Leavenworth - day 2

We drove back down to Leavenworth today. We drove down via Washington Route 209, which GoogleMaps had indicated was the most direct way, but not the way that the RV Garmin took us yesterday (it brought us in via Washington Route 207 - and since it knows how long and tall the RV is, we tend to follow its directions unless we've checked with someone who knows the local area and assures us that any other route is also ok for RVs). 209 was an ok route, but it actually took us up higher and then down, and had a lot more switchbacks, than 207 - and on the way back from Leavenworth, the Garmin in the Jeep (which doesn't care about length and height restrictions) brought us up 207 - so maybe it is a case of "6 of one, half dozen of the other"...

(Note to Mel - the wedding venue is up 207 - according to their website - we didn't drive past it, but it looks like it is just a few miles away from where we're staying.)

We started our day by visiting TripAdvisor's #1 "Things to do" in Leavenworth, the Waterfront park. We parked up in the area near the brown/black 5 in the upper right, and walked down almost to the end of the back with the blue 5 on the lower left.

It was a nice broad walking/biking path - in wooded areas and along the Wenatchee River.

Information along the path gave us background on this area...Floating Forests
From 1905 until 1927, the Wenatchee River was the main highway for moving logs from the Lake Wentachee forests down river to the Lamb-Davis Lumber Mill. River drives took place during spring when high water could float logs over the boulder-strewn river.
In 1913, logging contractors Adams and Costello sent 17 million board feet of logs down river from Nason Creek, the Chiwawa River and Lake Wenatchee during the spring runoff. That's equivalent to 3,400 loaded logging trucks, or the wood in 1,400 houses, careening down the river! Imagine watching monstrous logs churn through white water in Tumwater Canyon and feeling the ground shake as they rammed house-sized boulders along the shore. People came from all over the valley to watch this spectacle, to gawk at the fast footwork of "river rats" riding logs and boats down river and breaking up log jams.
Pilings still visible at low water here and above Blackbird Island directed logs and kept them from escaping over the dam.

Here you can see some of the pilings mentioned on that sign board. It is hard to believe, given how low the water is at this time of year, that it could have floated logs in the springtime.

I thought this plaque was neat - especially the revelation of her thought, "Mrs. Schutte always said that although, in an earthly way, she had ownership of this land, it was really owned by God."

A hotel that overlooked the path.

A quiet stream around Blackbird Island.

Blackbird Island
Welcome to Blackbird Island. The island was created by silt accumulations in a mill pond which was present until the early 1930s. Today the island is teeming with plant and animal life. But what looks like a stable environment is changing constantly.
Perhaps a cottonwood seed first found its way to the island's fertile soil. As the tree atured and created shade, a gradual change occurred and different types of plants began to grow. Plants change their environment by altering sunlight, soils, and moisture. With each change, one plant community group gradually replaces another.
In the decades ahead, the plant communities will become quite different. The cottonwoods may die out and large conifers could become the dominant species. The process will continue unless there is an abrupt disturbance such as a flood, which will destroy the plants and start the process over.

Patti note: "Oh my goodness, the plants change their environment... that can't be allowed... we must stop them. Oh... am I being cynical? sarcastic?"

A view of the plant species that have lived on this island in the last 80 years or so...

The trees are in transition, as the lifespan of the cottonwoods are reaching their end and they are starting to die.

 

Still a nice broad path.

A view of the river

In this picture you can see some of the dying cottonwoods.

We enjoyed being along the river.

The day was mostly overcast, but not smoky.

There were some cottages/houses on the other side of the river. My impression was that they might be weekend cottages or rental units... the people in them seemed to be in vacation mode rather than living mode - not sure why I think that, just that they seemed to be louder and there seemed to be a lot of people on the porch and shouting to people at the river... and I relate that to people who aren't living there full-time.

We saw a LOT of this plant - I thought at first it was a type of bamboo, but a sign told us:
Horsetail or Scouring Rush (Equisetum hyemale)
This evergreen plant is one of the few remnants left of a plant family that thrived 350 million years ago. (Patti note: who was here 350 million years ago to report on this????) Spores are used for reproduction, which grow into small male or female plants that in turn produce sperm and eggs to germinate the adult plant. This method is less successful and efficient than the pollen/see approach used by modern plants. Another difference is the vascular system, which in modern plants allows water and nutrients to flow efficiently through the plant in long tube-like structures. The Scouring Rush has thin cell walls that partition these tubes, partially blocking the nutrient flow. These primitive traits do not allow the plant to compete well with modern plants. Pioneers used the plants as scouring pads due to silica, which is concentrated in the stalk of the plant.

 Interesting that these plants were indicated as using a method "less successful and efficient" because they were all over the place on this walk.

You might be able to see a child at the edge of the water in the middle of this picture. There were some children wading in the water, but they were saying that it was quite cold. The outside temperature was only in the low 70s, so I couldn't see that wading would be desirable.

In the stream around the island (which would have been part of the mill pond), there were lots of logs. Our guess was that these could be left from when the water was part of the millpond, but that would mean that they have been there for 80 years... wouldn't they have disintegrated by now?

We were getting hungry, so we headed back to the Jeep and drove back up to the main town part. We drove around for a while looking for street parking. There were parking lots, but it was $10 to park for the day on Saturday/Sunday ($5 for weekdays, I think) - and we thought that was a bit steep to park for lunch. We decided to head out onto US 2 (the main highway through town) to see if there was a restaurant with parking. We didn't find one, but we did find the visitor center, and picked up some information there. One of the ladies asked if we had any questions, so I mentioned that we were looking for a restaurant that had parking... she said that only the hotels had parking, but suggested that we look for street parking behind the visitor center (across US 2 from the main tourist area, but only a couple of blocks to walk). We thanked her and quickly found parking on the street just behind the visitor center.

Wikipedia indicates:

In 1962, the Project LIFE (Leavenworth Improvement For Everyone) Committee was formed in partnership with the University of Washington to investigate strategies to revitalize the struggling logging town. The theme town idea was created by two Seattle business men, Ted Price and Bob Rodgers, who had bought a failing cafe on Highway 2 in 1960. Price was chair of the Project LIFE tourism subcommittee, and in 1965 the pair led a trip to a Danish-themed town Solvang, California to build support for the idea. The first building to be remodeled in the Bavarian style was the Chikamin Hotel, which owner LaVerne Peterson renamed the Edelweiss after the state flower of Bavaria. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leavenworth%2C_Washington)

Almost all the buildings in the commercial area have adopted the "Bavarian" theme:

The Post Office

A signpost alongside US 2

The 76 fuel station / Subway

Front Street

A park area was on the other side of Front Street

There was a gazebo in the park area where an Oom-pah band was playing

There was a Mongolian Wok, and a Starbucks in this building.

Another view down Front Street. With the mountains always around, it does remind me of a Swiss or Bavarian town.

Looking down 9th Street toward Front Street. There were beautiful hanging baskets all through the town.

We enjoyed our visit to Leavenworth, though honestly, one visit is probably enough for us... it is just a bit too "cutesy". And, even on this non-summer, and non-Oktoberfest weekend, it was plenty crowded. So, we're glad we visited, but are thinking that this may be one of the the Thousand Trails parks that we probably will not return to.

(Additional note to Mel: I think the weekend you will be here will be in the midst of Oktoberfest...)