Olympic Peninsula – Day 15

This morning Libby hung out at the hotel (doing all our laundry), while the kids and I went to Second Beach at low tide.

First pic: before I asked them to open there eyes.

After: looking like they’ve been goosed.

When the tide is out, there is almost a half-mile of beach and you can walk all the way out to the Haystacks.

We got to look into some amazing tidal pools and “dry” rocks.

This is the same Haystack you saw behind Tom and Elle in the first picture.

A great morning at the beach.

We went back to get Lib and headed to the Hoh river valley.  They receive more rain here than almost anywhere in the U.S., about 6 feet.

All that water means to lots and lots of vegetation.  In fact, the temperate climate rain forests of Washington state are even more dense than tropical rain forests.

Big trees.

Really big, grand trees. Big slugs too.

This is a nurse tree supporting the next generation.  There is definitely a sermon here.

We ended our day at Ruby beach.

Olympic Peninsula – Day 14

Yesterday the mountains and snow. Today, the beach.

We drove from Mount Rainier to the west side of the Olympic Peninsula near Forks, WA and Rialto Beach.  What a difference a day makes.

We are headed to Hole in the Wall…

…past the Haystacks…

…over the rocks…

…we made it.

Then back down the beach to watch the sunset…

…stopping to check out the tidal pools…

…beautiful.

 

 

 

Mount Rainier – Day 13

I was able to wake up early and go down to the lobby this morning to enjoy my coffee by the fire.  After breakfast, we all headed off for a hike.

First, over the Nisqually River.  The Nisqually is fed by an active glacier so the water looks almost milky because it is filled with “flour” which the glacier grinds off of the rocks.

Next, up the trail to Carter Falls…

…and back down the trail…

…back over the Nisqually…

 

…and on to more adventure. You can see the boys and me way up there on the bridge.

 

There are little waterfalls everywhere.

The kids got another Jr. Ranger Badge.

Did I tell you there was snow?

 

 

Mount Rainier – Day 12

On to Mount Rainier National Park.

At 14,410 feet, Mount Rainier is the tallest mountain in Washington.  The slopes remain snow covered all year due to the tremendous amount of moisture in the air.  Our first stop is the Grove of Patriarchs.

It is a grove of 1,000 year old cedar trees on a island in the Ohanapecosh River.  We walked over a suspension bridge to get to the island…

…and on the other side, some of the most amazing trees I’ve ever seen.  These are bring tears to your eyes trees.  I really can’t express the scale.

After the Grove of Patriarch, we headed up the mountain to Paradise and Paradise Lodge, our accommodations for the next two nights.

As you can see, there is still quite a bit of snow at Paradise, 15 feet or so.  But the lodge is spectacular, essentially the same as it was 100 years ago.

 

Lake Chelan – Day 11

Today we are going to spend the day on a boat traveling up Lake Chelan to the village of Stehekin.  On route we will also see the stop for Holden Village, the ELCA’s retreat village.  Holden is not accepting guests for the summer because they are doing some major cleanup from it’s days as a copper mine.

Here we are getting ready to board.  As you can see, it is cloudy and cold, very cold.

Goodbye Chelan.

Nothing like a little coffee to start the day, that and water and mountains.

Lake Chelan is 1,500 feet deep, 55 miles long, and less than 2 miles wide in most places.  It is the third deepest lake in the United States (400 feet below sea level in some places.).

Here is the dock for Holden Village, most of these people are on the work crew for the summer cleanup.

Another picture of the lake and a stream.

The community of Stehekin lies at the end of the Lake Chelan.  It can only be reached by boat, plane, or foot.  Libby said they should make a television show about Stehekin, it’s that remote.

When we stopped we immediately got on a bus (shipped in on a barge) run by the national park service to see Rainbow Falls.  It is has a 312 foot fall and is easily one the most impressive natural wonders we has seen so far.

Here is a picture of our bus with our boat in the background.

Here is the ferry.

On our return trip, the sun came out.  It was like taking a whole new trip.

 

 

 

 

Wenatchee, WA – Day 10

We are continuing our trek to Washington today.  It will be the first time any of us have ever visited, our destination for the night, Wenatchee.

The first stop in Wenatchee was Ohme Garden, a decades long endeavor by and man and his wife to build an alpine garden on a hillside overlooking Wenatchee.

The highlight of the day however was dinner.  We tried Salvadorean cuisine at the Tropical Salvadorean Restaurant.  Our favorite item, pupusas, a thick pancake made from corn masa cooked on a griddle.  Oh my!

Coeur D’Alene – Day 9

Today we leave Yellowstone.  It has been amazing to say the least.  Here is the Roosevelt Arch at the north entrance.  It reads, “For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People.” Amen!

We did make one stop today, Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, MT.  It has the world’s largest collection of dinosaur fossils.  It was simply one of the best natural history museums I’ve ever visited.

Yellowstone Hellroaring Creek and Mammoth Hot Springs – Day 8

Today we moved from Canyon Village to Mammoth Hot Springs.

On the way we got caught in a Bison Jam, turns out it’s easier for the bison to take the road over Mount Washburn too.

We took a hike, 5 miles to Hellroar Creek.

We crossed a suspension bridge over the Yellowstone River.

Walked through alpine woods.

Had deer walk across our path.

All-in-all we had a generally great hike.

We ended our day at Mammoth Hot Springs.

Ben and Tom found this particular formation quite funny.

 

Yellowstone Lamar Valley and Cody, WY – Day 7

We decided to try and see some bears and wolves today.  We got up at 5am and drove to the Lamar Valley.  It is called the Serengeti of North America.

There are literally hundreds of Bison, maybe thousands.

We didn’t see any wolves or bears this time but it was beautiful.

After looking at the wildlife we thought we might check out Cody, Wy.  We took the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway.  Teddy Roosevelt called it the fifty most beautiful miles in America.

 

I agree.

Cody was also great.  We spent a couple of hours at the Museum of the West where we learned about Buffalo Bill Cody, Native American culture, and western art.  We each picked a favorite piece.

This one is Tommy’s favorite.

Ellie’s.

 

Ben’s.

Libby’s.

Mine.

Then we headed back toward Yellowstone.  Along the way stopped at a bridge with beautiful views.

Back into Yellowstone past Beartooth Mountain.

Dinner on the banks of the Soda Butte Creek.

And a quick stop at Roosevelt Lodge where Libby stayed with her family when she was a little girl.

 

 

 

Yellowstone Canyon Day – Day 6

Another early start, today we hiked the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. This is the view from the Northern Rim of the Lower Falls.  500’ decent in 3/8 of a mile.

After seeing the falls we headed to other side of the canyon for a hike to Sublime Point.  It was a beautiful hike of about 5 miles.

Here is Artist Point, I’m sure you’ll understand why.

After a little lunch, we drove to Norris Geyser Basin…

 

…where the kids got their second Jr. Ranger badge.  Ranger Nick gave them their oath.  Nick is from Valparaiso, IN.

Have I said I love our country?