Leaving Seattle and Big Pine Campground

5/4

 

Seattle to Spokane

Crystal Springs

After sleeping in, we left Seattle around 10 in the morning. Pretty much right outside of the city, the road starts to climb up over the Cascades. We passed by Mt. Rainer on the way over the pass. At Snoqualmie Pass there is a mountain ski resort, but it was closed for summer, though snow was still everywhere. It puddled and streamed in any way it could, joining together to make large raging creeks that hurdled down the mountain. After being hit with a snowball and goaded into retaliation (on film by the way), we said adieu to the snowy mountaintops and started east again.

Thetis Creek

After passing a few beautiful lakes, with the mountains reflected, we stopped again at Crystal Springs at Yakima River. There was a guy camped out right by the edge of the river in a perfectly secluded spot, I was quite jealous… Here they measure the level of the running water using a water gauge, a large I beam that has numbers welded on it to indicate feet. We then crossed the freeway to see Little Kachness Lake and a small stream running into it called Thetis Creek. There was snow still on the road in some places, so we turned around before getting stuck. It was very interesting to see that snowmobiles had their own speed limit signs. No faster than 25!

I was tempted to leave the road again when I saw a sign for the Thorp Mill Historical Society. This mill started as a sawmill in 1879 and they added a grist mill later in 1883. This mill ran till 1946 and has recently been renovated by the town. Unfortunately it was closed when we got there, but the town itself is really nice, a picture perfect view into small town life in western Washington.

When we got to Spokane, we wanted to camp and looked at several sites, including one down by the Spokane river called Bowl and Pitcher Campground but they were all full. Apparently Saturday isn’t a good time to show up and expect a campsite. We were actually lucky to get a hotel room because there was a really big 5k race the next day and people come from all over Washington for this race. We ended up at Stratford Suites on the edge of town, and looked forward to the next day of driving!

5/5

Spokane, WA to Big Pine Campground, MN

Today we crossed three states. We left Washington in our dust and headed into Idaho. There is a huge lake called Couer d’Alene that has these lovely homes all along the shoreline. It was there that we decided that we preferred lake houses instead of ocean houses!

We followed the shoreline on highway 97 for about 20 miles before turning back. I 90 is a beautiful drive. We wind through peaks that are snowcapped, so many that perhaps it’s a mouth, with the mountains the teeth. Up and down over passes and across rivers, around hairpin turns, passing semi trucks, all the while marveling at the beauty around us and playing crosswords. It was about 6pm when we realized that we were in the middle of nowhere and had no idea where we were staying. Shawna pulled a miracle campground off of her wünderphone called Big Pine Campground. This little gem is hidden 5 miles off the main highway on gravel roads up and around some massive hills. There are 5 campsites,

but one is perfectly secluded on the creek bank surrounded by trees. We pulled in about 730 and although I had realized it before, it really became evident at this time that this far north it doesn’t really get dark until 10pm. It’s really weird to not even see Venus next to the setting sun until 930 at night. I imagine it’s even harder to sleep the further north you go.

 

As it started to cool off, we built a fire and watched the stars before retiring to the tent to read a bit. We were the only people in the campground. I love seclusion. It brings peace.

Driving to Seattle and Day 2 in Seattle

Refraction

5/2

Driving to Seattle

Today was a driving day. We left Hotel Fifty and drove over the Colombia River into Washington. Our goal was Seattle. After driving for what seemed quite a few hours, playing crosswords along the way (Frankfurt Mister anyone?) we arrived in the seaport of Seattle. This is not the town I had imagined in my head. As we drove around to find a place to stay, it seemed that the town was very vertical, so many tall buildings aligning the harbor. I guess that I thought it would be more

green and less city-like. Anyway, we checking into a funky little hotel in the downtown district called Hotel 5. Shawna slipped and fell pretty hard while opening the door for me as we were bringing in the bags, but she’s a trooper and hopped right up. After bringing up the bags, we immediately fell asleep and woke up around 630. I think we had been pushing too hard and it finally caught up with us.

Dinner that night was at Lola, a Tom Douglas restaurant. He’s apparently a big deal restaurateur up there. Honestly, I’ll have to say that I’ve had better. It was very good and all, but for the money I guess I expected way too much. I had the Lemon chicken with fried garlic red potatoes and Shawna had a lamb burger. We had a big day planned for tomorrow, so after eating we went back to the room and read a bit until we fell asleep.

Pike's Marketplace

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Day 2 in Seattle

The goal for today was to see Pike’s Marketplace, which I have heard from multiple people as a really awesome place to see. It did not disappoint! Breakfast was at a small café down the street called the Cherry Street Coffee House. Coffee ingested and boots laced we walked down to the market.

There are so many different, cool, little shops inside of and around the marketplace. One of the first places we went into was the Northwest Woodworker’s Gallery. They had some amazingly overpriced, but still very beautiful bookcases and tables. Some of my favorite tables combined the Shaker simplicity with the modern look of a natural unfinished top. I was also amazed at the detail of the work of the artists. Some of the dovetails were about the width of 2 quarters! The also were featuring the work of Margaret Dorfman, an artist that makes vessels out of vegetable parchments. One in particular caught my eye. It is a vessel made of purple and white potatoes but designed to look like a dogwood flower. Fascinating stuff!!

 

After leaving this store, we wandered down the street and found ourselves in a store called the Dragon’s Toy Box. This toy store had many things that I remembered as a child; parachute men, flying airplanes, kites, and other amazing toys that I can’t even remember now. I’m very surprised that I walked out of there without buying anything!

We finally turned the corner and found ourselves at the entrance to Pike’s Marketplace. As we were walking in, we stopped at a bookstore called Left Bank Books. It reminded me of all the bookstores I used to visit with my dad when I was young. It had multiple levels, seating in a bay window, and stacks of books upon books. I was about to leave when I found B. Traven’s Government sitting on the shelf. It was a paperback, but I’m always looking for anything by him. Government is the first in a series of six novels called the Jungle Novels that revolve around the Mexican Revolution. Not my favorite of his (Death Ship), but I could not pass it up!

We left the bookstore and found ourselves at Shy Giant Frozen Yogurt where they had wonderful and amazing flavors! Shawna got Huckleberry and I had Honey Lavender. Delicious! Shawna bought a skirt at a Jamaican store after we finished our cones. We passed in and out of shops that I can’t even remember now. I know that we debated in a soap shop for about 15 minutes, but ended up leaving without buying.

Pike’s Marketplace lines both sides of Pike’s Place, and even on a weekday, it was packed with people. There are various lines in front of cafes and restaurants from which pour intriguing, exciting odors of deliciousness. We skipped most of the lines and just walked. The waterfront side of the market has 3 levels of shops, starting at street level and going underground. As we walked back on that side, we stopped to smell the lilacs for sale as well as photograph the beautiful tulips.

Tucked away in a corner, one level below the street is a small bookstore called Lion Heart Bookstore. Even if you do not want to buy anything, you must go there to meet the shopkeeper, David. David is a character, witty, humorous, and knowledgeable. He keeps a steady stream of banter with his customers, sometimes singing, sometimes rapping, and always talking! I would go back to Pike’s just to see him again. One of my favorite quotes by him was, “If you want to get married, you need to buy a Subaru Forester…and then put a kayak on top. I don’t even kayak but I’ll look cool!”

After wandering the shops for awhile longer (stopping at a photo booth) we went back up to street level to the fish guys to watch them throw fish around. However, we were captured by a street artist who was playing guitar and singing. Her name is Whitney Mongé and she had the most amazing raspy, soulful voice. I definitely recommend giving her a listen! Had to buy a CD from her.

  

At Dinner

After a solid five hours walking, Shawna’s ankle was swollen pretty good and we decided to walk back to the room and rest for a bit. Dinner was at another Greek place, but more our speed, called Deli Shez. We were going to go out that night but ended up watching a movie instead.

Tomorrow, leaving Seattle!

Day 2 in Portland

Bridal Veil Falls

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Day 2 in Portland

Today was a waterfall day. We decided to visit some of the famous waterfalls in Columbia Gorge. Our travels took us onto the Historic Colombia River Highway, only to find it closed about 2 miles from the first waterfall. Instead of turning around, we pressed on to a tiny dirt road called Alex Barr road. On the Iphone it looks like a normal road, but we found it to be a one way dirt track that hugged the mountainside down into the valley, dropping about 800 hundred feet. There were actually some homes alongside this road. Imagine commuting to Portland every day and coming home to this! The downside is that I don’t think they could get out if it was raining…

After reconnecting with the Colombia River Highway, we went to Bridal Veil Falls. The trail to this falls is pretty much downhill the whole way. When we arrived at the falls, the sunlight was highlighting the water, turning it bright white, just like a veil. During the heyday of the Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway, there was a logging operation situated on the west flanks of Larch Mountain. Bridal Veil Creek was utilized as a method of moving the logs downstream, in many places, with the assistance of a flume.

After hiking the mile uphill back to the truck, we moved onto the next waterfall, Wahkeena Falls. This water fall, while visible from the road, is best seen by following the uphill trail about 2/3rds of a mile. The trail leads you directly in front of the waterfall, and you could, if you wanted to, walk underneath it for a lovely cold shower (though it is quite slippery). The wind sends spray flying in all directions, cooling the air in the vicinity by 10 degrees or more.

The absolute ferocity of the waterfall is astounding. The water seems to be penetrating your skin, it is so cold. The sound of the water is a never-ending roar that you can hear down the mountain as you hike toward it. But most of all, the beauty of the falls is transfixing. It tumbles off the cliff 240 feet above your head, arching gracefully to the rocks only 20 feet away from your feet.

I climbed up one side to try to get a better view. The results were not that impressive, but I managed to get pretty soaked! We then went to the most famous of waterfalls in the area, Multnomah Falls. This is the fourth largest continuous running waterfalls in the US. It falls a total of 620 feet in two tiers. The sight of this waterfall is absolutely stunning. I can’t put into words how high 620 feet is. It’s really, really, really, really high. We sat on a bench and watched the fall for awhile. I like to watch a particular patch of water fall from the top, all the way down to its splash landing. It takes about 6 seconds or so every time.

Wahkeena Falls

There were quite a few tourists there, so we decided to forgo the hike up to the bridge that crosses in between the two tiers and head back to Portland. Once we were done fighting traffic into the city and had parked the truck, we walked down to food truck row and sampled 2 different food trucks. The first was Mexican food from the Yucatan Peninsula, totally different than the Baja or Sonora food I’m used to. He actually makes the tortillas with black beans baked inside of them! The other food truck we ate at served bacon wrapped corn dogs. Of course they were good!! We ended our meal by walking to Tartberry, a self serve frozen yogurt shop, similar to ZoYo in Phoenix.

While walking back to the hotel, we saw an advertisement for glow in the dark, 3D miniature golf, and you know we can’t pass that up!! The paint on the walls actually glowed and when we put the 3D glasses on, looked like it was coming out of the wall! It made depth perception a bit difficult, but was really fun!  

Lincoln City, OR to Portland, OR

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Lincoln City, OR to Portland, OR

It rained hard last night, and the ground was wet and slick as we loaded the truck up. After breakfast, we headed out toward Tillamook, one of the places that I have been looking forward to seeing for a long time. As the sun came out, the road dried in the sunshine, but the trees over the road created rain shadows.

Mini-Milk!!

Tillamook is Native American for “land of many waters”, and it has many creeks and rivers running through this coastal valley to the ocean. The cows here all graze in pastures, not the congested feed lots in El Paso, TX. They look so happy, laying there chewing their cud.

Low riding in the Cheese Van

The Tillamook Cheese Factory is owned by the farmers that produced the milk and has been since 1909. They use 1 million gallons of milk per day to create over 160,000 pounds of cheese every day. That’s a lot of cheese!! When we got to the factory, they were making 5 lb loafs of medium cheddar. We got to watch the packing room as they robotically weigh, trim, and package block after block of cheese. There is even a person sitting at the very end of the line to verify that the packaging is correct. What a boring job, doing the same thing over and over again. I don’t think that I could do that.

Mithril

After the tour, we went into the gift shop, where they had all different kinds of cheese for sale. Many of these cheeses are not available back home. Yes, I bought a lot… They also make many other dairy products like yogurt, sour cream, and even ice cream. Oh yes, their ice cream is heavenly! We both got a mini 3 scoop samplers, and every flavor was amazing.

After leaving Tillamook, we headed up Route 6, away from the 101, toward Portland. Route 6 goes up into the mountains above Tillamook, following the Wilson River. We stopped at the Footbridge Trailhead to take some pictures of a small waterfall. The rocks are very slippery in front of the waterfall, I almost slipped several times. There was a beautiful blue jay hopping from branch to branch as we walked back to the truck.

Portland is a very big city, but their downtown area is quaint and walkable. The streets are lined with sycamore trees, and people generally seem very nice and helpful. We ended up at Hotel Fifty, a nice boutique hotel along the river. We can see the river from our window, as well as the Cinco de Mayo fair they are setting up in the park.

I had promised Shawna a manicure, so we asked the ladies at the front desk to recommend a place, and we ended up at Onyx, a lovely little nail shop in the Pearl District. Beebee, a young Vietnamese lady, runs the shop and she is very bubbly and entertaining. She has been in the US for 15 years, and because she has children now, can’t visit Vietnam like she used to. She did a very good job on my nails (yes, I got one too…)

After the manicure, we went to Piazza Italia, a very authentic Italian restaurant. All the waiters spoke Italian, and it seemed as if they had just gotten off the boat from Italy. We were told later that it used to be run by the mob. She got the spaghetti and meatballs and I had rigatoni with meat sauce. Fantastic…