Ephrata’s charm calls for return
Winter’s cold temperatures and powder can be a playground for some, but a prison for people who prefer to feel warm rays on their well-oiled arms and legs.
Yet gray days are a good time for sun and snow lovers alike to plan spring and summer getaways, from a family daytrip to a romantic weekend.
Guidebooks and tourism home pages are a good source to begin trip planning. But the off-season also is a good time to check-out places that promote themselves as “fun in the sun” locales.
After several weeks of snow and rain showers, we decided to break our cabin fever with a drive to the desert. We scoped out the oasis that is Ephrata, Wash., for a later summer trip, picked up a couple of new books and stomped among sagebrush and cattails along the marshy banks of Potholes Reservoir.
Horses once ran wild across the plateau and hills near the towns of Ephrata and Moses Lake. These free-range herds owned by native people numbered in the tens of thousands by the mid-1900s.
In the 1880s, cattle and sheepherders took advantage of the open grazing land as well. But by the 1900s, farming claims began to crowd out open-range grazing. In 1906, cowboys drove horses to Ephrata in the last horse roundup of central Washington.
We popped into Oasis RV Park and Golf at the edge of Ephrata’s city limits for a quick dog break. Hunters in orange and camouflage were busy packing up their gear, either finishing up for the day or getting ready to enter one of the many wildlife refuge areas for a little bird hunting. (Check with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for details on seasons, tags and regulations.)
We’ve stopped at the Oasis a couple of times while crisscrossing the Inland Northwest, but this was the first time I’d noticed a small, white chapel beyond the swings and horseshoe stakes. From its roof, a pinnacle rises up through a shady grove to the cloudy blue sky overhead.
I learned later from a clerk at The Bookery, 1 Basin St. NW, that the chapel once was part of the United Methodist Church, and was moved to the park when the church was remodeled.
The chapel is sometimes used for services by park visitors, mainly in summer, and an occasional wedding. Quite a few people are said to still mourn the loss of the architectural piece from the church.
When we sat down to eat lunch at Rock Park Coffee, it was way past lunchtime. John offered me a bite of his Sante Fe chicken wrap with corn, beans and a spicy sauce. My three-cheese and bacon grilled focaccia sandwich was warm and filling on this cool, windy and sometimes rainy day.
Across the street we popped into The Bookery to browse through travel and field guides. We picked up the National Audubon Society’s field guide to Western Region trees, a good companion for forest hikes, and “Exploring Washington’s Past: A Road Guide to History,” co-authored by Ruth Kirk and Carmela Alexander.
After checking “Exploring Washington’s Past” out of the library about 20 times for trip planning, I thought I should own a copy.
The book is a hefty 543 pages, so you won’t be toting it around in your pocket. However, it is a good starting point when traveling Washington. It gives brief history and summaries on points of interest for just about every city, town and community in the state.
A tip about travel guides: Thumb through them before you buy to make sure they cover the areas you’re interested in, with enough detail for you. Also, some guides are specifically aimed at certain activities. Make sure they’re ones you’re interested in.
Since our move from the Columbia River Gorge area a couple of months ago, I can’t find much of anything at our house. It was a major triumph to locate the muffin pan one frosty morning in the black hole we call a storage barn.
My bird field guide is still lost somewhere in there, so I considered buying another one. The lakes and marshland along the Coulee Corridor Scenic Byway are habitat for a diverse list of fowl, including herons, white egrets and owls.
Rita Tuller, executive director for the Ephrata Chamber of Commerce, said bird watching is one of the top outdoor activities for tourism worldwide and growing in popularity within the Coulee Corridor.
A birding map of the corridor is available at the chamber. A color poster with many beautiful bird illustrations, it includes a seasonal list of featured creatures to spot. For more bird routes, check out Audubon Washington at www.wa.audubon.org.
Of course days upon days of summer sunshine is also a major draw, and that’s when most things kick up with festivals and events in this region.
Tuller mentioned Basin Summer Sounds, a July weekend festival featuring a whole lot of music, including classic rock, Celtic, Tejano and jazz. The event takes places in venues throughout the city, with local wineries showing off their wares.
On the way to our truck, we paused at a detailed wildlife mural in the Sun Basin Plaza. With benches and fountains, the courtyard is a nice place for a break from downtown shopping or work. Interpretive panels supply background to the area’s past with words and photographs.
The Grant County Historical Museum and Village are closed until May, but we peeked through the fencing at the outdoor displays. Come late spring, visitors can amble in and out of shops in the business district of an Old West town. For more information on season and hours, contact the museum.
From there we drove south, passing the city of Moses Lake. I made a mental note to take a future trip to the Moses Lake Museum and Art Center. Exhibits include Native American artifacts and works by local artists.
The center is preparing for its annual potato luncheon fund-raiser in early February. For details on it and upcoming shows, contact the museum at (509) 766-9395.
At Potholes State Park we stomped along a trail beside the Potholes Reservoir through sage and bitter brush and the dried remnants of last year’s wildflowers. Our dog Kah-less ran and bucked happily, stretching his legs after a long nap in the car.
Tall reeds with tawny plumes “shushed” in the wind. The fast-rushing water joined in the raspy chorus. We spotted a few white and black magpies perched in a low tree. Gulls, geese and herons flew overhead at different times on our walk.
Further north is The Potholes, a unique natural feature of depressions in sand dunes formed by ancient glacial flooding. Rising water filled the depressions with water to create a series of mini lakes.
There are other things to do besides watch birds here. Fishing and boating are among the recreational opportunities in this system of wetlands. And the sand dunes near The Potholes and the upper Potholes Reservoir just below Moses Lake provide terrain for ripping and running off-road vehicles.
See the Grant County Sheriff’s Department for rules and regulations on recreational vehicles. The Moses Lake Chamber site at www.moses-lake.com has a link under “Sand Dunes/ORV Park.”
The rain poured steadily on our roof that night after our little day trip to the desert. I thought about our Subaru, which was in the shop because of the dog. He broke the automatic window by pushing down on it to get his big head out of the car for a whiff.
I wondered if the plastic taped over the window would hold up in this downpour while we waited for a part to come for the repair.
Oh, well, nothing I can do about that. Guess I’ll just curl up with my new travel book and look forward to spring hikes and summer boating in the semi-arid playground of central Washington.