September 28, 2016 - Ellensburg City (YRE-0320)

It always helps to have nice weather. We had really nice weather today in Ellensburg, in central Washington.

Central Washington is in the high desert. The landscape is so different from most places I have been. I really enjoyed the hills surrounding the town.

We started the walk at a Starbucks - and I do recommend the salted caramel mocha coffee. We soon found ourselves in a pleasant residential area. The houses were a nice mixture of bungalows, Craftsman-style homes, and mid-century houses. The people we met on the sidewalks of Ellensburg were friendly. They invariably said "Hi!". 

Not all of the houses were bungalows

The American Legion building

Many of the properties were nicely landscaped. We saw some desert landscaping, but we also saw quite a few rose gardens. I loved the variety of colorful mature trees present in most neighborhoods.

Our walk took us to a viewpoint overlooking the rodeo grounds, which are on the National Register of Historic Places. Apparently the Ellensburg Rodeo is one of America's top ten professional rodeos. This is a Big Deal here.

A mural seen downtown:

A mural encountered downtown

We continued through charming neighborhoods to the historic downtown area. 

Yay! A Little Free Library!

Hmmmmm.

The CBD was well-maintained. I enjoyed seeing the flower boxes, decorative trash containers, cute bicycle racks, and other little details that went into making our visit to downtown Ellensburg so enjoyable.

We stopped at The Soup Bowl for an excellent lunch. There are many appetizing possibilities for lunch downtown, so try to time your walk so that you hit downtown around lunchtime.

Me and the Ellensburg Bull:

Art Deco bank, now a gallery:

We completed our tour of downtown with a walk past City Hall and then turned up toward the campus of Central Washington University. The campus is dominated by Barge Hall, the oldest and most iconic building on campus. The signature red brick with white stone trim is reflected in most of the other university buildings, giving the campus a cohesive look.

Before completing our campus tour we looped through a stately residential neighborhood to the west, admiring the 100-year-old trees that lined the street, and hoping chestnuts and acorns did not start dropping on us.

Back on campus we walked past a gorgeous new state-of-the-art science building before reaching the arboretum, where we followed a path along a canal until we reached a quad with outdoor sculptures.

Who doesn't love weeping willows?

In front of the library we saw a photo shoot involving an older couple wearing CWU t-shirts. Who were they? Big donors? The oldest alumni? Ardent Wildcats fans?

It was interesting to find a peaceful Japanese Garden right in the middle of campus. Every campus should have a retreat like this.

We were very impressed with the careful planning that went into this route. We were also impressed by the clear, accurate instructions and the well-organized log book, with excellent information about the walk and the applicable special programs. This walk was a delight!

Walk Route: B+

Walk Instructions: A