Driving from YNP to Boise is a a very long drive but sometimes you see something that might just need to be looked at. Craters of the Moon National Monument is right on the road we were taking and we have a pass, and it was a good time for a potty break. Well I’m not sure how I feel about this one; it is unique but the lava goes way beyond the park. So if you are just casually interested in lava like us you probably do not need to see it unless you are passing by then take a look. If you are into geology I’m sure its a must see.
That’s it! The last photo of the giant mountain of lava is so powdery but I did climb the .4 of a mile to the top! The other photos show how different the lava looks- some of it looks like giant cow patties.
Another NP off our list. The road was way too long so we will probably not have an opportunity to revisit this site but we did!
Posted in California | Comments Off on Sometimes you just have to see!
We love this park and always feel like it is the first time seeing the geysers. This trip we did notice a lot of new changes; ie. the Mammoth Hot Springs area is definitely receded from our first trip in 2012. It is still beautiful but in 10 years the beauty has changed.
View of the wall coming from the east
up close, the flow is about 1/3 of what it was 10 years ago
Always a favorite, Old Faithful a must stop and wait for the eruption that comes about once an hour.
There is so much to see here you definitely need at least a couple of days. The Yellowstone River flows thru the park and there are several waterfalls (always a favorite of mine). If I hear water I’m going in that direction.
Just one of the many streams in YNP
Fishing at the base of a waterfall. Looks cold but so cool if I liked to fish!
The pools are all so different and amazing to see. The boardwalks get you right up close to some very cool sites to see. The smell often is very strong.
We saw many wildlife. Our first site was a mama Elk with her offspring. They were along the side of the road eating from the trees. No pictures cause they were too busy eating and the trees were in the way. The Elk above looked like a statue; he was just hanging in the shade right in front of the Mammoth Inn, a popular spot for the Elk herd in the afternoon. The buffalo was one of many. If you go to Yellowstone and don’t see a Buffalo you are going way too fast! Slow down, they are in every part of the park. This one was right outside our campground.
We spent 2 nights in the park with snow predicted the last morning. We woke up to wet roads but no snow. Upon leaving we came into the snow! It snowed overnight at the higher elevations and it was still snowing when we came thru.
The roads were slightly icy sometimes but mostly very safe. We just drive slower!
That was a bonus, seeing snow in Yellowstone. I am sure it is very beautiful in the winter but I hope I don’t get caught up in it! Burr.
Posted in Wyoming | Comments Off on Can’t ever get enough of this beauty, Yellowstone NP
We spent the day in Glacier NP and I am always looking for wildlife. We haven’t seen much on this trip but once we left the park yesterday on our way home we spotted a huge Buck and Deer in a field just off the highway and then we are pulling into Wayfarers State Park where we are spending the week this huge guy runs across the road right behind our car! Paul stops, I grab my phone and roll the window down and grab this quick shot! Teddy is barking at him and growling! The bear could careless about us, he was just trying to get back into the woods.
Then we are driving down the road to the campground and a small deer is right on the side of the road! Paul wouldn’t let me get a photo because we weren’t in a safe place to stop!
That’s a lot of wildlife when we haven’t seen much of anything so far in the past 5 weeks.
Posted in Montana | Comments Off on Wow, just WOW!!!
We are starting to recognize odd things in our travels. We were on our way into Glacier NP yesterday and saw a Starbucks at an intersection that was definitely not there last trip. Then we are driving up the road and Paul says “I’m recognizing all kinds of things” You anticipate remembering but usually things change. We were here 2 summers ago and not too much has changed. There are a couple of closed up businesses and a couple new, fancy resorts but most of the things are the same from last trip.
Trying to find new things to see in the same places sometimes can be a challenge, especially this trip because I am not able to do the hikes. But, we always notice new stuff. We are driving the main road thru the park and I am marveling at the road. The Going to the Sun Road was built in the 1920’s. How did they do that then? and then taking care of it! They are working on part of the lower road and delays are expected as well as a very bumpy ride. The road does not fully open each year until July because of the massive amounts of snow. The road is one of the most difficult roads in North America to snowplow in the spring. Up to 80 feet (24 m) of snow can lie on top of Logan Pass, and more just east of the pass where the deepest snowfield has long been referred to as the Big Drift. Wow! Just think in September there is hardly a trace of snow from the road.
Mostly built where they carved out the mountain. The road is narrow and very windy
If you zoom in and look very carefully you can see the road across the canyon
Glacier has the coolest tour buses. They also use very old , wooden boats for their tours on the lakes
No snow but some very beautiful mountain side flowers and colors.
The leaves are just starting to change.
New bathrooms right in the side of the mountain.
The park is making lots of improvements but they can’t improve the beauty! It is just spectacular here.
At the top of Logan Pass, we took a short walk up the mountain. Lots of stairs
The tour vehicle
We had a beautiful afternoon in the park and saw some things that we hadn’t before. Logan Pass is always so packed and there isn’t any parking. There are several hikes that leave from here and I’ve always wanted to go so today we get a parking spot and actually walked the nature trail and the Hidden Lake trail – we only went about 1/3 mile up the hill. It’s a very nice wooden walkway but there are lots of stairs as there is quite a bit of elevation gain. Maybe next year because from what I could see it is a beautiful hike/walk.
Posted in Montana | Comments Off on Another Been there spot!
We decided to spend the weekend in Spokane rather than moving to Coure d’Alene mostly because its only 15 miles to the next dealer for Paul and its free and very quiet at night here at the dealer.
Spokane Valley has a very nice river walk along the Spokane River. We have walked it many times and ridden our bikes along it. One of the trailheads is very close to where we are staying so one evening we decide to take a walk; drive down to the parking area and proceed. As we are starting down the trail to the river another couple is dancing around and come towards us telling us there is a snake! Nope, I don’t do snakes and the lady told us they saw 2 on their short walk. We have never seen snakes on this trail. I know it is very dry here but this is so close to town. There was no way I was walking this trail today, besides we had Teddy and who knows how he would handle a snake! So we take a nice walk on the sidewalks and when we are returning to our car I offered that we walk up to the overpass so we can at least see the river! Just as we are approaching the overpass I look to my left and in the weeds is a giant snake stretched out! Are you kidding me. So much for an evening walk. We found a Mexican restaurant and enjoyed a margarita and a full Mexican dinner complete with rice and beans and LOTS of cheese.
The weather is spectacular so we spent Saturday in Historic Spokane enjoying the Riverfront Park. We have enjoyed is several times before and the waterfalls right in town are beautiful. They are doing a lot of improvements so seeing the falls is tricky right now but they have lots of other things to see. Today they were having a car club show. Not too many cars but it was fun to look at how nicely they care for their hobby.
I just liked the flag that was lowered in the background. Not much wind so you couldn’t see it from this angle too well
My favorite because of the mini truck on top with M&M guys
They had an area that was a sister city park garden. Small but they have a lot of sister cities, Ireland, South Korea, Japan and a couple others.
Native America
A Salmon
Japan
They also had a harp from Limerick, Ireland but it was inside glass and a photo just wasn’t possible.
Garbage Goat,
for real
The Garbage Goat serves a real purpose although they have him sort of hidden in the park. He has been eating garbage from visitors for more than 40 years. He was installed as part of the 1974 Worlds Fair after a lot of flak from the Goat Association. He actually vacuums the trash right out of your hand. This little boy stayed for my photo after he was trying to get the goat to eat a grande plastic cup from starbucks. The goat couldn’t do it – his opening is small. (I think its so you don’t get your fingers swallowed).
My favorite Art in the Park was the Giant Radio Flyer Slide.
Poor Teddy! He had a lot of trouble with the stairs – they are for 2 legged children
Never thought I would see this
Teddy wants down! NOW!
It was a nice day and I got some walking in. It’s been a struggle trying to get my body back in shape. Some days I hurt in way too many places but then I’ll walk and feel better – Got to get my head into it.
Posted in Washington | Comments Off on Been here, done that but you always find something new
Anacortes is near the San Juan Islands, in fact it is known for it’s ferry’s that take you to the different islands. You can reach it from land north of Seattle or by Ferry which we did. Anacortes has a very nice harbor area and a downtown with lots of restaurants and fun little shops.
Love the watering can
We have been here several times and with all the shopping I did while we were in Sequim I did not need to get inside anymore gift shops so we took a ferry ride to Friday Harbor. This was also just a boat ride and lunch. Of course it involves Ice Cream.
After leaving Teddy for so long the last boat ride I wanted him to come along and I knew we could find outdoor dining. He is suppose to stay outside on the ferry
Teddy doesn’t think that is a good idea! It’s cold and windy out there and besides there is a perfectly good chair right here in the front so we can see where the boat is going.
Friday Harbor is pretty small and has a small downtown right where the ferry drops you off. Plenty of eatery’s, ice cream and trinket shops. I did find a very nice gentleman that allowed me to try his wines without paying the tasting fee! It was good but too expensive. We wandered awhile, found ice cream and wandered some more. The ferry was a long way off as they are having trouble with staffing. We thought we would go back on the 4:30 boat but there was no 4:30 boat so 6:30 was our time. Dinner on the harbor was very nice. I had a crab BLT that was amazing although it could have just been a Tomato sandwich as the tomato’s were to die for – tasted right out of the garden. They were from a local farm but still!!! It wasn’t cheap $34 but it’s only money and we probably won’t eat out at least for the rest of the week!!!
Teddy was so good. He has been a bit skiddish about noises and things but he slept on the ferry and while we had lunch he slept under the table until someone said something about “going”.
The ferry before ours
The view of the harbor during our dinner
Our 6:30 boat was late and we did not leave Friday Harbor until after 7 pm. I am so happy we brought Teddy along.
Another successful trip to Washington State. There is a lot of beauty here and the weather in August and September is perfect.
Posted in Washington | Comments Off on When in the Islands
We have been having beautiful days. Yesterday afternoon the sky started changing and we could smell smoke in the air. This morning we woke to very hazy skies. Today we boarded the ferry to Anacortes and in Port Townsend they were having a wooden boat festival and there were lots of boats cruising and lots of people arriving by ferry – glad we were going the opposite direction. It would have been fun to attend but I’m not a big fan of crowded venues anymore.
We made it safely to Coupeville and to our RV destination for the next 3 days. Paul has a bit of work to do on Monday and then we will head towards Spokane. I’ve been seeing lots of news about fires so hopefully we can avoid too much smoke.
Posted in Washington | Comments Off on Moving on to Annacortes
One more trip to the Park, this time to a perfect lake, Lake Crescent with its pristine waters and many places to stop and enjoy a swim if you are inclined. The lake is a glacier carved lake so the water is unpolluted and so clear.
I tried to take a photo of how clear
Kayak, Canoe, float, sunbath….
We drove around the lake, or at least most of it till we were on a gravel road that kept getting narrower! The lake is beautiful and very accessible to enjoy.
Picnic anyone? My favorite photo this week
Posted in Washington | Comments Off on Olympic National Park, One more time!
From Port Angeles you can take the ferry to Victoria; We went for lunch. It was a little work to be able to board the boat. You had to go on the night before and register and prove your vaccination status, load your passport info and then you get a scan that you have to bring with you. Then when you get to the ferry in the US they confirm that you have everything you need before you can board. The boat ride was very nice but then when you get to Canada you have to stand in line for about 20 minutes to present your passport which has all the info that you uploaded to them the night before. It takes all day! We left home about 7 am and got home about 5:30 pm. It was a perfect day and lunch was fun. We had lunch at Redfish Bluefish which turns out it is a first choice among the locals. I found it on Yelp and it was walking distance from the ferry. Turns out its right on the pier in a shipping container. Walk up ordering only and a few bar seats if you are lucky – we were! The fish dog was great – a fish sandwich on a hoagie roll. Paul had fish taco’s which were huge.
Besides lunch we walked around town until my feet hurt!
houseboat city
Fun plant sculptures
Now that is eye catching!
The Empress Hotel
The water taxi – we watched these run across the harbor
If you look closely you can see the 3 planes that are part of the water airport. Paul knew the names; de Havilland Otter and the de Havilland twin Otter. We watched many of these take off.
Coming home you go through US customs in Canada before getting on the ferry but then you have to present your passport in WA also and declare (again) any big purchases you made! That process was pretty fast but seemed redundant. We had a great day but it was too long to leave Teddy home. We won’t do that again for awhile!
Posted in Canada, Washington | Comments Off on Canada, just across the Strait
We arrived to our spot on the Bay right outside of Sequim Washington and it could not have met our needs better; A restaurant, bar right across the street, the bay with a beach Teddy can run on and only a couple miles from Pickleball, coffee, and shopping. The Olympic National Park is right here also.
John Wayne Marina
The RV Park is across the street from the Marina and there is a very nice walk along the docks with a beach for beachcombing. Teddy loved being able to run on the beach and get his toes wet!
We took a drive up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park on Saturday. It was beautiful and a little crowded but we were able to see what we wanted. As we were driving up the mountain there was lots of fog hiding the valley views
The fog is burning off as we reached the top
The view from Hurricane Ridge Parking area
We had a very nice lunch with this view and then took a short walk. We don’t get to hike much as I just can’t yet and we can’t bring Teddy – he has to wait in the car
Port Townsend is only about 20 miles away. We have been there and spent a night once. It is a very cute, hippy sort of town. We took a drive there and enjoy the views
Teddy and some new friends
Looking out at the bay
The Ferry from Port Townsen/d takes you to Coupeville, WA
Coupeville is on Whidbey Island where we will be going next.
People watching in Port Townsend
Sequim is known for its Lavender Farms which were started in the 90’s and now is known as the Lavender capitol of North America. They only get about 16″ of rainfall per year but because of the Mountains and the Strait of San Juan de Fuca they get a lot of humidity that helps with keeping there forest areas growing.
Lavender Farm
The farms are not large and they all have a gift shop. They make lots of oils and fragrances along with the t-shirts and expensive gift items. We missed harvest time but then there were no crowds. I bought some lemon shortbread cookies that had lavender. The taste was really good but they smelled like soap.
lots of flowers grow well here
Dungeness spit and National Wildlife Reserve is the other attraction in Sequim. Sequim is known for Crab and we see lots of crab nets. The spit is a 5 mile sand bar that leads out to a lighthouse which we did not get to visit. The only way out is to walk on the beach, preferably at low tide or take a private boat. From the Wildlife Reserve it is a 1/2 mile walk through the forest to get to the spit and then it’s 5 miles out! We may have walked a 1/2 mile on the beach but mostly just went out to hang out!
Paul walking on the driftwood
follow the beach for 5 miles and there is a lighthouse at the end
That’s the lighthouse
You can actually stay in the lighthouse and then they will bring you out. Paul’s sister Cindy did this a while ago!
We have been busy while we have been in Sequim. This was the perfect place to come.
Posted in Washington | Comments Off on Vacation week
