This is one of the little cabins at the Silver Lake Resort, one of our state's oldest resort communities. Silver Lake is about a two hour drive south toward Chehalis and east of Castle Rock, through bucolic farmlands and forested hill country. (One must be clear about directions such as these, as there are 12 lakes named Silver Lake in Washington State.)
Silver Lake Park encompasses the resort, an early-day homestead and an old logging site. Much activity centers around the lake itself, with quiet bays, open stretches of water and sandy beaches. Mount St. Helens is visable from most locations on the lake.
While George was unloading the canoe, I explored the resort and parts of the camp- ground. I went down to the old dock, where rental boats were available, for rowing. Tents and small motor homes circled the campground, and families were sitting in the shade enjoying the 80 degree temperatures. Children swam in a corded-off section of the lake subdued by a 'breakwater' of old cut timbers chained together. It was delightful listening to their boisterous conversations, and I thought how wonderful childhood is in the summertime on a lake.
This is an old gas station at the resort, that still sells gas, but from plastic containers. I peeked inside the door, and the garage was full of old tools and engines that were being repaired. 
Along one side of the old shop were 'tools of the trade', an old pump and gasoline containers that are used today.
This pump, with a long handle, could have pumped gas at one time. I enjoy the patina of rust and old paint, grease, and the mystery of old gadgets. 
Green and white picnic chairs lined the balcony for guests, and a small store offered tackle, bait, soft drinks and snacks. People were mulling around, discussing the fishing, sorting their gear, and an old dog sat panting in the heat at the front door.
Silver Lake attracts serious fisherman, looking for large- mouth bass and trout, as well as perch, crappie, and bluegill. We've paddled all the sections of this lake over the past 7 years. Families fish year-round. I've only filmed 2 of our paddles on this lake, last Saturday's, and one other paddle in the wintertime, when everything was gray and rainy. On Saturday I filmed very little because the light was extremely poor at mid-day. (The only thing visually interesting about our winter paddles were the fishermen in their raingear, hunkered down in their boats, lines out, and silent.)
Our paddle on Saturday was about 4 1/2 hours, from 11:00 to 3:30, and we covered about 6 - 7 miles. The shoreline is consistently the same, with dried out lily pads curling upwards in the sun, so a bit of tedium can occur unless one is just out to soak up sunshine and enjoy the fresh air while exploring the shoreline. 
We found this entrance into a marshy pool at the end of the lake. A trail has been chopped through the vegetation, maintaining it for fishermen.
Someone got these old boats up here into the shallows. This is quite an accomp- lishment, since the lake is only 10 feet deep throughout. We suspect these boats haven't been used in a long time. We finished our paddle just in time to have afternoon espresso while driving back home, and then it was dinner at the Sizzler, my Dad's favorite. While we loaded up on salad bar and enjoyed steak and shrimp, we decided we'd conquered Silver Lake, possibly for the last time. We're thinking about heading over to eastern Washington now, to check out some sites for camping in September.
