Almost Home

11th April, 2016: 9.0 hours - 880kms

We wanted to get close to home! Omak, Wa was our next stop.

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Interesting Vehicles Along The Way

We saw three of these fancy coaches travelling together?

First time we saw a casket truck?

Visit this van and not the casket truck!

Sleep Tight!

UPS Truck - 3 trailers! Saw 9 in a 20 minute drive!

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Sights along our drive north to Omak

via WA-17N

Abandoned Cement Plant

Different View of Plant
There was a huge new plant down the road!

Irrigated Fields
Strange Rock Protrusions Abound?

One of those protrusions?

More Rock Protrusions - Big Ones!

The drive north on WA-17 N
Almost like driving through the Arizona Canyons!

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Chief Joseph Dam

Chief Joseph Dam is the second largest hydropower producing dam in the United States. It is the largest hydropower producing dam operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The single powerhouse is over a third of a mile long and holds 27 house-sized turbines. Alone, it produces enough power to supply the whole Seattle metropolitan area. Power produced here is marketed by the Bonneville Power Administration.

When Chief Joseph Dam was built on the Columbia River, it created a lake called Rufus Woods Lake. The Columbia River has eroded through the Waterville Plateau creating a deep canyon. The rugged landscape found along the lake came into existence after millennia of erosion. Glaciers and the Missoula floods assisted the erorsion process and exposed basalt and granite cliffs. Giant boulder fields on the ridges above the lake and along the shoreline are evidence of the glaciers that once dominated the landscape. From US Army Corps of Engineers

Chief Joseph Dam

The Orchards and Fruit Bins begin as you travel
North on WA-97 North of the Dam

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Soap Lake Area

We did not have a clue about Soap Lake before this trip, but we will be sure to return and try out the Medicinal and Healing waters of the lake(s).

The name Soap Lake came from the word Smokiam, an Indian term which translates to “Healing Waters.” The tribes used the lake for healing purposes for themselves and their animals for many years before the area was settled by pioneers.^[5]

At that time, Soap Lake was already a busy resort and health spa. It contained four hotels and many rooming houses and businesses catering to sojourners seeking a cure. The residents were very proud of the two-room schoolhouse built in 1907. Even though Soap Lake’s main industry was derived from the medicinal lake, it became a social center. In its heyday celebrations, socials, and gatherings where held continuously. Especially well known were the open-air dances, which would draw participants from miles around.

This came to a halt during the Depression; drought hit Soap Lake. Because of the lack of water and the lack of money, the tourist trade dwindled. But, when Grand Coulee Dam was built, the irrigation canals brought new life into the area. Soap Lake has been internationally known during the past century for its uniquely mineral-rich (23) waters and mud. Many people believe the water and mud to be successful in treatment of a variety of aliments. From the early 1900s to the mid-1940s there were a number of sanitariums located on Soap Lake.

Of the five lakes existing along the Coulee Corridor, Soap Lake has the highest mineral content. The first layer of Soap Lake is made up of about 81 feet of mineral water; the second level is mud-like and consists of a stronger mineral composition with concentrations of unusual substances and microscopic life forms. The lake’s two layers have not mixed in thousands of years.

The scientific community refers to lakes with this rare condition as meromictic. With only 11 meromictic lakes in the United States, Soap Lake is likely the most radical of all. The scientific community is currently exploring the lake to document some of the unusual qualities. The mineral content of Soap Lake water has been analyzed many times throughout the last 95 years. Concentration of different minerals has changed throughout this time. The most recent analysis was conducted in 2000. From Wikipedia.

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Soap Lake, Wa

The Drive Along Soap Lake

Soap Lake

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Smokiam Resort

This RV Resort has RV Sites, Cabin Rentals and Unique TeePee Village.

Following from their website:

Smokiam RV Resort offers 6 guest Tepee’s that allow guests the chance to experience a taste of Native American culture and an outdoor stay in comfort and ease. Our Tepees are set in a private setting on the shores of the lake, away from the rest of the resort.

16 Foot Tepees – Our 16 foot Family Tepees are perfect for a couple or 2 adults and 2 children. Each 16 foot Tepee has a futon sofa bed, 2 sleeping cots, Adirondack chairs for lounging and enjoying the views, a fire pit, BBQ, and picnic table. Nightly rate of $75.00

26 foot Family Tepees – Our larger 26 foot Family Tepees are a great getaway for the family to have a unique experience. Each Family Tepee has a futon sofa bed, a bunk bed with twin beds, 2 sleeping cots, Adirondack chairs for lounging and enjoying the views, a fire pit, BBQ, and picnic table. The Family Tepees will comfortably sleep 6 to a maximum of 8. Nightly rate of $99.00. Family Tepees will be opening in April for the 2016 season.

We are a 400 km drive from this resort and decided we would like to come back here for a few days camping; maybe these healing waters will be good for Craig's chronic back pain!

You can just see the Teepee

Teepee Village
Smokiam RV Resort

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Omak, Wa

This is the first time we stayed at the Omak City RV. Very nice stop and only $25.00 a night for full hook-up site. The RV park is adjacent to the Stampede grounds and the grand stand.

Omak Stampede Grand Stand
Built in 2009

Carl Precht Memorial RV Park
Our site and you can see the hill in the background where the
Omak Suicide Race takes place

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Omak Suicide Race

Though the race was inspired by Indian endurance races, the actual Omak race was the 1935 brainchild of a local Omak business owner in an effort to promote interest in the Omak Rodeo.

The course starts at the top of Suicide Hill, where riders have 50 feet (15 m) to get their horses up to full speed before charging down the hill and into the river where they swim across to the other side, then sprint a last 500 yards (460 m) to the rodeo arena where the crowd waits.^[2] In August the river is often low enough for the horses to run across. Most riders wear helmets, and all are required to wear life jackets.^[1] Horses and riders have to pass three tests to demonstrate their ability to run in the race and navigate the river: there is an initial veterinarian exam to make sure the horse is physically healthy, a swim test to ensure horses can cross the river, and the hill test where riders ride their horses off the hill at a controlled speed to prove that the animals won't give way to fear at the brink, which can cause a dangerous pile-up.^[2]^{From Wikipedia}

This is a controversial race, especially for animal rights advocates. Since 1983, at least 22 horse deaths have been documented. In 2004, three horses were killed in the first heat alone.