"The Way West"...Day 23...Thursday, July 5, 2012

I have had a good night's sleep, and now I awake to the sound of...silence. Good, there is no plopping of rain on my tent. Outside, the sun is out and, while it is not warm, it's not particularly cold either.
I make coffee and puff on my morning cigar for an hour or so. Then, I heat up more water and prepare a package of Mountain House Scrambled Eggs with Peppers and Ham. A home-cooked breakfast it is not, but it isn't bad for something that comes out of a bag.
When breakfast is over, I set about breaking camp...packing away my sleeping bag, folding up my sleeping pad, and taking down my tent. Everything gets loaded into my pack, and then I hike the mile or so from the campground to the dock. The Lady Express boat arrives from Chelan around 11:00AM, and I'm on board at noon for the ride back. It's a beautiful day, and the three-hour boat ride is nice. And, as you can see from one of the photos, the ferry boat company has a very enlightened policy towards "cat travel".

My Explorer and camper are tightly spaced in the parking lot, and it takes several tries to back out and get on the road. Then I'm on the way to the Lakeshore RV Park in Chelan, stopping along the way at a Safeway for ice and a few food items. At the Park, I immediately head for the shower and, soon, I'm all cleaned up and shaved...clean clothes, and I feel like a new man. I spend an hour or so posting to the blog and sorting through a few days worth of emails before heading into town for dinner.
I am enjoying my return to "civilization" and, this night, I feel like having a steak for dinner.
Several people have recommended the Bistro restaurant at Campbell's Resort, so I head there. It is a great dining experience with an imaginative menu, great wine list and cute and attentive waitresses. I have a Maker's Mark on the rocks, a very good Caesar salad, and huge piece of perfectly-cooked Prime Rib. There's a nice selection of half bottles of wine, so I get a half bottle of L'Ecole 41 Cab which goes great with the Prime Rib. And, for dessert, I get the "specialty of the house"...vanilla ice cream with rum raisin sauce and chopped local apples...excellent!
After dinner, I wander over to the local "dive" bar for a few beers and some pleasant conversation with a few locals. Then, it's back to camp and bed.