From the golden wheat fields of Eastern Washington, down the Columbia Gorge, passed the City of Portland, and west to the Pacific Ocean, the Columbia River is an American Beauty. Today, the hands of poker players are all over her.
Native Americans lived in harmony throughout the region long before the first poker players arrived on the scene in the 1830s. Today, one of the most successful poker rooms in the state is the WILDHORSE Resort & Casino, in Pendleton, OR, operated by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Nation. The CRAZY MOOSE CASINO, in Pasco, WA, is a handsome mountain lodge built of logs and decorated with animal traps, snowshoes, trophy moose, elk and deer. Large and spacious, it's a class attraction.
Game Warden Harold Walford will make sure you get a shot at the action. If it's pool you want to shoot, they've got it. If you're a 'bird' hunter, females flock here.
For poker game 'hunters 'n trappers' looking to stalk pots, Crazy Moose is your special preserve. In addition, it features the Bullwinkle Comedy Club, a full-service bar and fine grub.
A popular sports center where tavern athletes compete at darts, pool and poker, the CELEBRITIES CASINO, is just a across the Columbia River from Pasco, in Kennewick, WA.
Poker Room Umpire Roland Rint will be happy to get you in a game. There's always plenty of competition. You can play Varsity Hold'em or try to win MVP in a tournament. "Here at Celebrities we like to give every player a chance to become a star," Coach Rint explains.
One poker big hitter who frequently performs at Celebrities is Bill Jesernig. Despite having M.S., when Bill plays poker he is often the leading scorer.
In order to overcome his difficulty staying focused, Bill developed his "Little Pink Poker Pamphlet". It's a pocket-sized notebook filled with pages of wise slogans designed to help him lock-in his concentration and self-control. Bill reviews it before every game. Another Kennewick favorite is the CABLE BRIDGE CASINO.
If you want your ticket punched, see Bridge Tender Mary Walker, she's in charge. Mary will get you a seat and chips, "but if you take everything to the river, you're on your own" she says.
Farther down the mighty Columbia, about 45 minutes north of Portland, only minutes off Interstate-5, is La Center, WA. Here, four casinos try to satisfy the City of Roses' demand for poker. They can't.
When the La Center casinos open in the morning all poker tables fill immediately and the lists begin. It will remain that way until closing. In fact, not only poker but every game is the same. The only other reasonably close place for Portland poker players to pow-wow is SPIRIT MOUNTAIN, sixty miles southwest of the city, near the Oregon Coast. Nestled in the Oregon wilderness is a very modern, large resort and casino with a first class poker room. Bring wampum.
'Poker-Huntess' Dee Dee Labaron guides players to the tables at Spirit Mountain where they prey and are preyed for. A lot of Oregon poker pioneers have settled here.
A few miles farther east blows the CHINOOK WINDS Casino Resort, in Lincoln City, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. If you get tired of the majesty of the Oregon coast, you can go flop in the poker room.
Soaring south, the SEVEN FEATHERS Hotel/Casino, near Grants Pass, is where the action's at for southern Oregon settlers and the RV wagon trains that ply I-5. Nestled in an outdoor paradise, mountain men and pioneer women take refuge in the poker room every evening.
