We were awoken by our old friend rain again this morning. Fortunately, it was only a light sprinkling that only lasted an hour or so. It also helps that at this point we have been battle hardened to handle the rain after our time in Glacier. With only three days before hitting the end point of our journey the excitement is building. I can’t believe we’ve been on the road for nearly a month. I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be an awesome experience when we finally reach the Pacific Ocean.
The majority of the day was taken up by a roughly three hour drive to Kennewick. Sometimes known as the tricity area. At this point the Snake river meets up with the Columbia forming an huge confluence. We targeted this area in the preplanning phase as a great spot for some canoeing. Listening to the US World Cup game took up the majority of the drive. This is the third game we’ve experienced on the road and at this point I have a set uniform to wear during the match, my US soccer jersey and a red bandana headband. I can’t wait to wear the combo again on July 1st when they play again. At that point I’ll be flying back to Louisville.
Once we got to the Kennewick area we sat down at a well reviewed hot dog shop called Between the Buns. It was a nice change of pace after eating nothing by rice, beans and pasta for the last few days. It also gave us a chance to catch up with writing and plan the next few days. One interesting point of note is that over the last three weeks we have grown less and less dependant on the internet due to lack of access. It been interesting asking local people as we move through for places to see and visit. Today we asked the owner of the hot dog shop where to rent a canoe and he recommended Greenie’s in Richland.
A short 15 minute drive took us to Greenie’s. An interesting combinations of canoe rental, bike show and organic food store. Connor and I decided to rent a two person kayak for two hours to spend some quality time with the Columbia River. At this point in the journey we have experienced the Ohio, Mississippi, Missouri and the Columbia Rivers. All of which are some of America’s most important and most used rivers. The paddle started off fantastic. The sun was out and although we were going upstream moral was high. The side of the river we were on was overly developed and had a very worn look to it. After spending the last two weeks in pristine wilderness the sight was jarring. Luckily for us we came up onto a small island in the middle of the river. The island offered us a whole host of birds ranging from crows and gulls to geese and magpies. There was even a small group of deer roaming the tiny island. Connor hypothesised that they swam there. This was later confirmed by the clerk at Greenie’s. At the halfway point the weather started to deteriorate. The sky darkened and the wind began to pick up. Even though there wasn’t any rain it made the return trip difficult. It took some serious arm work, but we finally made it back.
The day ended with, at this point, one of the strangest campsites we have ever camped at. Using a free campground website recommended by a Canadian couple we ran into at both the Badlands and Black Hills we found a free site along the Columbia just into Oregon. Strangely, it was a US Army Corp of Engineers recreation area called Sand Station. It was basically a rest stop with a few campsites around back on the river. It had the vibe of if you were on the run this would be a place to lay low for a bit. I’m sure the night will lead to some interesting experiences.
The majority of the day was taken up by a roughly three hour drive to Kennewick. Sometimes known as the tricity area. At this point the Snake river meets up with the Columbia forming an huge confluence. We targeted this area in the preplanning phase as a great spot for some canoeing. Listening to the US World Cup game took up the majority of the drive. This is the third game we’ve experienced on the road and at this point I have a set uniform to wear during the match, my US soccer jersey and a red bandana headband. I can’t wait to wear the combo again on July 1st when they play again. At that point I’ll be flying back to Louisville.
Once we got to the Kennewick area we sat down at a well reviewed hot dog shop called Between the Buns. It was a nice change of pace after eating nothing by rice, beans and pasta for the last few days. It also gave us a chance to catch up with writing and plan the next few days. One interesting point of note is that over the last three weeks we have grown less and less dependant on the internet due to lack of access. It been interesting asking local people as we move through for places to see and visit. Today we asked the owner of the hot dog shop where to rent a canoe and he recommended Greenie’s in Richland.
A short 15 minute drive took us to Greenie’s. An interesting combinations of canoe rental, bike show and organic food store. Connor and I decided to rent a two person kayak for two hours to spend some quality time with the Columbia River. At this point in the journey we have experienced the Ohio, Mississippi, Missouri and the Columbia Rivers. All of which are some of America’s most important and most used rivers. The paddle started off fantastic. The sun was out and although we were going upstream moral was high. The side of the river we were on was overly developed and had a very worn look to it. After spending the last two weeks in pristine wilderness the sight was jarring. Luckily for us we came up onto a small island in the middle of the river. The island offered us a whole host of birds ranging from crows and gulls to geese and magpies. There was even a small group of deer roaming the tiny island. Connor hypothesised that they swam there. This was later confirmed by the clerk at Greenie’s. At the halfway point the weather started to deteriorate. The sky darkened and the wind began to pick up. Even though there wasn’t any rain it made the return trip difficult. It took some serious arm work, but we finally made it back.
The day ended with, at this point, one of the strangest campsites we have ever camped at. Using a free campground website recommended by a Canadian couple we ran into at both the Badlands and Black Hills we found a free site along the Columbia just into Oregon. Strangely, it was a US Army Corp of Engineers recreation area called Sand Station. It was basically a rest stop with a few campsites around back on the river. It had the vibe of if you were on the run this would be a place to lay low for a bit. I’m sure the night will lead to some interesting experiences.