happy to sneak away! |
WARNING: The following blog post contains GORGEOUS content that some stalkers may find overwhelming. Discretion is advised.
ADDITIONALLY: This post has a quantity of pictures, videos, and captions that may seem excessive to some audiences. Give yourself grace and time to examine with caution.
We flew into Seattle and drove the few hours towards our first destination of Port Angeles, near Olympic National Park. On our way, we stopped for our first taste of Washington nature at Ludlow Falls.
Jon was quickly reminded of my adventurous spirit when I saw a fallen trunk and an opportunity to see the falls from a different perspective.
It was evening; it was morning; a new day in Washington. Since our bodies were still on Texas time apparently, we were up in plenty of time to walk to the pier by our hotel to watch the sunrise.
Heading into Olympic National Park, our first stop that day was at Salmon Cascades. We had read that in the months of September/October (aka exactly when we were there!) the fish make their way "home" from the Pacific Ocean to spawn. We were so hopeful we would see the determined fish make the iconic leap up the waterfall, but we did get to see dozens of Coho salmon and some practice jumps.
We ventured on to our next hike to Sol Duc Falls. On our way, we saw beautiful (and HUGE) old-growth trees amongst a lush rain forest landscape.
When we made it to the waterfalls, I - of course - wasn't satisfied with the view from the bridge and found a way to get a closer look.
Our full day at the park continued around beautiful blue Lake Crescent.
We could have called it a successful full day at the national park, or we could find the short trail to Madison Falls. When talking to our kids that evening, they remarked, "But you just went to waterfalls yesterday?!?!" As if ONE waterfall is ever enough...
Heading back to Port Angeles for the night, we caught the sunset over the water.
It was evening; it was morning; a new day in Washington.
We LOVED that our hotel was right on the water of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. And by "right on," I mean just ONE HUNDRED AND SIX steep stairs away.
Our main hike on Day 2 at Olympic easily and quickly fell into our Top 5 Craziest, Strenuous Hikes of Debbie/Jon's all time. The hike up to the top of Mt. Storm King was 2.2 miles of STRAIGHT UPHILL switchbacks, and that was just to the end of the "maintained trail."
On our way up, we welcomed several viewpoints as opportunities to catch our breath, offering beautiful visibility of neighboring mountains, valleys, and the waters of Lake Crescent.
And then we got to the end of the maintained trail. At that point, the rough trail became fainter and rougher. There were ropes leading to the top that were not installed or maintained by the park management. And at some point, we had to climb down everything that we climbed up. Yikes.
Surprisingly to Jon, we did make it to the top alive! BEAUTIFUL!
While up at the top, we quickly became acquainted with the friendly Canada jays that came and landed on any perched finger.
We stayed up top for a while and enjoyed the view with some lunch. The gray jays also wanted to join and share with the lunch party.
We soaked in the views a little longer before braving the descent.
There were several moments on the way down when we were convinced we were definitely about to fall off a cliff.
We made it down. Alive. And joined the world of non-crazies. We were exhausted but only a very short hike away from one of the better-known falls in the park. So, we had to do it, obviously.
After an extremely well-earned restful night of sleep, we set off the next morning on our last adventure from the Port Angeles area.
We hopped aboard the Glacier Spirit for an epic whale watching journey along the Puget Sound. We saw several marine animals and tons of humpback whales making shallow dives looking for food. It was pretty incredible.
After returning to land, we started our 3-hour journey by car to our next Washingtonian town of Ashford and passed some gorgeous sights along the way.
We enjoyed the sunset behind us and found a swing at the next lodge just begging for stargazing.
Our next day spent hiking up, down, and all-around Mt. Rainier brought the need for a word more powerful than "breathtaking." I found myself whining to Jon about how overwhelming the beauty was and how it was just inescapably everywhere. {Fake apologies in advance to those who insist that merely a few pictures could have done the job justice and that the plethora - that I narrowed down - is a bit much. I hope the rest of the blog audience enjoys the sights a mere fraction of the amount that we did.}
We were immediately greeted by this friend. |
What's an "interpretive trail?" |
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Jon was quickly reminded of my adventurous spirit when I saw a fallen trunk and an opportunity to see the falls from a different perspective.
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Look who called right as we were about to leave! |
Vacation initiated! |
It was evening; it was morning; a new day in Washington. Since our bodies were still on Texas time apparently, we were up in plenty of time to walk to the pier by our hotel to watch the sunrise.
|
|
Heading into Olympic National Park, our first stop that day was at Salmon Cascades. We had read that in the months of September/October (aka exactly when we were there!) the fish make their way "home" from the Pacific Ocean to spawn. We were so hopeful we would see the determined fish make the iconic leap up the waterfall, but we did get to see dozens of Coho salmon and some practice jumps.
|
We ventured on to our next hike to Sol Duc Falls. On our way, we saw beautiful (and HUGE) old-growth trees amongst a lush rain forest landscape.
|
|
|
When we made it to the waterfalls, I - of course - wasn't satisfied with the view from the bridge and found a way to get a closer look.
|
|
Our full day at the park continued around beautiful blue Lake Crescent.
|
|
not a bad way to spend an afternoon |
|
We could have called it a successful full day at the national park, or we could find the short trail to Madison Falls. When talking to our kids that evening, they remarked, "But you just went to waterfalls yesterday?!?!" As if ONE waterfall is ever enough...
|
|
Heading back to Port Angeles for the night, we caught the sunset over the water.
|
|
It was evening; it was morning; a new day in Washington.
|
sunset |
sunrise |
|
We LOVED that our hotel was right on the water of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. And by "right on," I mean just ONE HUNDRED AND SIX steep stairs away.
|
Our main hike on Day 2 at Olympic easily and quickly fell into our Top 5 Craziest, Strenuous Hikes of Debbie/Jon's all time. The hike up to the top of Mt. Storm King was 2.2 miles of STRAIGHT UPHILL switchbacks, and that was just to the end of the "maintained trail."
early flat trail, aka false sense of security |
What you can't see: the turn in the trail that ascends steeply and quickly What you CAN see: the additional layers that were almost immediately shredded |
On our way up, we welcomed several viewpoints as opportunities to catch our breath, offering beautiful visibility of neighboring mountains, valleys, and the waters of Lake Crescent.
|
|
|
And then we got to the end of the maintained trail. At that point, the rough trail became fainter and rougher. There were ropes leading to the top that were not installed or maintained by the park management. And at some point, we had to climb down everything that we climbed up. Yikes.
|
|
Surprisingly to Jon, we did make it to the top alive! BEAUTIFUL!
|
|
|
While up at the top, we quickly became acquainted with the friendly Canada jays that came and landed on any perched finger.
|
We stayed up top for a while and enjoyed the view with some lunch. The gray jays also wanted to join and share with the lunch party.
|
|
We soaked in the views a little longer before braving the descent.
|
There were several moments on the way down when we were convinced we were definitely about to fall off a cliff.
|
|
We made it down. Alive. And joined the world of non-crazies. We were exhausted but only a very short hike away from one of the better-known falls in the park. So, we had to do it, obviously.
|
Marymere Falls - from the bottom and top |
After an extremely well-earned restful night of sleep, we set off the next morning on our last adventure from the Port Angeles area.
|
We hopped aboard the Glacier Spirit for an epic whale watching journey along the Puget Sound. We saw several marine animals and tons of humpback whales making shallow dives looking for food. It was pretty incredible.
|
|
|
|
After returning to land, we started our 3-hour journey by car to our next Washingtonian town of Ashford and passed some gorgeous sights along the way.
|
We enjoyed the sunset behind us and found a swing at the next lodge just begging for stargazing.
|
|
Our next day spent hiking up, down, and all-around Mt. Rainier brought the need for a word more powerful than "breathtaking." I found myself whining to Jon about how overwhelming the beauty was and how it was just inescapably everywhere. {Fake apologies in advance to those who insist that merely a few pictures could have done the job justice and that the plethora - that I narrowed down - is a bit much. I hope the rest of the blog audience enjoys the sights a mere fraction of the amount that we did.}
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We were warned ahead of time that the chipmunks around Mt. Rainier are quite "aggressive." We didn't really understand what that meant. Until we did.
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The other wildlife around the mountain were a fun bonus.
deer |
mountain goat |
hoary marmot |
Panorama Point |
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Finishing the awe-inspiring day at Reflections Lake:
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We woke up the next day at our final leg of the trip in Seattle. Our first day in Seattle was dedicated to all the touristy essence of the city. First stop: the famous Space Needle, offering unique 360 degree views of the city.
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One level down, we stepped onto "The Loupe," the world's first and only rotating glass floor.
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Continuing on through Seattle Center, we found International Fountain, built the same year as the Space Needle for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair.
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Next, we found bold, bright colors and incomprehensible talent represented at Chihuly Garden and Glass.
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We were thankful to a professional photographer who took these pictures around the exhibits for us to download later:
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We found some more fun views of the Space Needle and its glory.
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We made it to Pier 57 in perfect time to watch the sunset from the Seattle Great Wheel.
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The next day brought us on a ferry to Bainbridge Island.
As we were departing, we enjoyed the views of downtown Seattle that we ventured around the day before.
The Great Wheel |
downtown |
We took a few hikes (and obviously stopped for ice cream) around Bainbridge Island. Jon asked, "Why can't you just stay on the trail?!"
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Heading back to town on the ferry, we were privileged to enjoy one more sunset over Seattle.
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We had a final morning before we had to back to the airport and back to Texas. We spent a lot of time walking around famous Pike Place Market, looking around at hundreds of vendors, shops, and eateries. Most exciting was the Pike Place Fish Market: "We're the guys that throw the fish!"
3-story famous sign and clock erected in 1937 |
trying Liege waffles! |
Time to wave goodbye to the great city in the great state that hosted a great vacation for us!
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