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6/10-6/13 Ellensburg
The drive to Ellensburg is a short 27 miles. But a world of difference in the scenery & climate. Cle Elum is all about forest. Ellensburg is a vast valley that has views of mountains with gentle, bare slopes with lots of wind-break trees planted around. The Yakima flows through here at a mighty clip, but is still full of fish. The wind seems to flow through here frequently at a mighty clip also. There are 17,000 folks who call Ellensburg home. It is home to Central Washington University and hundreds of artists & small business owners. Their annual rodeo is a huge deal here. We visited the Farmer’s Market that included a vintage car show. Surprising numbers of vintage cars for a relatively small town. Because of the lengthy winter here, crops are way behind and so the produce was limited to cabbage, snow peas and onions primarily. A memorable elderly lady was selling eggs from her chickens. Her chickens are so pure they even drink filtered water. She is proud of her chicks & expounds on their very healthy, free-roaming lifestyle. What I failed to ask her was ‘where do they free-range when the wind is blowing at 30 mph & it is colder than that well-digger’s behind?’ The market even had a nice band playing as you wandered through the one-block long offerings of crafts, fresh flowers & produce. Our small campground is pleasant to look at, has all 3 hookups, no internet, no tv cable, no restrooms or laundry. It is a good long walk to the fishing sites on the river. Even though this tidy working ranch/campground is close to the river, it is a virtually inaccessible due to marshy ground. The website makes this place look wonderful. It isn’t quite wonderful. The winds have been blowing steady at 25 mph with gusts up to 60 mph for 3 days now. Temps have been cool, but it is getting in the high 70’s today (6/12). The wind has been pretty calm today so we are opting for one more night so Gary can fish tomorrow.
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I would like you to say the name of this county 3 times quickly after a couple beers. Quaint one block long market & two block long car show. Really enjoyed it.
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Below left: Gary preparing to walk through the fields & woods to the river access. Cold & very windy. Below right: This is the view from the area you dump your trash. Nice, huh?
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We went to the Kittitas Valley Historical Museum this afternoon and to the Clymer Museum of Art. The late John Clymer was born in Ellensburg in 1907and led a fascinating life until his death in 1989. We had no knowledge of this gifted & prolific illustrator. He began his illustrating career while in high school & never looked back. At age 36, along with another well-known illustrator, he joined the Marine Corp in WWII. He & his friend became the visual history recorders for the Marines, a subject not dealt with before as with the other armed forces. His many original illustrations on the covers of 3 different periodicals put out by the Marines during the war are hanging at Marine Corps Headquarters in Washington D. C. Well known in the U.S. & Canada for his many commercial illustrations for such companies as Pennsylvania Railroad, Coca-Cola, Chrysler, Ballantine Beer, White Horse liquor, etc., he is best known for his 60 Saturday Evening Post magazine covers done from 1942-1962, as well as Field & Stream. After his retirement, he devoted his time to painting and to try to portray the history of the western frontier & Indian history. Nice museum.
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The Clymer Museum allowed no photo taking inside. Darn. If you get a chance, see if you can find any of his illustrations online. Great stuff!
The Kittitas County Museum has carefully renovated & restored this building to its former glory. I like the steer horns & the upside down horshoe designs of the upper floor windows. Beautiful. The Nat’l. Trust for Historic Preservation recently named Ellensburg one of a Dozen Distinctive Destinations because of their Victorian & Art Deco buildings.
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One of the strangest sights we’ve seen is at a fishing access gravel parking lot along the Yakima. It has a new-looking restroom much like you see in state/nat’l. parks. While Gary made use of the facility, I noticed a plaque on a boulder out front. The restroom was dedicated to the memory of a woman who was a leader in the Northwest Women Flyfishers organization. Women-Restroom-Need, I get it. But, isn’t it the most awful thing to be remembered when one has to go potty? Memorable, all right. I have never seen a potty memorializing a person of importance before. Do you think maybe it was her idea? Her final funny? See pics below.
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This left me speechless. See paragraph above.
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6/13
The wind died down so we decided to spend another day here. Gary got up with the chickens & headed for the river. He had a fine time fishing in warmer weather and not nearly as much wind. After catching (& releasing) a couple and having some nibbling interest in his flies, he returned mid-afternoon to wash our filthy truck and finishing the coach wash. I cleaned the coach and read a bit. Watched a beautiful palomino and a huge steer get into a fight. It was a draw and, with no blood drawn, they went back to munching in their large pasture. The wind picked up around 4:30 and about blew the coach over. This is the nastiest place for wind I’ve ever been to. They say the wind is common although not like we had the first 3 days here. Hmmm, I think that’s what they tell all the tourists.
We leave early in the am to return to Cle Elum & hopefully miss the *%#@* wind on our way back.
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Pretty Posies. The wild daisies are in clumps in the pastures all over Ellensburg and the yellow iris are everywhere they can keep their feet wet. Growing wild, they are in huge groups in any marshy area. I even saw a large bouquet growing as an island in a very shallow pond. Eye candy everywhere.
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WILDLIFE OF THE DAY
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Well, with only some barb wire separating us, he looked pretty wild to me.
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