Across Wyoming

30 07 2026

After departing Bozeman, we’ve arrived at Buffalo Bill State Park outside of Cody, WY.  This park has been on our radar for years, but it’s extremely difficult to get reservations here, probably due to its proximity to Yellowstone National Park.  We’re in the Lake Shore Campground, site #2, one of the few that offer both electric and water.  This is a nice pull-through site, right at the entrance to the campground with a lake view.

Buffalo Bill State Park, Cody, WY

Cody is a fun place, with plenty to do and see.  On Friday evening we had a great dinner with friends at the Blanca Tatanka and enjoyed music by Bo Depena. Bo tours all around the western US, is based in Colorado and if you get a chance, make sure you stop and see him and his band! https://bodepenamusic.com/  On Saturday we joined friends at the Cody Cattle Company for a great chuckwagon meal and their live music show starring Ryan Martin and the Triple C Cowboys.  We’d recommend both the Tatanka and the Cattle Company for a great time while in Cody! Next time, we’d like to check out the Ponderosa Campground for a bit closer-in downtown access.

Cody Cattle Company. Cody, WY

Ponderosa Campground, Cody, WY

After Cody we spent one night in Thermopolis at the Eagle RV Park (review here) and then the Douglas KOA before our arrival in Cheyenne at the newly renamed Cheyenne Sky RV Park (formerly AB Camping).  In our annual tradition, we’re in Cheyenne for Frontier Days. This year we’ll see Riley Green & Trace Adkins, Blake Shelton & Avery Anna and Zack Top & Jo Dee Messina.  As always, wonderful times at the rodeo and concerts, and spending time with friends.

The “Daddy of em All”, Cheyenne Frontier Days, 2026

Frontier Nights 2026 – Blake Shelton & Gwen Stefani

Following our busy week in Cheyenne, we joined good friends at Deer Haven RV Park in Saratoga, WY for some relaxation and sightseeing.  We enjoyed dinner at both the Snowy Mountain Brewery & Pub located in the Saratoga Hot Springs Resort and Cantina 2.0 Mexican Cafe on Bridge Street.  We also took a drive over Snowy Range Pass towards Centennial, WY through the beautiful Snowy Range Mountains.  At the top of the pass, we stopped to admire the view and learn about the tragic accident of United flight 409 which crashed into Medicine Bow Peak in 1955, at the time the worse air disaster in US history.

Deer Haven RV Park, Saratoga, WY

Snowy Range Pass, Wyoming

From Saratoga we’re at Boyd Lake State Park in Loveland, CO to visit family, followed by a quick stop in Colorado Springs at Garden of the Gods RV Resort, where this trip started 62 day ago!  In all, we’ve traveled nearly 4000 miles and stayed at 25 RV parks on our Montana Owners Group Western Rally trip.  It’s been a great trip, but we’re ready for some downtime until mid-September when we are planning a “best of Pueblo” trip.  More in September…


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Coeur d’Alene to Bozeman

11 07 2026

Welcome to Coeur d’Alene, the stunning resort town on the shores of sparking Lake Coeur d’Alene.  The name, translated from French, means the “heart of the awl”, a name apparently given to the shrewd and possibly ruthless trading habits of the native Iroquois. We were in Coeur d’Alene way back in 2012, just 1 day after picking up our first 5th wheel, the 2012 Wildcat.  However, we stayed outside of town and never explored this beautiful city.

Lake Coeur d’Alene, ID

Veterans Memorial Centennial Bridge at Lake Coeur d’Alene, ID

Today, we’re parked on the shores of the Spokane River, literally sounded by the river at Blackwell Island RV Resort.  From the headwaters of Lake Coeur d’Alene, the Spokane River travels east to meet the Columbia at Roosevelt Lake, created by Grand Coulee Dam. Blackwell Island is a beautiful resort, offering nearly 200 sites, a huge beach area, a rally room, laundry facilities, a boat launch and moorage, all overlooking the river and beyond, the city beaches and parks.

Blackwell Island RV Resort, Lake Coeur d’Alene, ID

On Saturday after arriving, we explored a bit of downtown Coeur d’Alene, ending up at the Buoy Bar & Grill.  The Buoy is outside, right on the edge of the beautiful McEuen Park.  The outdoor seating offers great views of the nearby marina and lake, along with a tasty menu of fish tacos, burgers and snacks along with cold beer and wine. The perfect place to catch a sunset!

The Buoy Bar & Grill, Coeur d’Alene, ID

On Monday we jumped on the bikes, crossed the highway 95 bridge and joined the North Idaho Centennial Trail that runs along the beach at Cheamkwet Park  and south along the shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene.  We biked about 10 miles out to Higgins Point, all the time enjoying great views of the surrounding mountains and lake shore.  That afternoon we joined Lake Coeur d’Alene Cruises for a 90 minute scenic sailing around the lake.  It was a great cruise, we learned a little about the lake history  including the steamers ships that provided the first crossings, saw some of the massive homes of resident celebrities (Kim Kardashian, Justin Bieber, Wayne Gretzky, John Elway)  and enjoyed a few onboard cocktails.  For dinner we selected Crafted Tap House & Kitchen – great food and excellent service.

Lake Coeur d’Alene Cruises

Crafted Tap House & Kitchen, Coeur d’Alene, ID

We departed Coeur d’Alene on Tuesday and made our way to Jim & Mary’s RV park in Missoula, MT.  We’ve visited Jim & Mary’s before – review here.    After just a quick overnight in this beautiful oasis in Missoula, we’re off to Bozeman at the Hot Springs Campground.  This is a nice park, but their rules are a bit stringent.  Arriving around 2PM, we’re told no check-ins can happen until 3PM and we can’t park here, we’ll have to go somewhere else.  Talk about starting a visit off on the wrong foot!  The park is OK, but we’d probably find another spot next time.  After 2 quick overnights, we’re headed to Cody, WY where we’ll spend 3 nights at Buffalo Bill State Park on the shores of Buffalo Bill Reservoir.  More from Cody…

 


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Onboard a Washington State Ferry and Leavenworth, WA

9 07 2026

After departing from Salt Creek near Port Angeles, WA around 9AM, it’s about  80 miles to Kingston, WA where we’ll (hopefully) catch the 11:05 ferry to Edmonds, WA.  By 10:45  we’ve passed through the ticket booth and are parked in the holding line for the ferry that has just arrived.  After unloading the inbound vehicles and passengers, loading happens quickly and by 11:10 we’re upstairs enjoying the view from the open decks as we sail across Puget Sound.

So, how did it all work…

Washington State Ferry

Kingston has implemented a remote parking and ticketing system.  This prevents back-ups in town and ensures that no one “cuts” in line as you approach the ticket booths. When we arrived, a staff member was handing out these parking passes, but there’s also a dispenser for use during off hours.  You’ll need this pass when arriving at the ticket booth.   At the booth, using some type of length sensors, the price is exactly what we expected for our 56’ 5” rig, $157.00, less the senior discount of $5.70.  From the ticket booth, we’re directed to lane #2 to wait for boarding.

Nearly all other lanes are full of cars and trucks, and these vehicles are loaded first.  Onboard, cars are directed to a 2nd story parking area, while large trucks, 18-wheelers and RV are directed down the tall center lanes.  These lanes are narrow, but there no need for any maneuvering, it’s just a straight-on approach.  In what seems like only about 15 minutes, all cars, trucks and walk-on passengers are loaded, the boarding ramps are raised and we’ll sailing for Edmonds.

In Edmonds, the procedure is the same in reverse.  Boarding ramps are lowered, cars from the 2nd story area are directed out first, and then the trucks, 18-wheelers and RV’s are unloaded.  These people that are loading and unloading traffic are pros, it was like clockwork and very simple.

Washington State Ferry, loading ramp

Washington State Ferry, inside parking area

Google maps calls this crossing 6 miles.  The alternative is via the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (with a east bound axle toll) and over 100 miles!  Not only did the ferry save us nearly 2 hours, but also about $60 in fuel.  So, not quite a break-even on fuel & tolls, but it was an enjoyable ride and the 2 hours savings was great!

Ferry or not-to-Ferry?

Continuing through Edmonds, we joined highway 2 across the Cascades to Leavenworth, WA.  We’re parked at Icicle River RV Park, just south of Leavenworth along the banks of the Icicle River.  This is a lovely park.  Upon arrival, camp hosts were outside greeting everyone and assisting with logistics around a water pipe break in the middle of the park.  The water isn’t the parks – instead it’s a huge old clay pipe that supplies water to the next-door fish hatchery.  Construction aside, this is a lovely park offering over 100 sites, clean laundry facilities, nice walking trails, group facilities and even a hot tub pavilion!

Icicle River RV Park, Leavenworth, WA

Icicle River RV Park, Leavenworth, WA

Icicle River RV Park, Leavenworth, WA

Front St, Leavenworth, WA

Gustav’s, Leavenworth, WA

Leavenworth is a lovely Bavarian-styled village of about 3,500 residents.  The Alpine-style buildings along Front Street include German beer gardens, wonderful brat houses, wine tasting rooms, an interesting Nutcracker museum and other fun tourist shops.  After arrival, we enjoyed a snack and a few cocktails on the rooftop at Rhein Haus overlooking the busy Front Street.  Service and the cocktails were excellent, but the food selection of brats, pretzels and other snacks was a bit too “quick” for us.

On Friday after wandering through the shops, we ended up on the rooftop at Gustav’s.  The menu was much more complete at Gustav’s, service was excellent and we’d highly recommend it.  We’d also recommend the Cheesemonger Shop on Front Street for some of the most unique and delicious cheeses outside of Europe.  Along with an enormous selection of German and European beers – you could easily spend hours here tasting and sampling (and buying) everything they offer.  After 3 nights in Leavenworth, we’re off to Coeur d’Alene, ID.  More from there…


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The Olympic Peninsula

4 07 2026

It’s about 40 miles “as the crow files” from Angel of the Winds to John Wayne Marina in Sequim, WA.  However the driving distance is nearly 180 miles and over 3 hours including a transit of Seattle, Tacoma and across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.  After the narrows, it’s a beautiful drive past Gig Harbor, the massive naval base at Bremerton, over the Hood Canal floating bridge and along Discovery Bay to the picturesque marina on Sequim Bay.  We last visited John Wayne Marina RV in 2024, and have returned for another fun filled July 4th weekend.  We’re in site #42, which is a full hookup, 50A back-in site in the top row.  In addition to Independence Days celebrations, Dungeness Crab season opened on July 2nd, and nearly every site has steamer pots set-up anticipating the daily catch.

John Wayne Marina, Sequim, WA

Most of the time in Sequim is about relaxing after the busy rally schedule last week.  However, we did manage an afternoon trip to Port Townsend and nice dinner at Siren’s Pub.  The weather wasn’t optimal for outdoor dining, but we enjoyed selections from their bar menu that included handmade burgers, wild salmon, fish and chips and a few local brews and excellent cocktails.

Port Townsend, WA

From Sequim, we’re off to Salt Creek Recreation Area.  This sprawling county park provides about 90 camp sites.  40 of these provide power and electric, and only half of those reservable.  Sites 35-38 are nice pull-through sites, 26-32 offer the best “out the back window view” and 16-24 are the closest to the water.  Which, in this case is a tall cliff overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca with Victoria, Canada in the distance.  The water is accessible from a few paths, but there’s not much in the way of beach.  For a better beach experience, Crescent Beach & RV Park is optimal with back-in sites directly across from a large sandy beach.

Salt Creek Recreation Area, Sites 35-39, Port Angeles, WA

Salt Creek Recreation Area, Sites 21-24, Port Angeles, WA

Salt Creek Recreation Area campground map

Salt Creek Recreation Area tide pools

Marymere Falls, Olympic National Park, Port Angeles, WA

While at Salt Creek we drove around Lake Crescent and took a short hike to see the beautiful Marymere Falls.  After 4 nights of wonderful coastal views, dark, quiet nights and a few wildlife visits, we’re headed east.  And, instead of going around the long way again, we’ve opted to travel aboard the Washington State Ferry from Kingston to Edmonds – a first for us!  More about the ferry ride when we get to Leavenworth, WA, our next stop.


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