Friday, August 25, 2017 A Birthday and Mayfield Lake

Today I woke up early enough to call my sister Pam and wish her a Happy Birthday. Then I rambled around awhile, walked the dogs and had breakfast. It didn't seem that we had much on our mind to do today - so we watched some TV. I'm pretty sure I dozed off a bit. Then we had a light lunch and loaded the dogs for a short ride. We went to the Ike Kinswa State Park. We toured one of the Campground loops then parked the pickup. There was a lovely shaded trail alongside Mayfield Lake, the dogs loved it and so did we!

The water is so clear and has such wonderful shades of blue and green - depending on how the light strikes it. I can never get enough of these mountain lakes.

We crossed the road and saw a beautiful swimming, fishing, kayaking area to enjoy. The water just sparkles. The area reminds me of Lake Pend O'Reille in Idaho, with its steep mountain on one side. The beach area also reminds me of the one at Farragut SP in Idaho.

This is a beautiful State Park you should check out if you are in the area. We got back to the RV and watched TV - the Seahawks vs. the Kansas City Chiefs, a pre-season game - the Seahawks won. We had supper and walked our dogs around the campground. It was a nice little walk. Then we left them in the RV and tried to update some apps on my iPad and iPhone at the campground wifi - no success. Back to the RV and just hanging out! Information about the Ike Kinswa State Park -from Washington State Parks website: Mayfield Lake is a reservoir established by the construction of Mayfield Dam. Prior to construction of the dam, the Tilton River joined forces with the Cowlitz River within this landscape. The dam, designed to forge the energy of this river confluence into electricity, was originally proposed in 1948. After 15 years of legal struggles, which ended in a U.S. Supreme Court decision, it was constructed and became operational in 1963. In this same year, Washington State Parks began to manage recreation along its shorelines. The original name of the park was Mayfield Lake State Park. However, in 1971 the name was changed to Ike Kinswa State Park in honor of Ike Kinswa, a well-respected Cowlitz Indian who lived along the shores of the rivers’ confluence. Over the years the park has grown in popularity as a camping and water recreation destination in central Lewis County. I gathered up our snacks for the trip to Mount Rainier NP tomorrow! I turn the magic 62 and am going to buy my Senior parks Pass for $10 before the price increases to $80 on the 28th of August. Tomorrow I celebrate my birthday at the National Park! Woo Hoo! That's it folks!