Holiday in Centralia

December 2012

The Earth has Music

Photo: Mount Tamalpais State Park in Marin County, California. Photo by Colleen Proppe.

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Clearance: Camping Gear Galore

The best thing about receiving cash or gift cards for the holidays? Clearance sales. The one big piece of gear our family “needs” (i.e. really wants but can’t yet afford) is a family-sized tent for car camping. The Big Agnes Mad House 4 Tent has long been one of my top choices, and it’s now 25% […]

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Discover Pass: The Gift of Washington’s Great Outdoors

What’s your favorite Washington State Park? For me, picking a favorite is nearly impossible. So I must be allowed a few favorites. For family camping and kayaking, I like Penrose Point State Park on the shores of Puget Sound in Kitsap County. The park has over two miles of saltwater shoreline backdropped by forest. For scenery and a […]

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Nature Heals

photo credit: Glacier National Park by V.D. Vanlue via flickr creative commons.

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Gear Closet: Seven Deals on Camping Gear

From a mod tea kettle to the best wool blanket any campground has ever seen, we’ve scoured the web to find some great current deals on camping gear. CAMPING GEAR GSI Outdoors Halulite Tea Kettle,32 Ounce DEAL: $16.95 (usually around $23) WHY WE LOVE IT: The sleek lines and industrial look match our mod attitudes. Oh, and its […]

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Free Admission Days for National Parks in 2016

On a budget? Then mark your calendars! Our National Parks offer FREE admission days for 2016. Free U.S. National Park Admission Days for 2016 January 18 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day April 16-24 – opening weekend of National Park Week August 25-28 – National Park Service Birthday September 24 – National Public Lands Day November 11 – Veterans Day Which Parks to Visit? […]

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Go Snowshoeing at Mount Rainier

Winter is here! Snow is falling in the Cascades and Olympics, and the winter of 2015-2016 is shaping up to be a fantastic season for hitting the slopes… or the trails. I have a bit of a complex relationship with snow. As a child in the midwest I never knew a winter without it… building snowmen in the […]

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Trips You Can Gift

I like to joke that we live in a cracker box house. We have just enough living space for our small family in our Seattle abode, but we don’t have a garage or basement. Some things don’t fit anywhere – like our vacuum, for instance. It doesn’t have a dedicated “place” that it’s stored when […]

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Rustic Retreats in Washington

Who says “camping” can’t be comfortable? Here are a bunch of affordable rustic retreats in Washington state, all managed by public land agencies. Some are light-filled yurts near a beach, while others are historic cabins in the woods. All are rent-able year-round. They’re even heated in colder months so you can stay toasty warm while you’re inside […]

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