Don’t overlook this mind-blowing destination in Eastern Washington
Dry Falls doesn’t look like much as you drive along U.S. Highway 2 near Coulee City.
You really need to dive deeper into this magical destination in the Columbia Basin to fully appreciate its majesty.
When you pull into Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park, you’ll find huge basalt cliffs rising dramatically around a gorgeous rocky coulee filled with a chain of beautiful little lakes. In the middle of the picturesque coulee, it feels like you could be in Utah or New Mexico, maybe some place like Monument Valley or Canyonlands.
How was this geologic wonder created? You’ve probably heard the story: Once upon a time 15,000 years ago, a large ice dam near Missoula gave way, sending a massive wall of water roaring through Eastern Washington. It created a waterfall four times the size of Niagara Falls in this humble location.
Of course, it’s “dry” now — so it takes some imagination when you’re standing at the Dry Falls Visitor Center atop the cliffs on State Route 17 to visualize the wonder of what once was a raging waterfall.
It’s a grand view from up there, but the bottom of the basin is where the action is. We arrived on a hot and dusty afternoon in early August and set up camp at the popular state park, centered around the busy shores of Park Lake.
Things were hopping. Power boats and jet skis were roaring, families were picnicking and swimmers were splashing in the cool, inviting waters.
We quickly set up camp, built up a sweat in the desert heat, and then hopped on our bikes to join in the lakeside action. Later, when the temps cooled down, we took a sunset bike ride up the coulee to Deep Lake and saw our first exquisite example of what makes this place so special.
A purple-ish lake filled with rising fish snaked out amid the stark basalt cliffs, stretching into the dusky shadows. All of the chaos of the lower lakes was gone, replaced by sublime solitude.
The next day, we returned to the upper basin and hiked around spectacular Umatilla Rock, the butte that dominates the upper Dry Falls basin. At 2.64 miles, the trail packed in lots of scenery as we circumnavigated the giant rock in 90-degree heat.
This place certainly sizzles in the middle of summer. And that makes an RV the perfect vehicle for managing the environmental extremes -- the thermometer hit 99 degrees at one point during our visit, and nighttime winds whipped through the canyons. It’s hard not to feel a little smug when you can avoid the heat and the wind inside your comfortable tiny home on wheels.
We got to see just how wild this place is during our first night’s bike ride. There on the blacktop sat a coiled rattlesnake, shaking its tail and ready to strike as John rolled past a few feet away. Yikes!
We stopped to say howdy and it eventually got the message we meant no harm as it uncoiled and slithered slowly off the road into the desert.
Later that night, the flies hatched from the surrounding lakes and the bats were having a feast above our heads. The heat of the day moderated into an evening perfect for gazing at stars and dreaming of the prehistoric floods that created this special place.
If you go: Besides the state park, Sun Lakes Park Resort is located in this scenic basin and offers RV hookups and cabins, along with a cute golf course. The popular park is also accessible off I-90, heading north from Moses Lake.
