Day trip to Spokane, WA…

Since we were near the town of Spokane Washington while camping at Liberty Lake Regional Park we decided to make a road trip west to see what it had to offer. We read about about a cool park in the downtown area so we made our way over to Riverfront Park. This 100 acre park is located along the Spokane River right in the middle of downtown Spokane. Created for Expo 1974 this park has something for everyone including an IMAX, a skating rink, a cool clock tower and even a nice sized carousel. The centennial trail also runs through the park which is the same bicycle trail we camped beside in Cataldo, Idaho.

The park is adjacent to both the upper and lower Spokane Falls and even offered a sky ride over the falls if we were so inclined. Instead we parked in a spot that's free on Sundays. I should mention that we always try to visit bigger cities on Sundays since the parking is usually free and the traffic is often very light. Also it is nice to see people out and about enjoying the day instead of dressed in their business suits rushing to and fro..

We walked all around the park taking in its attractions and enjoyed looking over the Spokane Falls even though they are dammed in order to provide hydroelectric power for the cities residents. We even spotted a small group of marmots near the falls grazing on the grass and laying sprawled out on the shaded ground in order to cool off. It was entertaining watching these interesting critters.. It was a pretty hot day as the temperatures reached into the mid 90’s and after walking around we decided it best to seek out a nice brewery for a cold refreshing beverage. . 

Before heading over to the brewery we ventured over to the University of Gonzaga to walk the campus. A private Roman Catholic school with yet another connection to our last stay in Cataldo, Idaho as Father Cataldo, an Italian born priest, founded the school in 1887 primarily to serve local Native American children.. Gonzaga, now nationally recognized for its academics, is attended by nearly 8,000 students and is well known for several of its academic disciplines. We felt it was a nice campus but not overly attractive. We did notice they are building a new student center which should be a really nice facility.

Afterward we made our way to River City Brewing and cooled down with some nice beverages. We used a Groupon allowing us each to sample four beers and after finding the one we liked, it included us each a pint. Sharon enjoyed an English Pale Ale while I went for the mid-bitters India Pale Ale. All the beers we sampled were very good with the exception of a Vanilla Stout which we felt simply had too much vanilla flavoring to be enjoyed…

Today is moving day as we head west to the Tri-Cities area where we plan to settle in a nice COE park and visit with our long lost friends, Marshall and Debbie, from college back in the mid 1970’s…