Frenchman Coulee

I drove to Vantage Friday night with the intent of camping at Wanapum State Park. However, it was so windy that I couldn’t set up my tent and ended up breaking a tent pole. So, I ended up getting a cheap hotel room in Quincy.

Even though it was very windy the next day (about 45 mph gusts) with temps in the high 50s, I enjoyed hiking the Frenchman Coulee trail. I also got to finally see where everyone goes climbing (and where the Mountaineers installed two pit toilets). There were seven of us this morning, hiking the 4.8 mile out and back trail. Near the waterfall, we hung out for a bit, taking photos and having a snack.

Lots of phlox in bloom with yarrow, desert parsley and bitter brush loaded with buds (we found one bitter brush that had some open buds).

I tried taking more photos of flowers, but it was too windy, so they were very blurred. Also, because of the wind, I could take waterfall photos and get the feathered effect with my cellphone! I took a few with my regular camera on a tripod, but the wind shook it too much, so my cellphone photos looked better (that was a first when it comes to waterfall photos I’ve taken).

On the way home, I encountered heavy rain, then snow as I headed up Snoqualmie Pass. Peaks that were bare the day before now were topped with snow.