Northern Idaho - Silverwood Theme Park

A month ago my sisters and I took a whirlwind trip to Spokane and Athol (though we kept saying Coeur D'Alene). That trip will comprise the next few posts. The first leg was Silverwood Theme Park in Athol, Idaho.

It would not be fair to write a review based mainly on ways in which they are or are not like Disneyland, but it is hard not to draw some comparisons. I will try and focus on what is unique about them.

One thing I was really impressed by was the variety of midway games available.

They also had some pretty cute prizes.

The landscaping was also good, with lots of flowers everywhere.

The rides are for the most part like your average carnival rides, though it is possible to have more confidence in them knowing that they are not taken apart, moved to another town, and then reassembled every week.

Some rides are clearly designed more for kids - like at Garfield's Summer Camp - and some are less obviously so.

For example, an adult can ride the Elephant Ride and getting in isn't a problem and the restraints aren't a problem, but more leg room would have been lovely.

You might expect that one to be more adult-friendly, because it is in Coaster Alley, the place with lots of rides that are clearly not just for little kids, even if they are not specifically roller coasters. Of course, the Elephant Ride is on the edge of Coaster Alley.

We were keeping a pretty tight schedule and did not really go on a lot of rides, but there was plenty of atmosphere and fun things to look at.

Although the towers and flowers can remind one of a storybook Europe, the park is very much in touch with its Northwest roots.

We did not explore the water park side of Silverwood. We have heard good things, but that's not what we were there for.

Actually, a lot of our purpose in going was Garfield, but I will focus on that next week.

I did really like the carousel.

That was not just for the ride, but for the art.

Ultimately, it is a fun place. There are bigger parks, and there are parks with more accessible rides, but I was pleased to see a 10-page accessibility guide on the web site: 

http://www.silverwoodthemepark.com/park/accessibility-guide.pdf

I looked for it after seeing the staircase, though there is also a ramp.

The stairs are at the end of a tunnel that goes below the road separating the theme park from the RV ground.

I am told that this is a huge factor for people who visit the park, with a lot of their traffic being families with RVs. That was probably how my parents and sisters ended up there twenty years ago.

Ten years ago they went back with a friend. Last month they went with me.  Neither of those trips involved RVs though. Those are kind of like water parks for us. It's great if you want them, but not our thing.

https://www.silverwoodthemepark.com/

Abby's Legendary Pizza

Abby's Legendary Pizza is a common site along Oregon roadways.

That requires some clarification. There are 33 Oregon locations, plus three in Washington. Obviously there are a lot of places where you won't see Abby's, but where you tend to find them is when you are driving to the more remote places, and that's why you are on the road.

My sisters have been to the one in Winston, but this review is based on the Woodburn location.

There can be a kind of a dive vibe as you enter. Also, the customer service could be a little more warm and attentive. It is possible that they don't have a lot of competition in most locations, but certainly in Woodburn there are plenty of options.

My sisters liked the salad bar option, though that didn't really appeal to me.

The most important thing, though, is that the pizza is really good. See the Big Hawaiian!

They are very generous with the toppings. See the Abby's Special!

When you are looking at the size options, you can trust the higher end of the people served (a 10" is plenty for two), and that is probably at least partly because of the thickness of the toppings.

It's not terrible having leftovers, which heat up well, but look, even the empty pan has leftovers!

Boxes are available for taking pizza home, or further down the road.

There are worse places to end up on a road trip.

https://abbys.com/

(My one criticism is that I didn't think their mushrooms were very good, which stood out more because everything else was so good.)

Marion County, Oregon - Mount Angel Abbey Museum

We recently saw the Mount Angel Abbey Museum get honorable mention on a list of the 20 best museums in Oregon: https://www.oregonlive.com/travel/index.ssf/2018/03/the_20_best_museums_in_oregon.html

We were surprised because not only had we never been to it, but we had never even heard of it. We had to check it out.

Once we found it, we have to admit it is an impressive collection. The fairly small space contains many more items than you would expect.

It started with biology specimens and scientific drawings.

That made me think about how the Jesuits were early scientists. The Mount Angel community consists of Benedictine monks, but Gregor Mendel was an Augustinian, and it can work.

Then I started seeing more crafts and artifacts from other cultures, and I started thinking about missionary work, colonization, and enslavement of indigenous peoples.

As it is, this museum appears to contain more donated collections than any collections specifically associated with the community of the abbey. This includes a remarkably large taxidermy collection. It's like a mini Field museum.

Not that it's not possible to feel some qualms about all the dead animals.

It is still pretty impressive.

Some of the tableaux are quite vivid.

It is overall a very impressive collection if you can find it.

Just for the record, finding it took two tries.

While there is visitor information on line, and visitors are not discouraged, directions can be confusing.

If you can find the right downward path, there is a small sign that says museum, and then it says museum on the door, but finding the path is the issue.

Part of this is the removal from parking. There is a stairway, and an elevator that was closed during construction. At the top of that there is a large quad, and everything else stands out more than the entrance to the museum, because it is of the least importance for the community, even if that is the reason you are there. There is also kind of a view.

The main thing is don't try and avoid the staircase thinking there must be better access. There isn't unless the elevator is running, but that uses the same parking lot and takes you to basically the same place.

https://www.mountangelabbey.org/museum/