A Busy Memorial Day Weekend Kicks Off the Summer for Yakima Valley

People typically come to the Yakima Valley for the sunshine, but lately the weather seems to be resembling the west side of the state. However, that did not stop people from enjoying their holiday. Yakima Sportsman State Park was completely booked for the Memorial Day Weekend.

Michael Barnick, the Senior Park Aid, said there is 70 campground sites and they were all reserved far in advance.

Barnick said Memorial Day Weekend is the start of a very busy season. From here on out, he said all 70 sites will most likely be booked every weekend. Barnick said he is not surprised that the wet weather did not turn people away because for many families camping at the Sportsman State Park is a tradition.

Memorial Day is not only about honoring people who served in the military, it also means a lot of business from tourism. Yakima saw an extra boost from several state tournaments over the weekend.

Rich Austin, the Director of the Yakima Valley Sports Commission, says there were three state tournaments happening in Selah and Yakima. He says they do not have exact figures yet on how much money the weekend tournaments brought into the valley but says almost every hotel was booked from Ellensburg to Prosser. Visitor and parent, Mike Nicholson says he enjoys Yakima. “Staying at a hotel, few restaurants obviously we are from Seattle so we like the coffee. Always looking for a new coffee shop, breakfast shop,"

Between tennis, baseball, and softball, hundreds of players and their parents stayed in the valley all weekend.