WE WENT EXPLORING - PART 1

Saturday morning, we hopped into the pickup, and drove to the local diner and split a breakfast omelet.  With bellies full, we decided to head into Spokane, and finally explore the city after almost 5 years of living in Washington.  Funny, how our first stop was actually in Idaho at the Cabella's in Post Falls.  Craig had been wanting to go there for quite some time, and I have to admit, I enjoyed it as well.  If the UTV's they were selling, (which are street legal in Idaho and Montana) were legal for Washington State, I would have been hard pressed not to seriously think about buying one!

After our Cabella's experience, we headed to Riverfront Park in Spokane, which is a 100 acre park that was the home of the 1974 World's Fair.  It is located by the Spokane River and  near the Spokane Falls.  This particular Saturday, it was host to the annual Northwest Indian Encampment & Pow Wow. 

Several of the attractions build for the World's Fair are still in use, including the Pavilion, a 145 foot metal frame which was the foundation for the main tent during the fair.  Now it is the center of the amusement rides that were in full operation on Saturday.

Another landmark within the park is the Clocktower, that was originally part of the Great Northern Railroad Depot. Construction began in 1901 and finished in 1902. The depot was an impressive brick building 3 stories tall, with the monumental Clocktower standing in at 155 feet.  During 1972 and 1973, long after the “glory days” of train travel, the Great Northern Railroad Depot was demolished as Spokane made preparations for Expo’ 74. The Clocktower was able to be preserved and serves as a reminder of Spokane’s railroad history.

One of the interesting things we did see were the parking meters for street parking around the park.  I know it's been awhile since we have ventured into any big cities and parked, but we were both surprised to see that the parking meters took credit cards.  Sure makes it a lot easier than trying to dig into the crevices of the car seats for any loose change!

My next entry I'll share with you some of the historical locations around town that we checked out during our day of exploring.