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.
We had a pretty good turn out… 8 families… 16 adults, 15 kids, and 1 dog. It was quite a group. There were even a few babies, the youngest one being 3-months old. There was less mid-night crying than one might expect. 
The kids mostly did what kids do best… play in the dirt and get dirty. 
One adventerous kiddo tried to develop a new way to ride a tricycle so hat he could eat dirt while he "rode". 
The adults did boring adult stuff... like sit around the fire and talk... even where there wasn't a fire. 
There were signs around the campground warning of the dangers of attracting bears by not storing food and trash properly. We did our best to follow the rules but it was comforting to know we had a trained guard dog in our party. I’m not sure but I think he might have some wolf in him… or maybe not. 
On the way home Saturday some of us stopped at Lake Easton to play at the sandy beach in the day-use area. Some of the adults took turns paddling the canoe while the rest watched the kids. Unfortunately we didn’t get the camera out so have no pics of that part of the trip.
Since this post is a few weeks after the fact I don’t remember the exact sequence of events, so I’ll make this post more like a list of highlights rather than a narrative.
One of the joys PooPoo and I share is that we both love to swing and are always on the lookout for tall swing sets. Earlier this summer a friend turned me onto Cowen Park. If it doesn’t have the tallest swing set in Seattle it’s definitely a close second. It was a great place to spend a couple hours. 
After our fabulous breakfast at the Portage Bay café, PooPoo grabbed the reigns and made breakfast 2 of the remaining 3 mornings she was here. I didn’t get any pics of the quiche but it was equally as delicious as her French toast with fruit, maple syrup and home made whipped cream. 
Good pistachio ice cream is difficult to come by. Every once in a while Mrs. Smitty and I will make some. It seems more gourmet to eat it out of these tiny bowls. 
One day we hiked to Talapus Lake. There were a few lingering huckleberries around the lake. Picking/eating berries and climbing on the logjam at the outlet pretty much occupied us for a couple hours.
Thai food with PooPoo and friends. The kids got restless so we took them outside to the patio for some dancing. 
It was sad to drop PooPoo at the airport. Hopefully she’ll return for another visit soon. 
We got to Chelan without incident. It was very windy on the first day so we hunkered down and enjoyed the comforts of the condo. 
The next 2 days were warm and sunny… perfect for spending time at the pool 
...and at the lake. On day 3 we stumbled upon a great sandy beach at Willow Point Park.
...and for a drive in through the orchards until we found a u-pick apple orchard. Unfortunately the Jonathan apples we were hoping to find had been picked clean the previous day, but we did end up with nearly 50 lbs (between both families) of a variety of other types of apples. 
Had beautiful blue skies and there was no indication that the storms ever developed at the crest, but we couldn’t see that far because we were in the bottom of a 3000ft deep valley. We were a bit disappointed to find the lone creek side campsite occupied when we got there. After a bit of scouting we located a better site. It had a gentle sandy/pebbly beach and soft sandy tent pads. Other than the people in the other site and 2 groups who were just passing through to destinations more than a mile from the trailhead, we had the valley to ourselves... except for the hordes of biting flies. 
Kids and adults played in the creek for a while, but whenever the breeze would slow or we would stop moving the flies would swarm and begin their feast. It was decided to truncate our stay at Deception Creek to just a day trip. We loaded up the packs and headed back to the car. 
The new plan was to grab dinner at a Zeeks and drop in on the A family in Monroe. The A’s were happy to see us and gladly let us camp on their relatively insect-free lawn. Their house is on top of a hill facing east with great views of the mountains. We got to use indoor plumbing and borrow some pillows. We woke to a beautiful sunrise over the Cascades. 
After breakfast (it was nice to toast our bagels rather than eat them cold) we took the kids to Lake Roesiger for some more water/sand play. We made our camping lunch on the beach and lounged in the shade. We timed the drive home to coincide with naps. 
It wasn't exactly the trip we planned but turned out to be an excellent adventure.
The day started out cool and cloudy but the sun came out and it warmed up not too long after we got to the slide. The water was cool and refreshing to stand in but Mo's only options (because he doesn't stand) were to sit in the stream or slap at the water surface. He grew tired of these options so found entertainment elsewhere.
Mo was very interested in the fire, so I held him at a safe distance.
All seemed to be going well. The dog was starting to sizzle and I could smell the deliciousness. I was just about to pull it out when the the end of my roasting stick burst into flame.
The dog had a little blackening but that wasn't the real problem. The flare-up had comprimised the integrity of my roasting stick. My dinner fell to the dirt.
It was tragic, exciting and funny all at the same time.
The dirt dog did get eaten and many more dogs were cooked in the log that evening with great success.
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