A Sunny Drive through Washington State

 After a long awaited day, we left home to travel south for a while.  The CoVid pandemic had sent us home across the Canadian border in March 2020 and the border finally reopened to welcome the Snowbirds back, as well as any travelers who were safely protected from the virus.

                                                                     Westwold, BC

Although it was mid-November, we’d not had any snow at home but we did see some as we made our way through Westwold, which isn’t far from home.  We were happy to be missing snowy weather, not something we enjoy driving in. 

O'Keefe Historic Ranch

The O’Keefe ranch in Vernon is a great place to take the family and see the many heritage buildings, including the church.  It was founded in 1867 and had O’Keefe family living there for 110 years before it became a museum for all to enjoy.

                                                                  Washington State

We crossed the border at Osoyoos, BC and followed Hwy 97 down through country that looked very similar to the orchards and countryside we’d left behind.  The colors of autumn cover the hills and fields with their last life of the year.

                                                                    Okanogan River

The Okanogan River (American spelling) was showing signs of flooding and as it turns out, on that particular day the water reached a high level creating a lot of flooding but thankfully hadn’t reached the road we were on.

Serene scene

This is of nothing real special yet it offers such a peaceful scene.  I’m not able to identify the row of mountains showing but before we reach midpoint in the state of Washington, we’ve driven on the eastern side of Okanogan National Forest, Cascade Range, Chelan Mountains and Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest.

Wenatchee, Washington

Wenatchee, Wa is known as the “Apple Capital of the World” to the population of 34,000.  The visitor center has a short film to watch about the apple industry and they have apple tastings, too. They get plenty of sunshine a year and have been known for its apple orchards ever since its orchards were first planted in 1872.  

Snowy mountains

We are passing through Wenatchee when we see this great sight of the snowy mountains up ahead.  We’ve travelled Hwy 97 before and always enjoy the sights.  Winter is coming and snow is arriving up in the mountains getting ready for the ski season for a ski resort up there.

Columbia River

Once we get to the southern half of Washington State, we drive across the Lincoln Plateau of the Yakima Indian Reservation, a calm and quiet drive to enjoy. We then descend down from Maryhill, Washington to the Columbia River where we cross over the Sam Hill Memorial Bridge into Oregon. 

Biggs Junction, Oregon

Biggs is the beginning of the World War II Veterans Historic Highway and the first highway in the nation to dedicate the appreciation to veterans.  This next stretch of road through Oregon had several training sites that were used for WWII.

Our following days include some great sights of Oregon, another beautiful state in the USA.