Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Gorge at George
Although it is roughly 150 miles from Seattle to the community of
George, Washington, the town each summer attracts tens of thousands
of music fans who drive from Seattle and all over the Northwest to attend
concerts (primarily rock) at a natural amphitheater overlooking the
Columbia River.
The Gorge Amphitheatre,
754 Silica Rd. NW, George
(www.hob.com/venues/concerts/gorge), is in a spectacular setting that's
surrounded by basalt cliffs. Tickets are sold through
Ticketmaster
(
&
296/
628-0888
in Seattle, 509/735-0500 in eastern Washington, or 509/453-7139
in Yakima; www.ticketmaster.com/venue/122913).
block you'll find Ellensburg's oldest art gallery.
Gallery One,
408
1
⁄
2
N. Pearl St.
(
&
509/925-2670
), features works by regional, national, and international
artists. More art can be seen at the
Sarah Spurgeon Gallery,
Randall Hall, 14th
Avenue and Nicholson Boulevard (
&
509/963-2665
), on the campus of Cen-
tral Washington University. This gallery is open Monday through Friday from
8:30am to 4:30pm and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 3pm; admission is
free. For a look at some unique local art, cruise by
Dick & Jane's Spot,
101 N.
Pearl Street. The house and yard here are decorated with hundreds of colorful
objects, including thousands of little reflective disks. However, the town's most
famous work of art is the
Ellensburg Bull,
a cement statue that sits on a bench
in a plaza in the downtown historic district.
Downtown you'll also find the
Kittitas County Museum,
114 E. Third St.
(
&
509/925-3778
), which has an interesting collection of Native American
artifacts, as well as a large rock and mineral collection that focuses on petrified
wood. The museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10am to 4pm.
Admission is by donation.
If you want to shop for some of the region's rare Ellensburg blue agate, stop
by the
Ellensburg Agate & Bead Shop,
201 S. Main St. (
&
509/925-4998
).
But be forewarned—this pale-blue semiprecious stone can be quite pricey.
Some 4
1
⁄
2
miles southeast of town you'll find
Olmstead Place State Park
(
&
509/925-1943
), a heritage site that preserves a pioneer homestead of the
1870s. Northwest of Ellensburg at exit 101 off I-90, in the town of Thorp, is the
Thorp Mill
(
&
509/964-9640;
www.thorp.org), an 1880s gristmill that now
houses a museum; it's open Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 4pm.
Anyone wanting to cool off on a hot summer day should make for the waters
of the nearby Yakima River, which offers lots of easy floating.
Rill Adventures,
10471 Thorp Hwy. North (
&
888/281-1561
or 509/964-2520; www.rillsonline.
com), rents rafts, with prices ranging from $60 to $90 per day. The section of this
river south of town, through Yakima Canyon, is a popular stretch of river with
tubers and canoeists, and is a favorite of fly anglers as well.
WHERE TO STAY
The Inn at Goose Creek
Located just off I-90 on the south side of Ellens-
burg, this inn is sort of a cross between a highway off-ramp motel and a bed-
and-breakfast inn. Though it's in a nondescript building surrounded by gas
stations and fast-food restaurants, it keeps all this at bay with the over-the-top
modern country decor in the lobby. All of the 10 suites here are also decorated
to the max and each has a different theme (Ellensburg Rodeo, Victorian, Sports
