doesn’t like getting in the water deeper than the bottom of his fog lights. We talked it over and he decided to stay, keeping an eye out for seagulls. The lake is a hydroelectric reservoir, and you could tell it was dammed at one end because the red earth that surrounds the lake was stepped. This is a result of the water level being lowered and then held as it runs through the dam. The water level was going down overall, as towards the end of the evening we had to slack the mooring lines (tied to stakes driven into the dirt on shore), and push the boat out a few feet.

As soon as we got on the houseboat we got in the water. It was the perfect temperature. Amber’s niece of two loves to jump off the back of the boat into her mother’s/Amber’s arms. We ate a delicious lunch of BBQed fresh jalapeños, pineapple sausages, salads, and a couple other delicious items. After lunch there was more swimming, and Amber’s dad, Marc, showed up with his boat which he moored along side Christie’s. We all spent a great day relaxing. I alternated between swimming, reading my new Nook, and eating. Perfect! I also spent a fair amount of time petting Phoebe, the boat-dog. As the sun started to get low in the sky, Amber’s brother Miles (and his friend, Danny) showed up with his new wakeboard.

Phoebe the Friendly Boat-Dog. Do you see that smile on her face? She is laughing at my sun-burn.

Eager to try it out we headed out onto the lake in Christie’s ski boat. Miles had a great first run, wakeboarding underneath a large suspension bridge. Amber took pictures of the wakeboarders while Ashley deliberated making her first foray into the sport. Eventually, Amber, Ashley and I all got a ride. Amber got up immediately, Ashley got up in her first few tries, and I got in one incredibly lucky ride. With the sun setting we headed back to the houseboat for dinner; tri-tip cooked for us by Mark and Rhonda.

After dinner we settled in on the very top deck of the houseboat in sleeping bags for some well deserved sleep.

See you tomorrow!

From Ezra Moore

Today. Was. HOT! We had a lot of ground to cover, and instead of taking the slow and scenic routes, we took the most direct route possible. This was due to the failing front brake material on Scrap.

We started the day with a drive around the rim of Crater Lake. The lake is a beautiful blue color, and almost perfectly round. The drive around the top rim of the lake is 30 miles, and well worth it. We learned the Native American story of how the lake was formed by two warring spirits Llao and Skell and their destruction of Mount Mazama. After concluding our trip around the lake, and saying one last goodbye to our mosquito infested campsite we headed South.

The view from rim of Crater Lake

The three of us on the rim of Crater Lake, OR.

When we passed through Redding, CA the temperature read 109 degrees. We were traveling at 80 MPH with all four windows down sweating like crazy. Amber’s parents live in Oroville, CA and our goal was to make it to their house and change the brakes out. By the time we made it through Chico, it had started to cool down a little, but it was still over 100 degrees when we reached Oroville.

Ashley, still beautiful in the heat.

We sourced brake parts from the local Kragen, and after meeting Amber’s amazing family (and eating an equally amazing dinner) we got to work. After removing the front wheels and calipers it was evident that the only parts in bad shape were on the driver’s side front assembly. This is unusually as a brake system that is working correctly should wear the brake material evenly between sides. I will have to look into that when we get home. The caliper didn’t appear to stick at all, both last time and this time I remembered to re-grease all the pins/slides. My guess is that Scrap has some air in the line on that side.

It wouldn't be vacation without something to work on. Amber's dad and niece in the background.

Upon inspection of the troublesome side’s rotor, it became apparent that we would also be replacing that. I’ve never had any luck getting rotors turned. Mark gave me a ride into town to get new rotors. By the time we returned Ashley had passed out. She was exhausted. Amber, Mark, and I ventured back outside while Amber and I finished the brakes. It was getting dark, so we put the brakes back together, the wheels back on, and called it a night with the car still on blocks. Tomorrow is going to be a no-travel day. We are going to stay with Amber’s aunt Christie on her houseboat on Oroville Lake.
See you all tomorrow!

From Ezra Moore