Escapees May June 2015 Demo

SKP Stops

Seattle waterfront. Photo by Sandra Haven #103699.

boaters. You’ll need reservations to camp there, but it is worth planning ahead to stay at this outstanding natural setting. www.stateparks.com/deception_pass.html • Mt. Rainier Practically the state’s logo, you must see Mt. Rainer up close instead of in the distance on picture postcards. It includes five areas developed for visitors, including campgrounds, so check out the National Park Service’s information and plan to visit this volcanic peak yourself. www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/index.htm • Mt. St. Helens Who doesn’t want to see the mountain that blew its top off 35 years ago? From I-5, head for the Mt. St. Helens Forest Learning Center (a few miles from the mountain) for great information, and then head for the Johnston Ridge Visitor Center. There’re views all along the way of the changes caused by this cataclysmic event, and, at the center, have a look into the heart of the resulting crater. www.mountsthelens.com/visitorcenters.html • Forks Timber Museum The logging town of Forks (the town used for Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight sagas) has a Timber Museum built by the town’s high school carpentry students in 1990. The muse- um has displays of equipment and artifacts dating back to

the 1870s. However, we suggest you call and sign up for a timber tour (summers only). You’ll have a great tour of the surrounding forest, see logging activities in progress and view old-growth trees you won’t see any other way. The address is 1421 S. Forks Ave. Phone: 360-374-9663. • Mora Campground and Rialto Beach Great beach towns and campgrounds await RVers along Washington’s entire Pacific Ocean coastline, but our fa- vorite is Mora Campground surrounded by towering trees, lush undergrowth and the music of the Pacific Ocean surf. This national park has 94 campsites and is about three miles from Rialto Beach where rocky beaches, giant drift logs, pounding waves and views of offshore islands known as “seastacks” are photographic wonders. It has the most amazing surf-flattened rocks of all sizes. (Warning: you’ll come back with a pocket full!) www.nps.gov/olym/plan- yourvisit/visiting-mora-and-rialto.htm • Lake Ozette and Cape Flattery Lake Ozette is another birder’s paradise, and it’s great for easy canoeing. From there you’ll find both short and long trails, like the hike to Cape Flattery, which sits high above the Pacific Surf. It offers a stunning view at the farthest northwest tip in the contiguous U.S. states. www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/visiting-ozette.htm

Rialto Beach. Photo by Sandra Haven #103699.

78 . ESCAPEES | May/June 2015 | www.escapees.com