Where David works
Vancouver
The largest city in Clark County, right across the Columbia from Portland. Vancouver grew up around Fort Vancouver, the Hudson’s Bay Company post founded in 1825, and you can still tour the reconstructed fort and stroll historic Officers Row. Downtown’s Esther Short Park is the oldest public park in the Northwest.
Camas
Named for the camas lily, whose bulbs were an important food for Native peoples, Camas has been a paper-mill town since its mill made its first paper in 1884. Today it’s known for a walkable historic downtown and for Lacamas Lake, with trails and lakeside parks a few minutes away.
Washougal
Washougal sits at the western gateway to the Columbia River Gorge. Lewis and Clark camped near the mouth of the Washougal River for six days in 1806, and the town has a long history with Pendleton Woolen Mills, which took over the local mill in the early 1900s. Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge offers trails right along the Columbia.
Ridgefield
Ridgefield sits beside the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, created in 1965 and home to Canada geese, sandhill cranes and plenty of other birds. Lewis and Clark visited the Chinookan village of Cathlapotle here in 1805 and 1806, and a full-scale replica plankhouse at the refuge has welcomed visitors since 2005.
Battle Ground
Battle Ground is named for a battle that never actually happened: an 1855 standoff between militia volunteers and a Klickitat band that ended in negotiation. Just northeast of town, Battle Ground Lake State Park surrounds a lake set in a small volcanic crater, with camping, swimming and trails.
Salmon Creek
An unincorporated community north of Vancouver near the I-5 and I-205 junction, home to Washington State University Vancouver. The Salmon Creek Greenway Trail follows the creek for about three miles to Klineline Pond, a local favorite for trout fishing.
Felida
An unincorporated community about seven miles north of downtown Vancouver, near Vancouver Lake. Its name comes with a fun bit of local trivia: one popular account says it was taken from Felidae, the scientific name for the cat family.
La Center
La Center began as a river landing on the East Fork of the Lewis River, where sternwheelers once carried goods to riverside homesteads. It incorporated in 1909 and is still a small town just off I-5, near ilani, the Cowlitz Indian Tribe’s casino resort that opened in 2017.
Woodland
Woodland sits on I-5 at the Lewis River, mostly in Cowlitz County with a portion in Clark County. It’s home to the Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens, the historic home and garden of the hybrid lilac breeder known as the Lilac Lady, which draws visitors every spring. Woodland is sometimes called the southern gateway to Mount St. Helens.