Wiggly Salmon Sand Bridge vs The Yurt Monster

Took the kids to a new (to us) park yesterday. Our intent was to meet up with friends and hike a few of the trails along the river and/or to a scenic hilltop bench. We met our friends in the parking lot but got a little side tracked playing so didn’t get much hiking done, but the kids had a great time… which is more important than how many miles we cover.

John MacDonald Tolt River County Park is an interesting facility. It’s got everything one could want from a place called a park… a campground with RV hookups, mountain bike/hiking trails, baseball diamonds, a play structure, dense forest, a soccer field, a classic red barn turned picnic shelter, pebbly river front beach, reserve-able yurts, an impressive suspension bridge, views of the Cascades, large open lawns, and hike-in campsites.
Sometimes getting the kids out of the parking lot is difficult because they become interested in some unexpected thing that just happens to be there. It could be as simple as a pinecone or a parking space bumper. That wasn’t a problem here because the suspension bridge is visible from the parking lot and is quite alluring. We made a b-line to it. From the bridge we could see hundreds of salmon swimming upstream to spawn.

Once across the bridge we were at the yurt village. One of the yurts was being cleaned up from the previous nights tenants. The caretaker let us have a look inside… 2 futons, a bunk bed, a heater, and a table w/chairs. It was a pretty simple set-up but sparked my interest to stay in one. Each yurt (and each campsite in the park) comes with a fire ring and a picnic table. The restroom is it’s own building in the middle of the yurt village.

We started to walk along the riverfront trail but came to a large sand deposit from when the river last flooded. It was the best sandbox ever. Our friend was prepared for just such a situation and brought a couple buckets and shovels. The kids were happy to cut our walk short and play a while.

Near the sand pile there was a trail to the river’s edge. I got some footage of the salmon swimming upstream.

On the way out I couldn't help but snap a few pictures of the hardware that holds the bridge up. These bolts are about as large in diameter as my wrist.

Back at the parking lot the kids did find something better than getting back into the car... a puddle of murky water. The little Smittys enjoyed walking through and standing in it to let their feet soak.

After a quick wardrobe change back at the car, we were on our way home. The kiddos were konked before we got to the highway.