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Our Journey: Sun Lakes State Park, Palisades, Coulee City, Moses Lake & Rimrock Meadows

Our Journey date: 2020-09-05

In August 2020, I met my brother and sister-in-law at Sun Lakes State Park just outside Coulee City. Sun Lakes is made up of a series of smaller lakes including Banks, Dry Falls, Park, Blue, Alkali, Lenore and Little Soap Lake. We fished off the bank of Park Lake and it had been way too long since I saw their smiles!

And for a brief moment I was spoiled by my brother like I was when I went fishing with him as a kid and he spent the morning restringing my pole and changing gear so I could try different things to fish with! I am indeed a bobber kinda fisher! I think I impressed him when I pulled out my premade fishing hooks wrapped around cardboard just like he taught me!

 

We got skunked but it was fun taking all the photos of people out playing on the lake that day!

 

Located in the heart of the Colbumia Basin in Eastern Washington, it's about 3.5 hours E of Seattle and 2 hours W of Spokane. My Aunt took me camping here a few times when I was a kid and I would float on my back and stare at the interesting rimrock walls that line the lake! I was from the west side of the Cascade Mountains and marveled at the dry desert and her sagebrush - something that doesn't exist on the west side! I remember the first time I smelled the rain on the sagebrush in Eastern Washington - lovely! And my family still trecks here! 

The State Park offers 69 cabins and 152 RV sites where tenters are welcome. The park offers fishing, boating, water skiing, golfing, mini-golf, and a few restaurants. You can launch your boat for free if staying at the park. I googled public boat launch Sun Lakes WA and see that there is public access each of the lakes it looks like. 

About 35 miles SW is a subdivision I have flipped land in over the years called Rimrock Meadows which is where we headed after fishing. Although there are a few year round homes here it's mostly used seasonally with quite a few RV's and cabins. It's a great headquaters spot for someone looking to go play on the weekend. There's a trailer storage area that had several RV's and a few boats - a great idea so you don't have to pull your RV over the pass every weekend!

 

It also offers a large swimming pool, RV and tent sites, tennis courts, a playground, big barbecue pit, 7100 acres to roam, and a rustic clubhouse with kitchen facilities. I am impressed with how well the facilities are maintained by the property owners association! You can build a home there or put in a manufactured home but most of the people use it to pull in their RV and enjoy the fishing in the area, the pool at the club house, ATV riding, and snowmobiling in the area!! What a great spot to get away in the winter or summertime.

 

It's located about 10 miles NE of Palisade which has an elementary school and a post office but not much else. It is surrounded by gorgeous farms and those are the farms you see stretching acorss the hillsides from the E to the SE of Rimrock! What a great spot to sit and watch the distant colors on the farmlands! In July 2010 I drove the thru area and snapped several photos of the crops - how pretty! 

 

 

I also ventured up to Grand Coulee Dam which is about 1/2 hour north of Coulee City and a gorgeous drive along Banks Lake the entire way! I remember standing on top of the dam when I was a kid with 2 sisters and 2 cousins - my Aunt took me here as well! It is the largest power station in the USA and sits on the Columbia River. These days you need to take a guided tour which concludes with a ride across the top of the dam. Buddy and I dipped our toes in Banks Lake and we also visited Sun Lakes State Park and Moses Lake. My beloved Buddy was 5 years old back then - just a young guy! 

 

I read an article talking about it being nearly impossible to live on the west side of the Cascades because of all the rain if it not for sunny Eastern Washington. Many parts receive less than 10 inches of rain per year and there's an average of 300 sunny days. And I greatly appreciate my Aunt for all those fun vacations to Sun Lakes! My cousins constantly post photos of their fishing trips to the area and I hope it's not another 10 years before I go fishing here again!

 

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Sun Lakes State Park, Palisades, Coulee City, Moses Lake & Rimrock Meadows

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