- Spokane is the largest city in Eastern Washington and the commercial hub for an interstate area known formerly as the “Inland Empire” and now as the “Inland Northwest.” After settlement in the 1870s, it quickly became the county seat of Spokane County and the regional center for mining, agriculture, timber, transportation, education, and medical services. Urban development has spread far beyond the 2005 population of 200,000 residing within the present city limits in a county of almost 430,000. Spokane, like many cities, has undergone periods of boom, bust, stagnation, and recovery. For well over 100 years, it has provided a welcome urban oasis in the less populated stretch of plains and mountains between the Mississippi River and Seattle.
- Snohomish River (Wikipedia)
The Snohomish River is a river in Snohomish County, Washington, formed by the confluence of the Skykomish and Snoqualmie rivers near Monroe. It flows northwest entering Port Gardner Bay, part of Puget Sound, between Everett and Marysville. The Pilchuck River is its main tributary and joins the river at Snohomish. The river system drains the west side of the Cascade Mountains from Snoqualmie Pass to north of Stevens Pass.