Starting in Olympia, Washington headed north, then south,  on Scenic Pacific Coast Highway 101,  was not what we expected.  The scenery was mostly forest,  pine trees and nauseating,  curving.  winding,  steep at times, zig zagging roads.  This was my only decent scenic photo in the first fifty or so miles.

It got a little better,  but not much and not very often.

When we crossed over into Oregon, it got a little more interesting.

The road got steeper and the cliffs were impressive.  The hows and whys of the engineering and building of some of the “scenic”  roads we’ve been traveling blow our minds.

I got a little excited when I saw a sign for a scenic overlook.  The first 150 miles of the PCH in Oregon tends to be more inland.  We have gone through some quaint towns and lots of “touristy”  areas (motels, cottages for rent, crip crap stores, restaurants).  I’m looking for more spectacular or unique scenery.

We stopped for the night at Kelly’s Brighton Marina on Highway 101 in Rockaway Beach, Oregon.  Site number 15 is on the waterfront,  has  water and electric, costs $35 a night ($2.50 per pet).  We can sit in the RV and watch the water birds and fishing boats going in and out of the marina.  There’s lots of crabbing going on that’s fun to watch.

The weather in Washington was hot and dry.  The Northwest States are desperate for rain.  Everyday fires are popping up in different regions.  We wake up in Oregon to the kind of weather we expected in Washington, cool, misty and foggy.   We’re on the road again, not expecting much for scenery, but enjoying the change.

After two days of traveling 217 miles on Highway 101,  at an average speed of 40 mph, we’ve arrived at our destination,  Umpqua Lighthouse State Park in Reedsport, Oregon.   This is as far southwest as we had planned to travel.   We’ll spend a few days here exploring  Umpqua Lighthouse and Oregon Dunes National Park.  E T will have the last of her stitches removed on Monday and then we start heading east.

Call us crazy,  but with the way our luck has been going,  maybe it wasn’t a good idea to go riding around an active volcano,  but we did.   It was on our “list of to do’s”.

Spectacular!  Spectacular! Spectacular!  Have you heard me say this before?   Have you heard me say this before about a National Park??

The slide show below is only a sampling of the 100 plus photos I took today.

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Our original plan was to drive to Sunrise point,  via Hwy 410,  in Mount Rainier National Park.  We were going to do three hikes,  the 0.5 mile walk around Tipsoo Lake,  the 1.5 Sunrise Point Nature Trail loop and a few miles of the Palisades Lakes Trail.

E T cannot be left alone.  She still has stitches and open wounds from the drainage tubes.   So, we changed our hiking plans to a “road tour”.    Instead of just going to Sunrise Point and hiking,  we drove the 100 plus miles around Mount Rainier National Park.   We had the whole day to do it and E T loves going for a ride.  It worked out PERFECT.   We were treated to one spectacular view after another.  The road around the park is steep at times,  twisty,  turning,  switchbacks,  elevations ranging from a few hundred feet to 6,000 plus ft.  Not as narrow as the Going To the Sun Road at Glacier or as steep as the Trail Ridge Road at Rocky Mountain National Park, but still quite a tricky ride.   Starting at Sunrise and going clockwise to the Nisqually Entrance,  a lot of the “thrilling” (aka cliff/no guardrail) side of the road were on the oncoming traffic side.   I like being on the mountainside 🙂

There were plenty of pull offs and lots of roadside areas where we could take E T out of the car.  She had a LOT of people interaction and sympathy.  She is really starting to milk it 🙂   My concern now is “doggie interaction”.

It wouldn’t be fair of me to compare Glacier National Park to Mount Rainier National Park. We didn’t camp at Mount Rainier and we only did a driving tour,   but if you only had one day and one choice,  hands down I would recommend Mount Rainier.

I posted a couple of photos of the helicopter/firefighter efforts used to stop and/or  control the fires out here.   It’s one thing to watch on TV,  but when you see the efforts in action,  it puts into perspective that this is a lifestyle that these heroic men and women battle with on a continuous basis.  I’ve had the opportunity to talk to a few volunteers and I was very impressed with their dedication.

Next Stop the Pacific Coast Highway

We’re not quite in Seattle, but 20 miles south in Des Moines, Washington, not to be confused with the one in Idaho 🙂

We are staying in the Salt Water State Park Campground on Puget Sound ($25 per night, dry camping).   The park and campground are in the process of a much needed restoration.  It could be and may have once been beautiful.  My bet is it will be again.    Our campsite #2 is a quick walk to the water.

Three of the reasons we chose this park are #1 It is less than 10 miles from Seattle-Tacoma Airport.  Rowan and Ricky Flew home on Saturday 🙁   #2  It is a very Pet friendly park.  There is a dog walk along the water and E T is allowed on the beach.  #3 it is less than 10 miles from Pacific Raceways, where the NHRA  Northwest Nationals were held this past weekend.

Two of the  reasons that we are SLEEPLESS    #1 The park is directly on the Airport Flight Line.  Every 3 to 5 minutes a plane  is coming or going, mostly going, DIRECTLY over our heads.

#2 Thursday night when we were at another campground, The Sunrise Resort, Lake Easton RV Park in Easton Washington, our dog,  E T and I were attacked and bit by an unleashed, unattended,  Saint Bernard dog that was staying in the site next to ours.  E T had to have surgery for multiple bites and had to have a drain inserted.   A fellow camper  at the Lake Easton State Park Campground. where we had moved after getting bitten,  had recommended the Vets For Less Animal Clinic in Federal Way,  Washington.  He said they were the BEST in the area.  We cannot agree more.   Vets For Less is 6.5 miles from Salt Water State Park.

E T needs 24 hour watching,  so that she doesn’t scratch her wounds, so David went to the drag races by himself on Sunday.   He liked the track a lot.  It wasn’t a premier track,  the seats were mostly bleachers,  but there were a lot of them.  The racing was premier thanks to cool weather, the track condition and being at sea level.  On a whole he thought Pacific Raceway was very  comparable to our “home tracks” at Reading and Englishtown.  We won’t count the track in  Epping, New Hampshire as an acceptable venue until they make a LOT more improvements.

Would we ever return to Salt Water State Park Campground?  In a heartbeat.  When the staff here saw what had happened to E T they could not have been kinder or more compassionate.  We had to stay longer than our reservations,  because E T needed to have the drain in at least 4 days. No problem, we stayed on site #2 the whole time.   Having the airplanes flying over continuously actually became entertaining and  even a bit therapeutic.  Some people like listening to the sound of waves splashing on the shore.  Listening to airplanes continuously pass overhead is a little like that.   The location to the water,  airport and downtown Seattle is more than a plus for staying here.  When the improvements are completed I can see it being a difficult place to get a reservation.   The weekends were full already.

I’m going to toot a horn once again for staying at National and State Parks.  They have rules and they enforce them.  The Rangers take their motto  “To Serve, To Protect and To Preserve seriously.   The Ranger assigned to the park and his aide,  took extra patrols making sure there were no unleashed dogs.   Everyday they came by checking on how E T was doing.

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Years ago one of my hobbies was photographing, identifying and cataloging wildflowers.  I still love photographing them and it’s a lot of fun seeing the differences and similarities between Eastern and Western Wildflowers.  We are out west at the right time for viewing. The meadows, hillsides, roadsides and yards are loaded.  I hope you enjoy the sideshow.

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You can only imagine the number of photos I took at Yellowstone.  The uniqueness of the area is beyond belief.  The photos don’t do the reality justice.  Here is just a sampling of some of the amazing phenomena and scenery in Yellowstone.

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Last stop on the “Grand” Tour.  They  leave for home tomorrow.  David played taxi driver and drove Rowan, Ricky and I into the city.  He dropped us off at the corner of Pine St and 5th Ave, Monorail Station.  David is a “country guy”.  Walking around a big city for hours is not his idea of fun.  He stayed with E T.

Ricky and I have been up to the top of the  Toronto Space Needle and really wanted to go to the top of the Seattle Space Needle, so we made it work.  It almost didn’t,  reservations should be made on line or purchased early,  if you’re looking for a specific time.  We only had a few hours to spend in the city and the only, on site tickets,  available were for the last possible time slot on our agenda, but we made it!

It was fun and the view of Mt Rainier is very cool, but you can get some great ones just driving on the highway.  Toronto VS Seattle,  both  Space Needle and City,  Ricky and I agree Toronto any day.  The elevator ride views are awesome, but the ride is too quick.

We enjoyed a walked down Broad St. to Sculpture Park and along the waterfront.

It was a good way to wind down an amazing 3 weeks of “Grand” Time!

Enjoy the Slideshow!

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It was an excellent choice to leave Glacier a day early and bicycle The Hiawatha Trail.   One of my goals is to ride a bicycle trail in every state.  Today I knocked off two states on one trail.  The Hiawatha Trail starts in Taft, Montana and 15 miles later in Pearson, Idaho is the shuttle trailhead.   We were shuttled back to Roland, Idaho and rode back through the 1.7 mile Taft Tunnel to the East Portal Trailhead in Taft, Montana.  We really crossed the line this time 🙂    Was this fun???  Yes!!!

Ten tunnels and 7 sky high steel trestles with a gentle 1.6% average grade that drops 1,000 ft over it’s 15 miles length was  fun, thrilling and loaded with fantastic scenery.  This is a mountain bike trail.  Most of the trail is rough gravel and the tunnels hard packed dirt.  It was challenging,  but the gentle down hill slope made it VERY enjoyable.

We are spending the night in Pinehurst, Idaho at the By The Way Campground.  It’s directly across the road from one of the Trailheads for the 73 mile Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes recreational trail.  We did not bike it,  but walked E T for a few miles to a doggie dipping creek.  If I were 20 years younger I would add this trail to my list of to do’s.   I would never have imagined Idaho would be the biking meca that it is.

The Grands are having an awesome time traveling in the RV.  We are so glad that they are enjoying the views.  Just another plus to RV traveling 🙂

Yes, they are seat belted!

We are all just about hiked out and have learned about a bike trail in Idaho that sounds interesting, The Hiawatha Trail.  The fires have put a damper on what you can see and where you can go, easily.   It is possible to get to the East side of Glacier,  but it’s at least a two and a half hour (one way) ride and the visibility could be limited.  The smoke from the fires here are blowing east,  but now we are getting smoke from the fires in Washington, Oregon and California.

Surreal!

Ricky and David rode the shuttle back up to Logan Pass.  I think David could ride The Going to the Sun Road all day and never tire of the views.   We have to come back when the entire road is open.

There is also a hike we would love to do, The Highline Trail.  This is an 11 mile,  mostly downhill  trail that goes along the mountainside from Logan Pass to The Loop,  where you can get a shuttle back to Logan Pass and then back down the mountain.    I would love to come back in the Spring or Fall, when there is no smoke and it’s cooler, to hike this trail.  It is a mountainside trail with very little shade.   It is HOT here with no breeze.   Not what I expected for Montana weather.   We met a “local” that told us this is NOT unusual weather, nor are the fires.  They happen every year.   Her suggestion was,  late July and August are not the time to visit the area, unless you like hot and smoky.

Rowan and I hiked two GREAT trails,  The Trail of the Cedars and Avalanche Lake.  Trail of the Cedars is a paved,  0.7 mile,  handicapped accessible trail.   It has an awesome waterfall that for the life of me,  I could not get a good photo.   I could sit on a bench here for hours  and wallow in the scents, sounds and sights.

Next we hiked the 2.0 mile (one way) Avalanche Lake Trail.   This was our kind of hiking. nice and shady with gorgeous scenery.   It took us 3 times longer to get to the lake than to get back, but it was worth it.  We are hiking in mountains 🙂

After dinner we took a night cruise on Lake McDonald.  This was the deal of the day.  A one hour narrated cruise around the lake for $17 an adult,  children 12 and under half price.

I’m going to sound like a broken record, AGAIN, but there is no country more beautiful and diverse than the United States of America.  Driving through Montana was yet another visual treat.

We almost changed our plans to not visit Glacier National Park, because of the fires on the northeast side of the park.  Our reservations  were for Fish Creek Campground in the Apgar Village section of the park (Dry camping, $11.50 a night).  Fish Creek is a just a few miles south of the West Entrance to the park.  To give a perspective,  Glacier National Park is approximately the size of Connecticut.  If there is a fire in the Northeast,  unless it’s on the news the people in 3/4 of the state wouldn’t even know it.

So here we are and glad we came.  The big draw is that there are only 25 Glaciers left in the Park (down from well over a hundred).   It is expected that within the next 5 – 15 years the Glaciers will be gone due to warming.   Seeing a Glacier was actually anti-climatic for me.  I had somehow gotten Icebergs and Glaciers mixed up.  It was just O.K. looking up at a mountain top miles away and seeing dirty snow.

Going to the Sun Road is a thrilling ride.  Overlooks, overhangs, switchbacks and steep inclines and declines treat you to spectacular views.

Only about 2/3 of the road is open,  because of the fire.   We rode the FREE (30 person) shuttle bus from the Apgar Visitor center to Avalanche Trailhead and then transferred to a smaller   (10 person) shuttle van up to Logan Pass (Continental Divide).   There are narrated tours (Red Bus is one of the most well known and popular)  that you can take.  We decided to do the FREE shuttle first and then decide if we wanted to pay for a tour.  I’ve commented before in many of my blogs that the National Park Service does an amazing job of presenting there parks.  The Visitor Centers are full of information. There are FREE Ranger led talks and hikes  available.   One of the Rangers that I had talked to had recommended several hikes.  The Hidden Lake Trail at Logan Pass was not a disappointment.

Here’s a short Ricky, story.  The Hidden Lake Trail is 1.4 mile UP mountain hike.  There are boardwalks, bridges, steps, rock and hard packed dirt sections.  Ricky and Rowan are a LOT quicker going UP than David and I.   This trail is packed with hikers.  Ricky and Rowan were allowed to go ahead of us and stop and wait at “rest stops” along the trail.  At what I thought was almost the top of the trail, Ricky came walking back to me and said “Gramma, you going to be disappointed with the Lake, it doesn’t look good.”  Oh Man!  I walk up and over the ridge and … it’s a little dinky stream more than a lake.

Ricky started smiling.  Up and over yet another ridge is not only an emerald green lake,  but a spectacular view.   He’s funny 🙂

Our site is a short distance from Lake McDonald and E T has been able to enjoy a few dips.

Ricky and David are just about hiked out.  This morning Rowan and I are going to shuttle up to the  Avalanche Trailhead and hike two trails that a Ranger recommended.  David and Ricky are going to ride the shuttle up and down Going to the Sun Road.   In the afternoon we are going to take a tour boat ride around Lake McDonald.  Good Times 🙂

Note:  Our Hot Spot is working here,  but very slow, that’s why there are so few photo.   This is a photographers paradise.