Eureka

Finding and setting up a good campsite is one of those tasks I find incredibly satisfying - especially when everything works out just right and I can sit down in a camp chair with a good drink and just enjoy the fact I'm camping with my family.  We have found a few good ones since my last post including this one below at Wanapum State Park in Vantage, Washington.  This was our last trip of the camping season last year in late October with the Webers and a bunch of other friends that head out there every year.

Wanapum is a classic high-desert river campground that reminds me of many a childhood camping trip.  It's on the Columbia river in Eastern Washington off of I90 in the middle of nowhere.  For miles in either direction, all you can find is desolate scrub brush hills filled with rattlesnakes.  But the irrigation waters of the Columbia here create a nice little oasis in the middle of this desert.  

We had six families on this trip and awesome weather.  Although Wanapum can often be horribly windy, this weekend we just got perfect mid-70s weather with no wind while all our friends back in Seattle were experiencing some of the first heavy rains of our long winter.  

Over the winter, the Captain was locked down next door and got a good coat of ice and snow.

But now that summer has set in, we are camping fiends.  Once again, we have managed to totally over-book our summer with trips every other weekend, and occasionally two weekends in a row.  Total madness, but I love it.  Our first trip of the 2012 season was actually a return trip to Wanapum for the Memorial Day weekend.  We started off strong on this trip with a great site, good food and happy kids everywhere, 

But things went downhill fast after the first night.  The winds we had so fortunately missed back in October came on like a hurricane Saturday night and by Sunday night had started tearing down our friend's tent and another friend's tent trailer.  Lesson learned, Wanapum is high risk for 50 mph winds that can take the fun out of your camping trip.  

Last weekend, we went to another State Park on the Columbia river, but this one was further north and up river near Wenatchee, Washington.  Lincoln Rock State Park is one of the nicest Washington State Parks we have visited so far and the Captain shined as we setup camp and enjoyed what was probably the best campground we've visited so far.

When we were restoring the Captain, one of my goals was to go from unhitch to Margarita in less than 10 minutes.  After a couple years of perfecting my set-up routine, I finally hit that goal last weekend.

Everything about Lincoln Rock worked out perfect for our family and we can't wait to go back.  This was yet another awesome trip with the Webers as we joined them while Ryan competed in the Andrew York Lineman Rodeo in Wenatchee.  

Julia loved the lawn covered campsites and thought she would take a turn at the splitting maul.

In addition to the two Airstreams and an Argosy that were part of our group, a mid-70's Overlander parked right across from the Captain making us look like a mini-rally.  

We will be hitting the road again soon headed back to Eastern Washington.  Hope everyone else is enjoying the camping season like we are and can't wait to see the updates on all your blogs.