Any port in a storm

We are at the Wal-Mart in Colville, Washington (map). Yesterday turned out to be a longer drive than we had planned, which I suppose makes up for the several shorter-than-planned days before it.

This is, of course, a holiday weekend, and perhaps one of the biggest camping weekends of the year. So we knew finding parking would require a bit more effort than usual. We also knew we wanted to tank up on water early on, to give us more stopping options. Fortunately, as we rolled through Okanogan on 215, eschewing the more major US-97, we came upon the "Flying-B" truck stop (yes, "B"), which advertised a free RV dump.

We did not need the dump, but they had a spigot, and we filled up while chatting with the proprietor. Judging from the sign and the parking lot lights, the place has been there forever, but the c-store and fuel islands looked brand new. He told us they had just re-opened five months earlier, after demolishing the old station and building a whole new facility. He and his family were very pleasant and accommodating and we ended up making a token purchase of a nice bottle of Riesling in the store for taking 50 gallons or so of their water. We wish them much luck with the place -- these kinds of RV-friendly facilities are becoming rare.

We stopped again just up the road in Omak, at the Wal-Mart Super-Center there for supplies. It was 70° and sunny while we stopped, and we briefly thought about just staying, as it was already 3:30, but decided that was too short a drive. So we continued onward along Washington 20, which took us again into the forests and over Sherman Pass. Our directory said there was a lone Forest Service campground at the summit, and several pull-outs along the road where we could overnight.

The pull-outs were unappealing on the ascent, so we held out for the campground, knowing that it might well be full. Ha. It was completely empty. It would also have been free, with the iron ranger disabled and a note on the board about limited services. Even with snow blocking the day use parking lot of the adjoining scenic overlook, and also part of the campground road, we could see at least two spaces that we could reach and would accommodate Odyssey, and one of them had a view to the satellite. Free camping, by ourselves, in such an idyllic spot was very tempting.

Ultimately, though, it was now 45° and raining at the 5,000' summit elevation, and we were wistfully remembering the sunny warmth back down at the valley level. Realizing we would basically just spend the whole time in the warmth of the bus, and having to run the Webasto all night in near-freezing temperatures to boot, we decided to head down the mountain to warmer and perhaps drier climes below.

We did pass a few more pull-offs that might have been suitable, and in hindsight, we probably should have just taken one. But instead we headed all the way down to Roosevelt Lake (yes, the very same lake impounded by Grand Coulee Dam nearly a hundred miles downstream) where there is a Park Service campground. In stark contrast to the summit, this place was packed to the gills, with all 75+ sites full. (This cartoon captures the vibe perfectly. -Louise) Even if we could find an empty spot, these type of weekend conditions are unappealing to us, and we knew it was a long shot anyway, so we continued on through Kettle Falls (named for a feature now inundated by the lake) and into Colville, where we knew there was an Elks lodge with parking.

This Wal-Mart was closer to our route, and we spotted a restaurant across the street. It was past 6:30 by the time we parked, uncharacteristically late for us, and not having to cook after a long drive on mountain roads sounded like heaven. Tony's Ristorante, really just a fancy pizza and pasta joint with a beer and wine license, turned out to be a perfect fit, if a bit carb-heavy for us. Not only did we end up splitting a lasagna, but also a cheesecake, tossing our low-carb mantra right out the window.

In a few minutes will we continue east toward Sandpoint, Idaho. We first need to decide if we will continue on 20 and along the Pend Oreille, or instead head south on US395, cutting over to US2 at Deer Park.