Tori set up a trip to Dry Falls State Park, located in eastern Washington, about a 3 hour drive from my home in Ballard. According to the literature, the falls were created at the end of the last Ice Age, when a large waterfall kept retreating further and further, carving out a huge canyon that looks very reminiscent of a miniature Grand Canyon, to my eye. The dry fall-bed is three times the size of Niagara Falls, and I believe that is via measuring perimeters of both falls. There is a series of lakes, all varying sizes, that lie at the bottom of the dried waterfalls. They are very beautiful, and conducive to kayaking.
We unwittingly arrived the day before trout fishing season opened, so we were crowded into the state campground amidst a miasma of families with children, carousing and drinking heavily while pulling in their limit of trout. (Mark tells me trout is tasty; I've never tried it! Maybe I should have convinced someone to catch us some trout and we could have fried them up...)
The weather was fairly cold. The sun warmed things up in the mid-afternoon, but I think I had a fleece or my ski jacket on for all but a few hours while out there. The scenery was beautiful - high chaparral desert, bristling with sage plants and hearty yellow wild daisies that bloomed beautifully on the arid landscape. It was interesting to see such dry earth along the walls and tops of the canyons, and then see the rushing water of rivers flowing to lakes below.
Here is a picture I took at the Dry Falls visitor center, a curious building that looks like a cuboid mushroom. This is, I believe, the end-point of Dry Falls.
I decided to try and start a series of Crossfit-related pictures themed to my travels. This one I call "L-Sit Attempt at Dry Falls". My face looks especially ridiculous because I am trying to hold still while Igor takes a picture. I am fairly certain I exhibit Bitter Beer Face when trying to execute deadlifts. I told Fran it looks like I'm trying to poop.
On Saturday, we drove around - rather, I drove the rest of the folks around, since I am the only one without a pickup truck. We drove to a place called Soap Lake, which appears to have "healing waters". Waters full of "ichthyological oil" (better known as "Fish Oil"), and smelling of sulphurous compounds. Whatever mineral(s) is/are in the water create a white deposit along the shorelines that resembles laundry soap. I don't know if Soap Lake is actually alkaline, but it's kind of a neat place to visit.
Here's a shot of Tori and Ryan, showing success and Being Healed By The Waters of Soap Lake, after immersing their feet. I told them I didn't have towels in the car, so they suffered mucky feet the entire way back to camp.
Here is just a cute shot of Ryan & Rupali, at Soap Lake:
And, to prove that my camping was not entirely bereft of crafting, I managed to get in some spindling and knitting on my February Lady Sweater. I completed the eyelet row, and now am just doing garter stitch until the "sleeve stitches almost meet underneath your arms". Hopefully that will be soon, and I can start the lace portion!
Behold, the picture of me spinning in front of the campfire!
I should mention that I really miss Daniel on vacation trips like this. He is an excellent camping companion :) plus, you know, he's really warm at night. Which would have been nice...
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