Dave Matthews Introduces us to Washington

As soon as October arrives, I start craving apples and pumpkins and crisp Fall weather. In Southwest Louisiana we have the pumpkins and if we’re lucky we’ll get a few mornings below 60 degrees. We can of course buy a large variety of apples from the supermarket, but there’s nothing better than apples freshly picked from an orchard.  I grew up with a large garden where we had apple, pear and persimmon trees. I had forgotten those tastes until Eric and I made a trip in 2011 to Washington state during the harvest season.

The initial reason for our trip actually had nothing to do with food — we had tickets to see Dave Matthews Band at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA.  It’s probably one of the best venues to see this band perform and one of the most unique venues in the country.  Placed in the middle of farmland as far as the eye can see, the Gorge reminds me of the movie Field of Dreams — “if you build it they will come.” The stage is set at the bottom of a hill with a canyon behind it, so should you get bored staring at the action on stage you’re guaranteed a breathtaking sunset view for distraction.  There aren’t many lodging options in cornfields, so we opted to stay in Cashmere before and after the concert. It’s about 60mi away but well worth the drive.  Cashmere is a sleepy little orchard town with lots of charm and friendly people.  If you want to experience Washington apple harvesting, it’s the perfect place to do so.  We were there in September, which is prime apple picking time!  We fell in love with The Cascade Valley Inn,  owned by Rick and Laurie Shorett who are two of the loveliest, most hospitable people we’ve ever met.  They built their inn with the perfect location, overlooking the orchards and town, and they designed every space with the guest in mind. The two-person showers and extra long jetted tubs are HEAVEN!  This is the only lodging we’ve ever returned to for a second visit.  Another reason to visit Cashmere: the Cashmere Cider Mill, which has a tasting room and where we gorged ourselves on apple butter milkshakes.  I can think of no better way to celebrate Autumn!

Cascade Valley Inn

View from our room

Cascade Valley Inn

View from room – apple orchards

Antique shopping in Cashmere

Apple Harvesting in Cashmere

Harvest truck in Cashmere

Cashmere is strategically placed half-way between Leavenworth, a quaint touristy town near excellent hiking trails, and Wenatchee, home base for Washington’s apple industry.  Wenatchee also has two great choices for walking trails:  Ohme Gardens and Apple Capitol Recreation Loop Trail.  We visited Ohme on this trip and walked the entire 10mi Rec trail on a later trip (which I’ll share in another post). Ohme Gardens is a testament to one couple’s ability to dream big and we absolutely loved it!

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Ohme Gardens

Apple Storage in Wenatchee

From Cashmere, we headed south on Hwy 97 through the southern portion of Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. It’s a beautiful drive but beware the weekend traffic — Seattle residents LOVE the outdoors on the weekends and this route is a popular cut through!  We stayed in Yakima at the Rosedell B&B, which was perfectly situated in the historic downtown. I believe we only stayed one or two nights in Yakima, so we didn’t get to explore much. But should you visit, make sure to check out the trails in the Central Washington/Yakima region! Also, leave time to visit the wineries. From Yakima, we headed west along the White Pass Scenic Byway (Hwy 12), which took us past snow capped Mt. Ranier, Mt. St. Helens, and beautiful alpine waterways.

Rosedell B&B

Rosedell B&B

Clear Creek Falls near Yakima

White Pass Scenic Byway

Waterfall near Yakima

White Pass Scenic Byway

The Scenic Byway officially ends at I-5 but we continued west along Hwy 12 all the way to the coast. This drive was full of cranberry bogs, an explosion of color just before you reach the moody blue-gray tones of Grays Harbor and Westport.  We stayed at a small cottage near the beach in Westport and ate “the catch of the day” and clam chowder at the One Eyed Crab (which sadly is no longer open).

For an interesting read on the history of cranberries in Washington, click HERE.

We made our way down to Long Beach and Ilwaco at the Southwestern tip of Washington.  We explored Cape Disappointment State Park, which had fabulous coastal walks!  Then we headed back north, passing the Quinalt Reservation which was made famous by the Twilight novels.  Does Forks or La Push ring a bell?  We hiked in the Hoh Rain Forest, which remains one of the most magical places we’ve ever visited.  This region of our country reminds me of how blessed we are to have such diversity, not only in our people but in our geography.  I wish I had more photos from Hoh, but we were honestly so spellbound that we forgot to take pictures!  (Dad and Kathleen, I can hear your gasps of horror as I type this).

Hoh Rain Forest is just a smaller part of the Olympic National Park, which is OUT OF THIS WORLD and you simply must visit it if you haven’t already.

Hoh Rain Forest

Hoh Rain Forest

Tidal Pools

Eric on Driftwood Serpent

Eric walking Washington coast

Washington coast

Happy couple fishing on the coast

Rocks on Washington coast

Rock stacks on Washington coast

Eric Peekaboo

Washington coast

Cape Disappointment

Cape Disappointment

Cape Disappointment

Beach fort at Cape Disappointment

Trail at Cape Disappointment

Washington coast

Washington coast

Washington coast

Washington coast

Washington coast

Amanda Park Library, Quinalt building inspired

Amanda Park Library, Quinalt building inspired

By the end of this trip, we had driven most of the scenic byways of western Washington and none of them disappointed.

We concluded with a quick stay in Seattle, just enough time to get shin splints walking up and down Pike Place Market and experience Seattle’s coffee culture.  Our first trip to Washington hooked us for life, and we return to this beautiful state every chance we get.  Eric and I often say that our hearts are in Louisiana with our family but our souls are always yearning for the Pacific Northwest.