Category Archives: To Dos

Things to do in the Coulee area

Places to See, To Dos

High-tech Treasure Hunt Offered at Grand Coulee and two other Columbia River Dams

 

Grand Coulee Dam holds back the mighty Columbia River in the lake we call Roosevelt.

Visitors to three Columbia River dams, including Grand Coulee, can join in on a high-tech educational treasure hunt that could earn them a special patch simply by taking part in the “D3 Geocache Challenge” beginning May 27 and continuing through Labor Day.

The visitor centers at Bureau of Reclamation’s Grand Coulee Dam; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Chief Joseph Dam; and the Chelan County Public Utility District’s Rocky Reach Dam will be the starting point to discover the hidden treasures of hydropower production and other essential facts about the role large dams play in the Pacific Northwest.

Geocaching uses GPS (global positioning system) devices GPS-capable smartphones to find a “cache” or treasure box containing educational information and a prize. It’s great fun and can lead you on many adventures, including this one, which offers even more to see when you find the cache at Grand Coulee Dam, and amazing tour all by itself.

For those completing all three geocaches at Grand Coulee, a special prize awaits at the visitor center.  Those wanting to win the D3 Geocache Challenge patch must visit all three dams and complete all the caches.

Each visitor center will hide three or four caches on their grounds, for educational purposes.

“This is a great opportunity for visitors to have some fun exploring these areas while also winning a special patch showing that they met the challenge,” said Lynne Brougher, Grand Coulee Dam public affairs officer.

The fun starts when participants receive a “D3 Challenge Passport” along with GPS coordinates at each visitor center and follow the coordinates to locate at least three or four geocache sites at each dam. Each site will consist of a box containing an educational activity sheet. Remember to bring a pen or pencil to complete the activity sheet.

Participants will record answers to questions they learned while touring the dams and return the completed sheets to the visitor center to have their “passport” stamped and earn a prize.  Questions can include facts about hydropower production, irrigation, flood control or recreation.

Tour guides will be on hand to explain the D3 Challenge and assist participants in getting started on their adventure, Brougher said.
For more information call the Grand Coulee Dam Visitor Center at (509) 633-9265.

Astounding Facts, Boating, swimming and fishing, Day Trips, Places to See, Soon, To Dos

New Visitors’ Guide coming out; see the print edition online now

Our latest printed issue of the Visitors’ Guide is at the printers’, but in this day and age, why wait?
Take a look right now by clicking on the image below to open it up in your browser (Flash required, sorry; so here’s a link for iPhone or iPad access. It’s limited.)

Soon, To Dos

55th Colorama full of things to do

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Colorama is a fun ride, and that's no bull.

The 55th Colorama celebration is coming on fast. It begins May 10, with the opening of the Paradise Amusement Carnival and lasts through Sunday with the Cleatis Lacy Memorial Bull Riding event, May 13, at the Ridge Riders Rodeo grounds.

The events:
• The carnival kicks off at 5 p.m. Thursday, opens Friday at 3 p.m. for two sessions and again Saturday at 11 a.m. for two sessions.
There are discount tickets at various venues in the area through Thursday. Discount tickets go for $25 for each session (savings of about $10) and are available at The Star newspaper, Chamber of Commerce office, North Cascades National Bank, H&H Grocery and Coulee Dam Federal Credit Union.
• Come to the traditional Arts & Crafts Fair at North Dam Park, opening at 10 a.m. both Friday and Saturday. Don’t worry about lunch because there are a lot of good food booths.
• The Pro-West Rodeo lasts three days this year, with the added Sunday Cleatis Lacy Bull Riding event. The rodeo begins at 6 p.m. Friday, 3 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday.
• The Senior Cowboy Breakfast takes off at 7 a.m. Saturday and runs until 10:30 a.m. Better show up and get fed before the big parade.
• The big parade, the highlight of the Colorama celebration, begins at 11 a.m. and travels from Les Schwab on Federal Avenue, then down Midway Avenue.
• The Over the Dam Run, for 5K, 10K and half marathon take off on the east side of Grand Coulee Dam and end up at North Dam Park.
• The popular “Walk Across the Dam” sponsored by the Rotary Club will again be offered as a new-school fund raiser.
• Colorama Buttons are on sale throughout the community. Purchase one for $3 and you could be the winner of several prizes being offered.
• More events: Check out the arm wrestling contest Saturday at Pepper Jack’s. And Curt Davis will play guitar and sing at North Dam Park at 12:30 p.m. Saturday.

Places to See, To Dos

Grand Coulee Dam Visitor Center and Tour Schedule

NO TOURS SCHEDULED IN 2021. VISITOR CENTER IS OPEN.

jackhammer
This kid thought the vibrating jackhammer was great fun.

The Grand Coulee Dam Visitor Center is open daily and public tours are being offered. The visitor center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tours are given daily into the John W. Keys, III Pump-Generating Plant at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

This is a change from last year, when visitors toured the Third Power Plant, which is now being prepared for a big upgrade.

Visitors will ride a shuttle bus to the pumping plant where they will view the gigantic pumps that lift water from Lake Roosevelt to be delivered throughout the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project.

Visitors will then ride the shuttle bus across the top of Grand Coulee Dam for spectacular views of Lake Roosevelt and the Columbia River as it winds through the town of Coulee Dam.

The one-hour tours are on a first-come, first-served basis. Also, no reservations are taken and space is limited.

Beginning May 26, the Visitor Center hours will be extended from 8:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. during the summer season. This will also mark the beginning of the popular laser light show, which will run nightly through the end of September.

For more information, call (509) 633-9265.

 
Day Trips, Places to See, To Dos

Russian artist shares his perspective of region in exhibit at Dry Falls

The photographers dog takes a peek over the edge of the cliff early in the morning at Dry Falls, with the visitor center in the background.

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission invites the public to attend an oil painting exhibit at Dry Falls Visitor Center featuring work by Russian artist Gennady Ugryumov near Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park.
The oil paintings are on display throughout 2012 in Dry Falls Visitor Center, 34875 Park Lake Road N.E., Coulee City.
The post-impressionist landscapes on canvas feature Ugryumov’s interpretation of the middle Columbia River and the Columbia Plateau region as experienced in his July and November 2009 visits to the area. Ugryumov’s exhibit, titled the Big River series, includes 20 individual landscape pieces and a three-section mural entitled, “Children of the Big River.” The exhibit is recognized by the Colville Confederated Tribes.
“Children of the Big River” is a large, 51- by 204-inch mural inspired by Ugryumov’s July 2010 visit to the Colville Confederated Tribes’ annual powwow ceremony. The mural depicts themes of the past, present and future of the Columbia Plateau region, using gradual value changes to illustrate the viewer’s movement from past to future.
Ugryumov is a native of Vesyegonsk, a small village along the Vologda River in the Tver Province of west-central Russia. His formal training is from the Tver Fine Arts Institute, of which the Big River series was displayed in 2010. Ugryumov is also a member of the Russian Fine Artist League.
Dry Falls Visitor Center is located two miles north of Sun Lake-Dry Falls State Park on Highway 17. The center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily (except Thursdays) Jan. 2 to April 30 and Oct. 1 to Dec. 31; and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily May 1 to Sept. 30. Admission is by donation.
Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park is a 4,027-acre camping park with 73,640 feet of freshwater shoreline at the foot of Dry Falls. Dry Falls is a geological wonder of North America. Carved by Ice Age floods, the former waterfall is now a stark cliff, 400 feet high and 3.5 miles wide. In its heyday, the waterfall was four times the size of Niagara Falls. Today, it overlooks a desert oasis filled with lakes and abundant wildlife.
The Commission manages a diverse system of more than 100 state parks and recreation programs, including long-distance trails, boating safety and winter recreation. The 98-year-old park system will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2013.
Washington State Parks is on Twitter at WaStatePks_NEWS and YouTube at WashingtonStateParks.