Moses Lake appears unexpectedly in the middle of central Washington's flat farm country. The smell of earth and onions follows you into town on a warm day, the 18-miles of shimmering lake, named for Chief Moses, lures visitors farther on come summer.
Local attractions revolve primarily around bird-spotting and bird-hunting. Moses Lake is located on the Pacific Flyway, the migratory waterfowl route of the west. For a shot with your camera or a side-by-side, the Potholes Reservoir is a good place to start. Vast stretches of water used for irrigation often teem with waterfowl during the winter months.
Potholes State Park should be your destination if you're after fish or an afternoon on the air mattress. Covering 2,500 acres, there are camping sites and picnic spots with easy water access. Canoes, fishing boats and other craft are available for rent near Cascade Park on Moses Lake and would-be anglers can throw a line in for bass, bluegill and perch.
Get off the beaten track on the waters of Frenchman Hills Wasteway. While the water at the top is peacefully slow, a portage or two down the channel starts to twist and turn in a most unexpected way. Avoid shooting the falls, just past the danger signs, near the end of the channel if you want to see your canoe again.
Moses Lake is 147 miles east of Seattle and 96 miles southwest of Spokane.