Movin'On - Blueslide Resort, WA on the Selkirk International Loop - 8/5/17

Movin’ On - Blueslide Resort, WA on the Selkirk International Loop - 8//5/17

There is something exciting about moving on down the road … even if it is only a few hours further away.  We had long wanted to explore the Selkirk Loop, a 280 mile road circuit that runs through eastern Washington, British Columbia, Montana and Idaho … here is our opportunity to do at least part of it … And, yes, we’re driving further into the land of smoke and fire … we may have to rethink part of our plan of camping in southern British Columbia.

We headed north and west from Heyburn State Park to pick up the Selkirk Loop around Newport, Washington and then headed north to our first stop, Blueslide Resort near Cusick, Washington.  The word “resort” is overused and, despite the online description, this is not a resort.  At least not how I would describe a “resort”, but fellow campers seem to have found this to be their little piece of paradise.  Many campers are “seasonals” and have set up little fences around their camp sites to define their area, complete with lawn ornaments and portable storage sheds to house the overflow from their trailers.  However, we do have a riverside campsite on the Pend Oreille River and some degree of privacy as our campsite borders the ramp down to the river.

If we were to vacation in this area often, we would need to get into the motorized watercraft culture of water skiing, towing inflatable water floats, jet skis and other forms of powered water vehicles.  From our campsite, we can smell the fumes from the fuel used to feed these crafts.  Our dock even has a gas pump for people to gas up their boats.  People definitely seem to be enjoying themselves and the river is lined with cabins and camping sites designed to support the use of the river for entertainment.  We can see fish coming to the surface to feed during the early morning hours and late into the evening, but fishing does not seem to be popular on this stretch of the Pend Oreille … nor does canoeing or kayaking seem to be used often … the wake from the power boats would likely swamp any canoes.

The smoke from the fires in southern British Columbia continues to create a gauzy haze over the surrounding landscape … it is a bit as if one had dirty eyeglasses … I keep wanting to clean my glasses to bring sharper focus but the haze persists.  Depending on the wind direction, we can begin to smell the fires in the air.  One “good” feature of the haze is that it is blocking some of the sunlight and the temperatures are a bit cooler during the daytime.   And, further north, the nighttime temperatures are definitely cooler …

This is not a sunset picture ... this is the smoke blocking the light and obscuring the distant mountains  that would otherwise have been part of the horizon ...

Paul discovered that he should not challenge the former junior high tetherball champion to a friendly match ... he lost three straight rounds and decided that it was not the game for him ...

Bambi advises being grateful for what we have … a lovely riverside view, cooler nighttime temperatures and an opportunity to explore more of the Selkirk Loop ... and he advises Paul to not play tetherball with Clarissa ...