I decided to do something a little bit different for our trip this time - we went to an outdoor theatre “built” in a forest. I say built because apparently they built the theatre with the idea that they would not cut down any trees or change the landscape any more than necessary. I found the concept facinating, so I decided it would make for a good van trip. Relatively tame considering our trips of late, but the curveball this time was a heatwave coming through western Washington this weekend - so crusible by fire on the new van optimizations for hot weather camping (more on that below).
since they started the performances in 1923… and have apparently done them every year since (with the exception of 3 yrs during WWII). I was not aware of the history when I found the place and booked my tickets. They had some pictures from some of their first performances and the performances throughout the years.
Before we headed down to the theatre, we found a fun bridge & fort playground for Sara to play on. She found some friends and ran around the dog house, pirate ship, swings, and watch tower (really all the same thing). :)
The theater was about a mile and a half down the hill (very steep trail) and they had a bunch of clues along the way - quotes from the play, props (like a kite), and little pamphlets from the Civil War era. It was a really fun way to get you into the play - almost like the trail brought you into another world. The trail was very steep however, there were 3 people injured on the way down. So watch yourself!
Took some pictures of the seating area while it was filling up. We brought our camp chairs and sat on the dirt. They had ice bags available for everyone to use to cool off - which Sara really enjoyed.
And a quick clip of the performance - Checked to make sure this was ok first (they didn’t mind).
We brought a bag of cherries for a snack - Sara was a huge fan… :)
I thought this was really creative. They setup a train to tell you which year it was during the play. The train moved forward and backward throughout the performance as play changed time period/flashbacks/etc. There are a couple of wires coming off the picture to the right - those held a kite that flew over the audience during one scene. Sara didn’t really get the train part, but loved the kite.
And the token selfie…
After the show, we drove to a nearby trail head that had a picnic table and made dinner. We headed to the campsite I had in mind, but it was full so we had to improvise. I found a spot (big dirt field) where a couple of RVs were parked and decided we would stay there. There was a country concert across the street, so we got to listen to a bit of music before bed.
I didn’t get any picures of the new van setup (I’ll have to do that next time). The primary additions that made the night bearable were 1) 2 fans that attached to the back of the drivers seat headrest - here and two mesh window covers for the front windows - here. I also got a small evaporative cooler (swamp cooler), but I don’t think it did much so it won’t be coming on the next one. Betwen these two things (fans to circulate the air from the front to the back and mesh covers to allow air and not bugs to come in) we stayed pretty cool all night. In fact, at about 11 pm I had to grab a couple more blankets because it got so cool.
The next morning we stopped for breakfast on the way out.
And we stopped at marathon park near Renton to do a quick hike. About 2 miles in the city. Sara had tons of energy, so I didn’t think we were going to make it without a break before the long car ride.
San Juan islands for next time!