Goldendale in Klickitat County

I was introduced to Goldendale, Washington as a State of Washington employee who was tasked to hold a Department of Ecology hearing there one evening. Checking in at the Far Vue Motel I remembered I didn't bring copies for the evening hearing. The motel manager told me to go to the auto shop in town, where I could make copies (they didn't have a copy center in town at that time). Sure enough they let me make copies, then practically gave them to me. The charge was minimal, and the hearing was held without glitches.

The yummy dinner at the motel restaurant was more food than anybody could possibly eat; it was good, too. (Good food always gets high marks in my travels.) Like most pleasant memories, those remembrances still stay with me. The view of Mt. St. Helens across the farmlands from my room was awesome.

That was my first impression of Goldendale: great folks and good food. The small town of 3,500 residents and the surrounding countryside held more than friendliness and good food, however. I didn't have time to explore while there on business. As I headed over beautiful Satus Pass to Yakima (an awesome drive) and another hearing, I vowed to go back to "do the town" and see what the area was all about. Now I want to share that "find" with you.

The area is probably best known for the Maryhill Museum of Art and the Stonehenge replica. Most people do the drive to Goldendale on the Oregon side of the Columbia River, as the road is better. You may also take the Lewis and Clarke Trail, Washington Scenic Route 14, on the Washington side. The Oregon-side view as you look across the Columbia River is an unforgettable panoramic, spectacular view of the enormous French chateau hugging the Washington hillside. That's the Maryhill Museum of Art.

The Stonehenge Replica is three miles east of the museum on Scenic Route 14. Sam Hill's ashes are in a tomb there. Sam Hill's Maryhill Loop Road was the first paved road in the state, which takes you winding up the hill to Goldendale.

The architecture of the museum, enough to take your breath away, was designed by Hornblower and Marshall, a famed Washington, D.C. architectural firm for Sam Hill, renowned entrepreneur, prior to the 1914 construction start. Hill named the place, Maryhill, after his daughter, Mary.

He came to the area intending to establish a Quaker agricultural community. Instead, his efforts took shape to create a museum of art when his friend Loie Fuller, a Folies Bergere pioneer of modern dance, convinced him to make the Maryhill mansion into a renowned place of art. Through her connections, Hill acquired an extensive Auguste Rodin inventory, a monumental beginning of the museum collection. Besides Rodin, there's a Native American exhibit, Queen Marie of Romania exhibit and European paintings on display. Surprises are everywhere.

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