#Gates50States

The biggest challenge in our #Gates50States adventure is saying, “No,” to so many neat/cool/unique places and events and attractions in each state.  There just isn’t enough time to take in all that every state has to offer.  Nowhere has this been more true to date for us than Washington state.  What an amazing place, with a great diversity of locations, climates, environments, and… just stuff.  Part 2 will detail our time at Mt. Rainier, and Part 3 will address our time in the North Cascades.

Washington capped our recent west coast trip and followed a side trip to California and a great visit to Oregon.  Way back in the planning process, we decided to make the most of Washington’s three national parks: Olympic, Mt. Rainier and North Cascades.  We were really anticipating North Cascades having read that it is consistently ranked in the bottom ten of most visited national parks.  Recall that we like to travel away from peak season when possible, and arrive early to the parks to (a) find a parking spot, and (b) enjoy the trails without the crowds.

I started this particular journey with the kids and my parents, and we drove up the Washington coast to meet Ryan and my sister on Ruby Beach in Olympic National Park.  This took us to Forks where we stayed at the Jacob Black house from the Twilight movies.  Decorated in theme, the homeowner presented the place well, and we even got to experience tourists coming by just to see it. Seriously, the house was in no way associated with the actual movies, but we actually found teenage girls walking around the property taking pictures during our stay!

Olympic National Park is so big, it’s impossible to experience the whole thing in a day or two, and we decided it best to stay a couple of days on the west side of the park, experiencing the Hoh Rainforest area and beaches, and then move to the northeast side to visit Hurricane Ridge and the Elwha River valley.  Accordingly, Forks served as a good, “west-central” location.

West coast, old growth rain forest is just otherworldly for us midwesterners.  The size and scope of what the Hoh Rainforest offered… wow!

And the wildlife was pretty up-close and cool, too!  This one was ~15′ from us!!!

For a costal experience, we drove to Lake Ozette to hike the Cape Alva Loop, a 9.4 mile triangle, the second leg of which is on a sometimes rocky, sometimes sandy beach.  While there wasn’t much climbing and elevation gain, the length of this hike would test the kids, who hadn’t done much more than 5 or 6 miles at a time.

This is what we pictured a hike on the rocky coast of Washington would look like.  Ryan was particularly interested to see bald eagles, and they didn’t disappoint, either.  And we got to see a Sooty Grouse!

Given the challenging walk on the beach, and the hard rain that fell on us over the last 5 or so miles, the kids could have been excused for showing a grouchy attitude.  But they were great!  Seeing cool sights, experiencing unique things, and enjoying it all with family makes the miles pass with relative ease.  Finding the turn off the beach for the last side of the triangle was a bit tough, but we eventually made it, and we chalked this day up as one of our more adventurous family hikes.

And that was just a fraction of what Olympic has to offer.  We drove north around the park to Port Angeles.  On the way, we hiked along the Soleduck and Lake Crescent areas, including one of the greater elevation-gain hikes the kids (and frankly the parents) have ever done: Storm King.  

Lunch at Lake Crescent Lodge tided us over nicely between the morning hikes (easy at Soleduck Falls) and afternoon hikes. (Although we had a lovely house overlooking the Elwha River, I would wholeheartedly recommend Lake Crescent Lodge and the tiny cabins dotting the lake. The food was incredible and the property incredibly quaint and inviting.)

Yes, hikes plural… we kept hiking after Storm King given the fact that we had one day in that area.  Gotta squeeze it all in!

Ryan wants to interject something here:  We did not take the kids past the maintained portion of Storm King.  Dave and I used the first rope to climb what could conservatively be called a death trap.  Haley climbed more… without the ropes (gasp!). When I made it to the end of the first rope, witnessed the novices above me who at any moment could have slipped and taken me out several thousand feet down the mountain, and watched what happened to my water bottle as it slipped out of my backpack,  I decided to skip the summit.  The footing was dry and dusty with only small gravel, and the ropes were thin with very little grip.  Had I been alone on the side of the mountain, I may have attempted it, but with the crowd that was present… um… no.  Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

After Storm King we took the short walk over to Marymere Falls.  The kids were done with climbing, so they stayed and played along the river.  We couldn’t blame them.

The place we chose outside of Port Angeles looked great in the photos, but the drive in made it look like it might not be too nice, as the road passed what appeared to be a small landfill and an area that just wasn’t as pretty as the rest of what we’d seen.  But then we arrived, and this place was unreal.  The huge family room windows faced the Elwha River valley with a gorgeous view of the Olympic mountains, a short walk down a service path took us to the bank of the river for some splashing fun, and come night time, we found the Milky Way and a shooting star arcing over the valley below.

We’re not certain there’s a better piece of property on the Olympic Peninsula than this.  Kudos to the homeowner.

While Grandpa Dave and Auntie Haley hiked Obstruction Point, the rest of us arrived early at Hurricane Ridge to hike a portion of Klahhane Ridge.  What wildlife and panoramic views!

It was definitely on the side of a mountain with nothing to save us from a misstep, but overall it was a pretty easy hike for the kids after the previous day’s work.  And word to the wise… arrive early.  On our way out, there was a multi-mile long trail of cars at the entrance with a ranger allowing one car in for one car out.  Don’t be the latecomer who burns a day parked on the road.

We lunched at LaBelle Creperie in Port Angeles, and you’ve got to check this place out.  With both sweet and savory options on the menu, you simply can’t go wrong, and of course the kids pounded down their meals.

A restful night of sleep and an efficient job of packing prepared us for the next stage of our time in Washington.