We are done with our first placement! Time in Tri-Cities has flown by and we are preparing to move onto our next stop. Now that we know more about where we have been living we want to share our experience and recommendations with you!
What are the Tri-Cities?
The Tri-Cities are three cities (Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland) that are so close together that is appears like they form one uninterrupted city. They are located in South-Eastern Washington at the confluence of the Yakima, Snake, and Columbia Rivers. This area forms the Columbia Basin.
We live in Kennewick which is the largest of the cities. This is where Patrick works. I travel about 40 minutes south just over the state line to work in Hermiston, Oregon. I actually worked in Oregon for about one and a half months before Patrick even visited the state!
The Tri-Cities are not surrounded by suburbs like most large cities on the East Coast. As a result the shopping, residential, and commercial areas are a bit more spread out with a few main highways in between. What we have found is that most towns and cities are more spread out more than we are used to. It is very common to drive 30-50 minutes on the highway with only fields or natural land until you reach another town or city.
Some of the more area specific industries in the Tri-Cities includes potato processing/harvesting, wine production, and medical laboratory testing/research. We have definitely enjoyed the amazing wine while we have been here!
What is the Climate/Environment Like?
The award for most frequent question we have been asked about Washington is: Does it rain a lot there?! The answer is yes…. and no. Washington state is separated by the large Cascade mountain range. On the West side where Seattle is located it does rain… A LOT. The mountains stop this weather from traveling across the state to the East side where we the Tri-Cities are located.
The climate in Kennewick is defined as semi-arid and closely borders a desert climate. This was as surprising to us as it may be to you. Per one internet source (I choose to believe it) the Tri-Cities get an average of 8 inches of rainfall a year… The national average is 39 inches per year. They get most of their rain in the winter when there are periods of light rainfall. The Tri-Cities also gets very little snow with an average of 3 inches per year.
So… in summary it doesn’t really rain, and it doesn’t really snow… so what does the weather do?! The award for most dangerous arid climate winter weather goes to (drum roll) Freezing Fog! I had no idea this even existed before moving to Tri-Cities. Because the weather can get trapped in the Columbia Basin, it is very common for fog to cover the area for several days. This fog can be very low lying and when the temperature is cold enough it covers trees, brush, houses and anything it can touch with a layer of ice. Freezing fog has made for a lot of erie drives to work, but luckily the people here are pretty used to driving in it. Overall we have have had pretty temperate weather which has allowed us to explore.
What About the Wine?!
We read that the Tri-Cities was a big wine area before we came, but we didn’t realize that is was on par with Napa Valley, CA. Thanks to some nice staff at one of the many local vineyards we learned why. Napa Valley, CA has a similar semi-arid climate with glacier formed landscape and soil. Because of this the same grapes can be grown in both area with a lot of the same high quality wine being produced.
South-Eastern Washington has a lot of good land to grow grapes and as a result they actually sells a lot of their yield to Napa Valley vineyards or to West Coast wineries. Soo… as long as the Napa Wineries process and make the wine they can say it’s from Napa. Clever right! The Washington vineyards may sell a lot of their yield, but they also make a lot of incredible wine! We have not tried one local Columbia Valley, Red Mountain, or surrounding area wine that was not amazing. Also, they tend to be a bit more affordable than Napa wine. So next time you are looking for a bottle look for one of places: Columbia Valley, Red Mountain, Columbia Gorge, Yakima Valley, Walla Walla Valley (and more).
Washington Wine Map is from: https://winefolly.com/review/washington-wine-country-map/
Where Should You Eat?
There are tons of places to eat in the Tri-Cities! We choose a bunch to try by eliminating chain restaurants and choosing the ones most highly rated by locals. Here are our top 4… plus some places for dessert.
1. Aki Sushi – This restaurant was the very first place we ate at when we got to Tri-Cities and it has been our most frequented dinner spot. (I actually obsessed so much over sushi and this restaurant that Patrick got me chopsticks for christmas… maybe he’s trying to tell me I need to make my own sushi to save money)
2. Greek Islands Cuisine – You can’t go wrong with a local family run greek restaurant. This place is reasonably priced and delicious. Plus it was packed the day we went which shows everyone else likes it too
3. Sage Port Grill – When we were looking for a good breakfast we found Sage Port Grill. The menu was huge and I had a delicious mixture of all things breakfast with gravy on top appropriately called “The Bowl”
4. Chico’s Tacos – Tacos +Salsa Bar + Burritos = Delicious!
We also tried a few bakeries and dessert spots in the area. Our favorites are Francisco’s Bakery & Cake Shoppe (local mexican bakery) and Artfetti Cakes (amazing cupcakes).
What is There to do Outside?
Badger Mountain – Described as a small mountain (think big hill), Badger Mountain is located in Richland. It is a frequently visited hiking or trail running spot for a lot of locals. The mountain offers trails up to 3.3 miles in length with a maximum of about 1,300 ft in elevation gain. We hiked the most popular trail to the top which is about 1.4 miles. At the top you get an awesome view of the Tri-cities, wine country, and on a clear day you can see Mt. Rainer.
Palouse Falls – Palouse Falls State Park is about 1.5 hours north-east of Kennewick. It is a 94-acre park and its named for the large waterfall on the land. Palouse Falls in 200 ft in height. This park is absolutely beautiful, but unfortunately there have been some accidents due to visitors not following recommend safety guidelines. Don’t let this deter you from visiting… just use some common safety sense!
We were lucky enough to go on a beautiful sunny day and spent some time hiking the area. This is where we first realized the abundance of sage bushes in eastern Washington.
Day and Weekend Trips?
The Tri-cities are a bit isolated, but there are many great weekend destinations if you are willing to drive a bit. We took several weekend trips which have fueled us to check out more of the pacific northwest!
1. Seattle, WA – Downtown Seattle is about 3.5 to 4 hours from Tri-cities. If you are driving to or from Seattle across the Cascades I would recommend doing it during daylight hours. This is because the mountains are insanely beautiful.. And you have to cross a mountain pass which are often close or have restricted travel during the winter. We did drive this trip twice in the dark and didn’t have any problems. Just make sure to check pass conditions if you are traveling in the winter.
2. Portland, OR – Portland is about 3.5 hours from Tri-Cities. This drive was a bit easier than to Seattle because we followed the Columbia River the whole way there (no mountains to cross). Hood River, OR is about halfway to Portland and is a whole other destination. We weren’t able to fit a long stop in, but we would like to go back.
3. White Pass, WA – There are a lot of ski resorts in Washington State. While Pass is about 2.25 hours from Tri-Cities and was a perfect day trip for us. The mountain was beautiful and I managed to stay upright for most of the day! We are excited to try out more mountains this winter.
4. Pendleton, OR – Although Patrick never made it here I made the trip after work one day to visit Pendleton Woolen Mills. At their original location in Pendleton they have an outlet with discounts on primarily blankets. I was blown away by their beautiful designs and am glad I made the trip.
We can’t believe we have already come to the end of our first contract! Thank you to all the great coworkers and friends we have met in the last few months! We are excited to move on to our next adventure, but we will miss the people (and wine) from Tri-Cities
Thank you for sharing the great regional overview of Washington’s southeastern tri-cities. It seems like your time there flew by quickly!