Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the Tri-Cities have been closely associated with the notorious Hanford site, the top-secret
plutonium-processing plant that manufactured 'fat boy,' the atomic bomb dropped on
Nagasaki in 1945, and subsequently stayed in operation throughout the Cold War. Al-
though it has been largely decommissioned since the early 1990s, recent studies have re-
vealed that Hanford's operations have leaked a significant amount of radioactive waste
into the Columbia River.
Eschewing their nuclear image, the Tri-Cities have grown and prospered in recent
years through wine production, agriculture and - ironically - a massive (and still ongo-
ing) Hanford clean-up campaign (which still employs thousands).
Sights & Activities
Columbia River Exhibition of History, Science & Technology MUSEUM
(CREHST; www.crehst.com ; 95 Lee Blvd, Richland; adult/student $5/4; 10am-5pm Mon-Sat,
noon-5pm Sun) CREHST documents Columbia River history, the journey of Lewis and
Clark and, inevitably, the Hanford project.
East Benton County Historical Museum MUSEUM
( www.ebchs.com ; 205 Keewayden Dr, Kennewick; adult/child $4/1; noon-4pm Tue-Sat) This
museum tracks local history and has some exhibits on 'Kennewick Man,' the 9300-year-
old skeleton of a Caucasian male found on the banks of the Columbia in 1996 that blew
the anthropological history of North America wide open.
Riverside Greenway HIKING, CYCLING
To see the Tri-Cities in their best light, stay close to the broad Columbia River, which re-
veals its only stretch of free-flowing water at the Hanford Reach National Monument .
Kennewick's Columbia Park is a vast greenway complete with golf course, playing
fields, campground and boat moorage, while the 23-mile paved Sacagawea Heritage
Trail acts as a connecting hiking and biking artery between the three cities using the river
as its marker.
Sleeping & Eating
Clover Island Inn HOTEL$
(
509-586-0541; www.hotelkennewick.com ; 435 Clover Island Dr, Kennewick; r from $74;
) You won't have trouble finding an economical motel in the Tri-Cities but, if you
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