6 Best Sights in Spokane and Eastern Washington, Washington

A high point in the coulee, this park has picnic areas, campgrounds, boat rentals, and a state-run golf course that attracts visitors year-round; in summer the lakes bristle with boaters. From the bluffs on U.S. 2, west of the dam, you can get a great view over this enormous canyon. To the north, the banks of the lake are hemmed in by cliffs. At Dry Falls, the upstream erosion of the canyon caused by the floods stops. Below Dry Falls, steep, barren cliffs—some 1,000 feet high—rise from green meadows, marshes, and blue lakes bordered by trees. Most of the water is irrigation water seeping through the porous rock, but the effect is no less spectacular. Eagles and ravens soar along the cliffs, while songbirds, ducks, and geese hang out in the bottomlands.

South of the Sun Lakes, the landscape turns even wilder. The coulee narrows and the cliffs often look like they are on fire, an illusion created by the bold patterns of orange and yellow lichens. The waters of the lakes change, too. The deep blue waters of the small lakes below Dry Falls are replaced by lapis lazuli in the Sun Lakes and turn milky farther south. Presentations at the park's interpretive center at Dry Falls survey the area's geology, and an excellent film describes the great floods.

Just north of its confluence with the Snake River, the Palouse River gushes over a basalt cliff higher than Niagara Falls and drops 198 feet into a steep-walled basin. Those who are sure-footed can hike to an overlook above the falls, which are at their fastest during spring runoff in March. Just downstream from the falls at the Marmes Rock Shelter, remains of the earliest-known inhabitants of North America, dating back 10,000 years, were discovered by archaeologists. The park is available for day use only and has no cell phone service. It's a popular birding spot and has plenty of picnic tables, plus a shaved ice vendor on site Friday through Sunday from April to October.

This park is 25 miles southwest of Moses Lake on the west side of O'Sullivan Dam next to the Potholes Reservoir, an artificial lake in a natural depression carved by the huge Spokane Floods. Open year-round, it's a great fishing lake, with trout in the fall, winter, and early spring, and ice fishing in the winter. Camping, boating, and wildlife viewing are other popular diversions. Five cabins are available to rent.

At the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers, this park occupies the site of Ainsworth, a railroad town that flourished from 1879 to 1884. It's named for the Shoshoni woman who guided the Lewis and Clark expedition over the Rocky Mountains and down the Snake River. The 284-acre day-use park has an interpretive center and a large display of Native American tools. A beach, boat launch, picnic area, and children's playground round out the facilities; sand dunes, marshes, and ponds are great for watching wildlife.

Here, a 2,200-foot-high flat-topped lava butte rises 1,000 feet above Banks Lake, the 31-mile-long irrigation reservoir filled with water from Lake Roosevelt by giant pumps and siphons. Water is distributed from the south end of the lake throughout the Columbia Basin. The state park has campsites, three cabins, a swimming area, and boat ramps. In summer it's popular with boaters and anglers, and in winter there's Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, and ice fishing.

This day-use park dotted with picnic tables is named after an army officer who lost a battle in 1858 against Native Americans at nearby Rosalia. The lieutenant colonel and other survivors sneaked away at night—a retreat historians think was permitted by their adversaries. The hike to the summit of the 3,600-foot-high butte rewards hikers with panoramic views 200 miles in the distance. Paragliding and hang gliding are popular pastimes here, along with bird-watching and nature photography.