posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 6, 2009
Today is our last day of vacation and we are going back home. It really has been wonderful out here. We are in love with the pacific northwest. I want to come back and one day I would love to live out here. This area has a good mix of outdoorsy people as well as tech-savvy people. Everyone we've met is very active and interested in sustainability. Recycling is available next to every trash can. Bike lanes are plentiful and the cars really do allow them on the streets. We experienced probably the best weather this area gets. It did actually rain today, but we never got caught up in it. It's beautiful up here with the mix of mountains and cities. I think it is safe to say that we'll be back for another vacation. We still need to hit Rainier, St. Helens, the Cascades, and much more.
We got another full 4 hours of sleep last night. (I will be sleeping on the plane for sure.) We got a little mixed up taking the light rail to the airport, but luckily it runs every 10 minutes, so missing one train didn't give much delay. It was raining while we took off, and then we were off. Until next time....
Thanks for reading my travel blog. I hope to post my photos soon.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
PAX day 2
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 5, 2009
This morning we slept in and got a full 4 hours of sleep (big yawn). We decided we didn't need to be in line at 8am again, and instead to walk down to Pike's Market for breakfast instead of just hitting a coffee bar on the way to PAX.
When we woke up, we noticed that it had rained over night. We've been having amazing weather here in the Pacific Northwest and really haven't had any rain. We've just had beautiful sunny days in the 70s. We've been loving it. So, I took a picture of the wet streets to prove that it does actually rain in Seattle. It never did rain on us though. =) Pike's Market on a Saturday morning was quieter than we expected, but I think it was still early. We had another breakfast mix of pastries followed by the yummy mac and cheese from the cheese store and then headed to PAX.
We arrived just before 10am and still got a wristband for the concert tonight. Yes, this was definitely better than showing up at 8am. We headed for the booths we missed yesterday and then to a talk by the Fox Trot artist. we had a little more time today, so we went a few blocks away to the Baguette Box for lunch and then split off for the afternoon. Mark went back to PAX and I walked back to Pike's Market for pictures and to do my souvenir shopping. Now the place was packed with people! Most of the people here seemed to be LSU fans and I switched from the world of gamers to the world of football fans in just a few blocks. I walked down to Pioneer Square again, and then decided that I was really too tired to walk the waterfront and the Olympic Sculpture Garden as I had planned. So, I went back to PAX. I caught up with Mark and we finished off the exhibition room together. Then we went to a really interesting discussion put on by Harmonix, the makers of Rock Band. They are coming out with a Rock Band Network in which bands can obtain software and the means to upload their own songs to sell on Rock Band. It was interesting to see how a song turns into a video game. They went into some of the software and it was quite interesting. We had a long dinner break and found a good placed called Palominos (?). Their brick fired pizza was mighty tasty. Back at the convention center, I left Mark to go watch the Omegathon (people competing in a variety of games to win a tournament) and found some bean bags in a quiet area for a nap. The concert tonight started on time, as we rocked the night away again until after 2am.
September 5, 2009
This morning we slept in and got a full 4 hours of sleep (big yawn). We decided we didn't need to be in line at 8am again, and instead to walk down to Pike's Market for breakfast instead of just hitting a coffee bar on the way to PAX.
When we woke up, we noticed that it had rained over night. We've been having amazing weather here in the Pacific Northwest and really haven't had any rain. We've just had beautiful sunny days in the 70s. We've been loving it. So, I took a picture of the wet streets to prove that it does actually rain in Seattle. It never did rain on us though. =) Pike's Market on a Saturday morning was quieter than we expected, but I think it was still early. We had another breakfast mix of pastries followed by the yummy mac and cheese from the cheese store and then headed to PAX.
We arrived just before 10am and still got a wristband for the concert tonight. Yes, this was definitely better than showing up at 8am. We headed for the booths we missed yesterday and then to a talk by the Fox Trot artist. we had a little more time today, so we went a few blocks away to the Baguette Box for lunch and then split off for the afternoon. Mark went back to PAX and I walked back to Pike's Market for pictures and to do my souvenir shopping. Now the place was packed with people! Most of the people here seemed to be LSU fans and I switched from the world of gamers to the world of football fans in just a few blocks. I walked down to Pioneer Square again, and then decided that I was really too tired to walk the waterfront and the Olympic Sculpture Garden as I had planned. So, I went back to PAX. I caught up with Mark and we finished off the exhibition room together. Then we went to a really interesting discussion put on by Harmonix, the makers of Rock Band. They are coming out with a Rock Band Network in which bands can obtain software and the means to upload their own songs to sell on Rock Band. It was interesting to see how a song turns into a video game. They went into some of the software and it was quite interesting. We had a long dinner break and found a good placed called Palominos (?). Their brick fired pizza was mighty tasty. Back at the convention center, I left Mark to go watch the Omegathon (people competing in a variety of games to win a tournament) and found some bean bags in a quiet area for a nap. The concert tonight started on time, as we rocked the night away again until after 2am.
The world of PAX
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 4, 2009
Today we change worlds and enter the world of geeks, nerds, and gamers. Yes, it's the start of PAX, the Penny Arcade Expo. Basically, it's a video game convention that covers 3 days. It started in 2003 and this is the first year they sold out tickets for the event reaching maximum capacity of the Washington Convention Center - 75,000 people. The whole convention center was set up for the event and it was quite an experience.
Mark is certainly more in this world of gamers than I am. Though, I do understand most of what's going on. I really had no idea what I was getting into when we decided to schedule our Seattle trip around PAX. The Expo started today, Friday, at 10am, however, the line opened up at 8am. The first 4,000 people received wristbands that guaranteed admission to tonight's concert. We arrived about 8am and entered the Queue room, a room that we would get to know well. They had a whole exhibit hall set up just to hold people in a line. We were certainly one of the first 4,000, though certainly not the first. We sat down on the concrete floor that would be our home for the next 2 days and watched the line entertainment. Entertainment consisted of a message board for people to text message in to. Also, there was inside humor and a few trivia games during the wait.
By the time 10am rolled around, we were as jammed in this line as possible with every bit of space taken up by a person so as to fit us all in. Then, the gates were opened and everyone raced into a series of dark rooms full of computers and games!!!! All the top gaming companies had a booth as well as some individual games. Basically, we could walk around and use their computers set up to play their games, check out their new games, buy stuff, and preview the games that weren't out yet. I was amazed at all the booths and people, and Mark was running off to play the first games. We spent the morning touring the exhibition hall. Many fans dressed up as their favorite gaming characters and I had fun taking pictures of everyone. There were some pretty elaborate costumes. Soon, we left the exhibition hall to go line up for a panel discussion on video game journalism. Everything we attended started with a long line. The event coordinators and crowd control were called Enforcers and did a very good job at keeping the lines organized. We spent a lot of time in lines.
We attended the key note speech given by the Monkey Island game designer. Most of these talks we are going to involve a very successful person discussing how they started out small and usually with a small business. Hey, this pertains to me! We both had fun at PAX. After the key note speech was an open panel discussion with the two makers of Penny Arcade and the hosts of the convention. We spent the whole day here. We got to try out the new Lego Rock Band and Beatles Rock Band. We played with the Wii Resort and this new Wii puzzle game called lights. We kept quite busy. In fact, we didn't get a free chance to check out the freeplay rooms. Basically they had huge rooms set up where anyone could go play on a computer, or play a board game. There was a huge assortment of things to keep you busy. In the halls, there were large bean bags placed everywhere so people could just hang out and use their computer, talk, play their DS or PSP, and even sleep. The place was packed.
After a panel with the star bands at the concert tonight, we had a quick break for dinner and found a sports bar not far away. Then it was back to get in line for the concert. The concert starts at 9:30, but we didn't know how the line would be. So, we got there early. Tonight, the concert finally started at 10:30. We heard 4 bands in the nerd core genre of music. Many of the bands used a game boy and other synthesizers as instruments. The place was jamming as the bands put on a great rock concert. We finally got out of there around 2am. On our way out, I heard someone mention that they were going to the Rock Band freeplay room to play until they closed at 3am. Good for them...we headed to bed. =)
September 4, 2009
Today we change worlds and enter the world of geeks, nerds, and gamers. Yes, it's the start of PAX, the Penny Arcade Expo. Basically, it's a video game convention that covers 3 days. It started in 2003 and this is the first year they sold out tickets for the event reaching maximum capacity of the Washington Convention Center - 75,000 people. The whole convention center was set up for the event and it was quite an experience.
Mark is certainly more in this world of gamers than I am. Though, I do understand most of what's going on. I really had no idea what I was getting into when we decided to schedule our Seattle trip around PAX. The Expo started today, Friday, at 10am, however, the line opened up at 8am. The first 4,000 people received wristbands that guaranteed admission to tonight's concert. We arrived about 8am and entered the Queue room, a room that we would get to know well. They had a whole exhibit hall set up just to hold people in a line. We were certainly one of the first 4,000, though certainly not the first. We sat down on the concrete floor that would be our home for the next 2 days and watched the line entertainment. Entertainment consisted of a message board for people to text message in to. Also, there was inside humor and a few trivia games during the wait.
By the time 10am rolled around, we were as jammed in this line as possible with every bit of space taken up by a person so as to fit us all in. Then, the gates were opened and everyone raced into a series of dark rooms full of computers and games!!!! All the top gaming companies had a booth as well as some individual games. Basically, we could walk around and use their computers set up to play their games, check out their new games, buy stuff, and preview the games that weren't out yet. I was amazed at all the booths and people, and Mark was running off to play the first games. We spent the morning touring the exhibition hall. Many fans dressed up as their favorite gaming characters and I had fun taking pictures of everyone. There were some pretty elaborate costumes. Soon, we left the exhibition hall to go line up for a panel discussion on video game journalism. Everything we attended started with a long line. The event coordinators and crowd control were called Enforcers and did a very good job at keeping the lines organized. We spent a lot of time in lines.
We attended the key note speech given by the Monkey Island game designer. Most of these talks we are going to involve a very successful person discussing how they started out small and usually with a small business. Hey, this pertains to me! We both had fun at PAX. After the key note speech was an open panel discussion with the two makers of Penny Arcade and the hosts of the convention. We spent the whole day here. We got to try out the new Lego Rock Band and Beatles Rock Band. We played with the Wii Resort and this new Wii puzzle game called lights. We kept quite busy. In fact, we didn't get a free chance to check out the freeplay rooms. Basically they had huge rooms set up where anyone could go play on a computer, or play a board game. There was a huge assortment of things to keep you busy. In the halls, there were large bean bags placed everywhere so people could just hang out and use their computer, talk, play their DS or PSP, and even sleep. The place was packed.
After a panel with the star bands at the concert tonight, we had a quick break for dinner and found a sports bar not far away. Then it was back to get in line for the concert. The concert starts at 9:30, but we didn't know how the line would be. So, we got there early. Tonight, the concert finally started at 10:30. We heard 4 bands in the nerd core genre of music. Many of the bands used a game boy and other synthesizers as instruments. The place was jamming as the bands put on a great rock concert. We finally got out of there around 2am. On our way out, I heard someone mention that they were going to the Rock Band freeplay room to play until they closed at 3am. Good for them...we headed to bed. =)
Friday, September 4, 2009
Tourist Day
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 3, 2009
Waking up today was very different than waking up in the tent. We woke up facing a great view of Seattle from up high with the sun rising on the right lighting up the buildings in warm colors. Also, we now get to shower every day. =) This makes me happy.
Today is our tourist day. We left the hotel and headed south to the tallest building in Seattle - The Columbia Center. It rises over 1,000 feet above sea level and has an observation deck on floor 73 near the top. It was empty of tourists and much cheaper than the Space Needle. We got some good pictures of the surrounding Seattle from the air. The traffic center was there as well and they would check the windows when needed to see the traffic. Most of them were on facebook, watching tv, or twittering.
Next we headed towards the coast and Pikes Place / Pikes Market. It was not as crowded as it would be on a Saturday. Actually, we found ourselves amid many LSU fans clad in their purple and yellow. It turns out that LSU is playing University of Washington. We wondered where they were parking all their RVs and displaying their tall flags. =) The market was still pretty crowded. We watched the flying fish phenomenon and then just walked around viewing the shops and food. We stopped at a pastry shop and had breakfast. I had a tasty apple cinnamon roll. Mark had a potato, onion and cheese pyroshki. Then, just down the street was a cheese shop which we had to stop in. They were making cheese in the back. We tried the cheese curds and then just had to eat some of their best mac and cheese. It was indeed tasty. Then we headed to a seafood stall and had them crack and clean a Dungeness Crab for us. We took our crab over to a park with benches to eat. Mmmmm, Dungeness is defintely my favorite crab now. We experienced our first Seattle rain at this point. It rained while we ate our crab which wasn't too bad as our hands got cleaned as well. The rain passed and a gorgeous sunny day emerged. We walked to the Westlake Center to pick up the monorail to the Seattle Center where the Space Needle is. We visited the EMP/SFM, the Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum. The SFM was smaller than we would have liked, but the EMP offered lots of exhibits for viewing.
Next we walked up to Lake Union and found the Center for Wooden Boats. There were boats; they were wooden; it was small. We made it too I Love Sushi restaurant for happy hour and had some tasty sushi. We were told we just had to have sushi in WA. We might even have it again. I stayed safe with California Rolls and Spider Rolls. Mark was a little more adventurous with a kitchen special and several other types of sushi. He had some crunchy rolls that I really liked. We were still early for sunset, but we had pretty much exhausted our tourist activities for the area, so we walked to Kerry Park. This little park is the number one photographer location for taking photos of the downtown skyline. It's a little north of downtown and near the Queen Anne hill area. The houses here were very nice and I know the people here had money to live with such a view. The weather was just perfect to see downtown with Mount Rainier poking it's head out behind it. We could see the glassy calm Pugent Sound as the sun set to our right and cast pretty warm yellow light over downtown. This is the perfect photographer's light. In fact, I counted up to 15 other photographers with tripods here with us along with several others without tripods. It was absolutely packed. I even got to share information with one of the more professional looking photogs. Two photos showed up with their wives in a Hummer limo to take pictures. They each used many lenses. Their wives were somewhat schooled on photography composition as well and had fun taking pictures of the various groups that showed up with their compact cameras for group photos. It was a people watching experience and quite fun. When the twilight hour hit, I got some gorgeous full moon photos as well as the downtown skyline lit up with lights. I was happy. Mark was nice enough to sit here for several hours with me so I could get my photo fix.
Then we walked back to the hotel....about 2 miles away or so. Yes, lots of walking today. I'm enjoying it, though. There are lots of bikes, too and traffic really does work with the bikes and pedestrians. We are falling in love with this area of the country.
We found the pick up hotel to get our badges for the PAX convention over the next 3 days. Tomorrow we will wake up early and line up for the start of the PAX convention. They sold out at 75,000 people. We will join them over the next two days for this popular video game convention. I don't even understand what all we will be seeing, but Mark is very excited.
pics later
September 3, 2009
Waking up today was very different than waking up in the tent. We woke up facing a great view of Seattle from up high with the sun rising on the right lighting up the buildings in warm colors. Also, we now get to shower every day. =) This makes me happy.
Today is our tourist day. We left the hotel and headed south to the tallest building in Seattle - The Columbia Center. It rises over 1,000 feet above sea level and has an observation deck on floor 73 near the top. It was empty of tourists and much cheaper than the Space Needle. We got some good pictures of the surrounding Seattle from the air. The traffic center was there as well and they would check the windows when needed to see the traffic. Most of them were on facebook, watching tv, or twittering.
Next we headed towards the coast and Pikes Place / Pikes Market. It was not as crowded as it would be on a Saturday. Actually, we found ourselves amid many LSU fans clad in their purple and yellow. It turns out that LSU is playing University of Washington. We wondered where they were parking all their RVs and displaying their tall flags. =) The market was still pretty crowded. We watched the flying fish phenomenon and then just walked around viewing the shops and food. We stopped at a pastry shop and had breakfast. I had a tasty apple cinnamon roll. Mark had a potato, onion and cheese pyroshki. Then, just down the street was a cheese shop which we had to stop in. They were making cheese in the back. We tried the cheese curds and then just had to eat some of their best mac and cheese. It was indeed tasty. Then we headed to a seafood stall and had them crack and clean a Dungeness Crab for us. We took our crab over to a park with benches to eat. Mmmmm, Dungeness is defintely my favorite crab now. We experienced our first Seattle rain at this point. It rained while we ate our crab which wasn't too bad as our hands got cleaned as well. The rain passed and a gorgeous sunny day emerged. We walked to the Westlake Center to pick up the monorail to the Seattle Center where the Space Needle is. We visited the EMP/SFM, the Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum. The SFM was smaller than we would have liked, but the EMP offered lots of exhibits for viewing.
Next we walked up to Lake Union and found the Center for Wooden Boats. There were boats; they were wooden; it was small. We made it too I Love Sushi restaurant for happy hour and had some tasty sushi. We were told we just had to have sushi in WA. We might even have it again. I stayed safe with California Rolls and Spider Rolls. Mark was a little more adventurous with a kitchen special and several other types of sushi. He had some crunchy rolls that I really liked. We were still early for sunset, but we had pretty much exhausted our tourist activities for the area, so we walked to Kerry Park. This little park is the number one photographer location for taking photos of the downtown skyline. It's a little north of downtown and near the Queen Anne hill area. The houses here were very nice and I know the people here had money to live with such a view. The weather was just perfect to see downtown with Mount Rainier poking it's head out behind it. We could see the glassy calm Pugent Sound as the sun set to our right and cast pretty warm yellow light over downtown. This is the perfect photographer's light. In fact, I counted up to 15 other photographers with tripods here with us along with several others without tripods. It was absolutely packed. I even got to share information with one of the more professional looking photogs. Two photos showed up with their wives in a Hummer limo to take pictures. They each used many lenses. Their wives were somewhat schooled on photography composition as well and had fun taking pictures of the various groups that showed up with their compact cameras for group photos. It was a people watching experience and quite fun. When the twilight hour hit, I got some gorgeous full moon photos as well as the downtown skyline lit up with lights. I was happy. Mark was nice enough to sit here for several hours with me so I could get my photo fix.
Then we walked back to the hotel....about 2 miles away or so. Yes, lots of walking today. I'm enjoying it, though. There are lots of bikes, too and traffic really does work with the bikes and pedestrians. We are falling in love with this area of the country.
We found the pick up hotel to get our badges for the PAX convention over the next 3 days. Tomorrow we will wake up early and line up for the start of the PAX convention. They sold out at 75,000 people. We will join them over the next two days for this popular video game convention. I don't even understand what all we will be seeing, but Mark is very excited.
pics later
Back to Seattle
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 2, 2009
The sea gulls outside our Port Angeles woke us up this morning. We packed and consolidated all our gear into our bags in the car and headed out to First Street Haven for breakfast. This was a lovely little breakfast place with calming music and delicious food. Breakfast came with a baked good. Mark's cinnamon roll was huge and my scone was very tasty.
After breakfast we hit the road and headed towards Seattle making several stops along the way. First we went to the infamous Dungeness Spit Wildlife Refuge. This had been recommended to us by so many people that we just had to stop. We hiked out along the coast for a mile, but we couldn't see what all the fuss was about. Perhaps we just went on the wrong day. I definitely liked Rialto Beach on the west coast much better. Next we stopped at one of the famous lavender farms of Sequim. I wanted to see if the lavender if the lavender (which peaks in mid July) was still blooming. Unfortunately it wasn't really, but we had fun poking around the lavender gift shop.
Now, we really just headed in towards Seattle the same way we came out. We drove to Bainbridge Island and got there just in time to board a ferry to Seattle. The day was very clear and sunny, so I was able to get some good pictures of the Seattle coast line as we ferried towards it. The Westin Seattle hotel where we will spend the next several nights is directly across the street from the Avis rental car return, so it was no problem dropping off our car. Driving in downtown Seattle, as one can imagine, is nearly impossible with all the cars and pedestrians and bikes. For the rest of our trip we will be pedestrians. =)
Our hotel room is up near the top on the 35th floor and we have a nice view north of downtown. In fact, we can even see the Space Needle from our room window. This is also the first time that we won't be moving our sleeping area every night!
Once settled in the hotel, we took a walk around downtown. We started at the Columbia Center hoping to go up to the observation tower for a great view, but it closed only 20 minutes before we arrived. Next we headed towards Pioneer Square for the Underground Tour. Boy was that tour interesting! We had a wonderful tour guide, Terri, who's been doing this for 12 years, so she knew her stuff and really knew how to talk to a crowd. I had no idea before this tour that Seattle actually started at an elevation about 8 - 32 feet below the elevation of Seattle today. The low elevation on the coast didn't work for Seattle and the city rebuilt much higher. It was fascinating information and I was appalled at how Seattle city planners decided to build the city.
After our tour we wandered up the water front and had a seafood dinner on the coast watching the sunset behind the Olympic Mountains across the Pugent Sound. The rest of the night we just wandered around getting our bearings and finally collapsing in the hotel in bed.
pics later
September 2, 2009
The sea gulls outside our Port Angeles woke us up this morning. We packed and consolidated all our gear into our bags in the car and headed out to First Street Haven for breakfast. This was a lovely little breakfast place with calming music and delicious food. Breakfast came with a baked good. Mark's cinnamon roll was huge and my scone was very tasty.
After breakfast we hit the road and headed towards Seattle making several stops along the way. First we went to the infamous Dungeness Spit Wildlife Refuge. This had been recommended to us by so many people that we just had to stop. We hiked out along the coast for a mile, but we couldn't see what all the fuss was about. Perhaps we just went on the wrong day. I definitely liked Rialto Beach on the west coast much better. Next we stopped at one of the famous lavender farms of Sequim. I wanted to see if the lavender if the lavender (which peaks in mid July) was still blooming. Unfortunately it wasn't really, but we had fun poking around the lavender gift shop.
Now, we really just headed in towards Seattle the same way we came out. We drove to Bainbridge Island and got there just in time to board a ferry to Seattle. The day was very clear and sunny, so I was able to get some good pictures of the Seattle coast line as we ferried towards it. The Westin Seattle hotel where we will spend the next several nights is directly across the street from the Avis rental car return, so it was no problem dropping off our car. Driving in downtown Seattle, as one can imagine, is nearly impossible with all the cars and pedestrians and bikes. For the rest of our trip we will be pedestrians. =)
Our hotel room is up near the top on the 35th floor and we have a nice view north of downtown. In fact, we can even see the Space Needle from our room window. This is also the first time that we won't be moving our sleeping area every night!
Once settled in the hotel, we took a walk around downtown. We started at the Columbia Center hoping to go up to the observation tower for a great view, but it closed only 20 minutes before we arrived. Next we headed towards Pioneer Square for the Underground Tour. Boy was that tour interesting! We had a wonderful tour guide, Terri, who's been doing this for 12 years, so she knew her stuff and really knew how to talk to a crowd. I had no idea before this tour that Seattle actually started at an elevation about 8 - 32 feet below the elevation of Seattle today. The low elevation on the coast didn't work for Seattle and the city rebuilt much higher. It was fascinating information and I was appalled at how Seattle city planners decided to build the city.
After our tour we wandered up the water front and had a seafood dinner on the coast watching the sunset behind the Olympic Mountains across the Pugent Sound. The rest of the night we just wandered around getting our bearings and finally collapsing in the hotel in bed.
pics later
Cleaning up is fun to do
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
September 1, 2009
I've just spent the evening typing up all mu journals that I wrote while in the back country and I realized that I still need to write today's.
This morning started so long ago. We woke up at 4:30 in the morning so that we could pack up our tent for the last time. Our camping stuff is getting pretty rank and I can't wait to do laundry.
We were going to drive up to Hurricane Ridge again today to watch the sunrise. And what a marvelous sunrise it was! We had met another photographer last night who was doing the same thing, so we had company up here so early in the morning. When the sun rose, the clouds lit up like a fire in the sky. The clouds were forming and moving towards the sun in wisps and rolling balls, so the fire in the sky was very much accentuated. Then the deer came out and joined us at dawn. It was a chilly 55, but it was beautiful. Once it was light enough, the clouds covered the sun turning the day into a cloudy one. We drove out along Obstruction Point Road which leaves Hurricane Ridge and climbs in the mountains about 7.5 miles away. This gravel road was bumpier than the previous Whiskey Bend Road, but our car made it just fine.
Since the clouds were out, we passed by some scenic pullouts noting where they were to come back later and take pictures. We did find a colony of marmots near the road and watched them play for a while. There were several adults out keeping watch while the little kid marmots played. They rolled around in cartoon fashion and were just so cute.
When we reached Obstruction Peak and the end of the road, we decided to hike along Lillian Ridge for as long as we felt. The ground up here is like an arctic tundra, dry and nearly lifeless. The plants are all low to the ground and tiny while snow still covers patches of the ground. We learned that this area was in the rainshadow of Mt. Olympus meaning that Olympus stole all the moisture for itself keeping this area more dry and arid. The hike was interesting and the sun came out for some magnificent views. We took it easy and mostly just strolled for 2 miles.
once back at the trailhead, we picked a spot for lunch. We had two deer bugging us the whole time wanting some of our lunch and we had to shoo them away like flies.
We decided to make this the end of our trip to Olympic National Park. It was very hard to leave all that mountain beauty behind us and drive away. We had a magnificent time. I'd love to come back one day and hike more areas of the park. We had wonderful weather while we were here. It only rained on us one night and never while hiking. The days were perfect with sun and cool temps in the 70s. The nights were chilly, but quite nice in the tent.
The drive to Port Angeles was pretty short. We stopped at the Wilderness Information Center to donate our unused camp items that we aren't taking home with us. Then we came straight to our Downtown Hotel to get cleaned up. I am excited at the prospect now of showering every single day from here on out on our vacation. We even hit up a laundromat to wash all the clothes.
Everything is now organized again instead of spread out all over the inside of the car and we are ready to go to Seattle to continue our vacation there.
We had dinner tonight again at the Crab House and again had the Dungeness Crab. It was still delicious. Now, though, it is time for sleep, in a bed. =)
pics later
September 1, 2009
I've just spent the evening typing up all mu journals that I wrote while in the back country and I realized that I still need to write today's.
This morning started so long ago. We woke up at 4:30 in the morning so that we could pack up our tent for the last time. Our camping stuff is getting pretty rank and I can't wait to do laundry.
We were going to drive up to Hurricane Ridge again today to watch the sunrise. And what a marvelous sunrise it was! We had met another photographer last night who was doing the same thing, so we had company up here so early in the morning. When the sun rose, the clouds lit up like a fire in the sky. The clouds were forming and moving towards the sun in wisps and rolling balls, so the fire in the sky was very much accentuated. Then the deer came out and joined us at dawn. It was a chilly 55, but it was beautiful. Once it was light enough, the clouds covered the sun turning the day into a cloudy one. We drove out along Obstruction Point Road which leaves Hurricane Ridge and climbs in the mountains about 7.5 miles away. This gravel road was bumpier than the previous Whiskey Bend Road, but our car made it just fine.
Since the clouds were out, we passed by some scenic pullouts noting where they were to come back later and take pictures. We did find a colony of marmots near the road and watched them play for a while. There were several adults out keeping watch while the little kid marmots played. They rolled around in cartoon fashion and were just so cute.
When we reached Obstruction Peak and the end of the road, we decided to hike along Lillian Ridge for as long as we felt. The ground up here is like an arctic tundra, dry and nearly lifeless. The plants are all low to the ground and tiny while snow still covers patches of the ground. We learned that this area was in the rainshadow of Mt. Olympus meaning that Olympus stole all the moisture for itself keeping this area more dry and arid. The hike was interesting and the sun came out for some magnificent views. We took it easy and mostly just strolled for 2 miles.
once back at the trailhead, we picked a spot for lunch. We had two deer bugging us the whole time wanting some of our lunch and we had to shoo them away like flies.
We decided to make this the end of our trip to Olympic National Park. It was very hard to leave all that mountain beauty behind us and drive away. We had a magnificent time. I'd love to come back one day and hike more areas of the park. We had wonderful weather while we were here. It only rained on us one night and never while hiking. The days were perfect with sun and cool temps in the 70s. The nights were chilly, but quite nice in the tent.
The drive to Port Angeles was pretty short. We stopped at the Wilderness Information Center to donate our unused camp items that we aren't taking home with us. Then we came straight to our Downtown Hotel to get cleaned up. I am excited at the prospect now of showering every single day from here on out on our vacation. We even hit up a laundromat to wash all the clothes.
Everything is now organized again instead of spread out all over the inside of the car and we are ready to go to Seattle to continue our vacation there.
We had dinner tonight again at the Crab House and again had the Dungeness Crab. It was still delicious. Now, though, it is time for sleep, in a bed. =)
pics later
So pretty, we don't want to leave
posted at http://markandjoannatravel.blogspot.com
August 31, 2009
Tonight is our last night in a tent and we are going to bed early to wake up for sunrise pictures.
Today we toured the most popular section of Olympic National Park - Hurricane Ridge. Taking down our tent in Elwa this morning was no problem and we were at the Heart 'o Hills campground at the base of Hurricane Ridge in only 30 minutes. We were hear early enough to be able to pick and choose our campsite with nearly no one else here. All sites seemed to have that same cemented tent pads as the Elwa, so we gathered rocks again to use as stakes. We left the tent and headed the 17 miles up 5000 feet to Hurricane Ridge.
I'm now in favor of driving to the top rather than walking. =)
We had lunch in the picnic area down the road from the visitor's center with the chipmunks and little birds looking for food treats. This spot had a great view of the Olympic Mountains. Then we hiked, or rather, strolled the paved trails in the area taking our time to read all the nature signs and learn what plants and views were were looking at.
We sat at Sunrise Point for a bit just staring out at the mountains. The sun was out making the clear day about 80 degrees in the sun, but 65-70 in the shade. It was very comfortable and the views were gorgeous.
We listened to a ranger talk about funny visitor stories that happened in the park. It was quite a humorous half hour. We followed the talk with ice cream from the cafe there at the viewing platform. Did I mention that today was relaxing?
We spied several black tailed deer in the area, usually followed by several folks with cameras, but no marmots.
We drove back to the picnic area for our dinner and watched 3 blue striped grouse roam the meadow while we ate. Then, it was back to the viewing platform for sunset and then driving back down the mountain to bed (or sleeping bag, I should say). The morning will come quickly.
pictures later
August 31, 2009
Tonight is our last night in a tent and we are going to bed early to wake up for sunrise pictures.
Today we toured the most popular section of Olympic National Park - Hurricane Ridge. Taking down our tent in Elwa this morning was no problem and we were at the Heart 'o Hills campground at the base of Hurricane Ridge in only 30 minutes. We were hear early enough to be able to pick and choose our campsite with nearly no one else here. All sites seemed to have that same cemented tent pads as the Elwa, so we gathered rocks again to use as stakes. We left the tent and headed the 17 miles up 5000 feet to Hurricane Ridge.
I'm now in favor of driving to the top rather than walking. =)
We had lunch in the picnic area down the road from the visitor's center with the chipmunks and little birds looking for food treats. This spot had a great view of the Olympic Mountains. Then we hiked, or rather, strolled the paved trails in the area taking our time to read all the nature signs and learn what plants and views were were looking at.
We sat at Sunrise Point for a bit just staring out at the mountains. The sun was out making the clear day about 80 degrees in the sun, but 65-70 in the shade. It was very comfortable and the views were gorgeous.
We listened to a ranger talk about funny visitor stories that happened in the park. It was quite a humorous half hour. We followed the talk with ice cream from the cafe there at the viewing platform. Did I mention that today was relaxing?
We spied several black tailed deer in the area, usually followed by several folks with cameras, but no marmots.
We drove back to the picnic area for our dinner and watched 3 blue striped grouse roam the meadow while we ate. Then, it was back to the viewing platform for sunset and then driving back down the mountain to bed (or sleeping bag, I should say). The morning will come quickly.
pictures later
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