WA Trip

Yes, a little late, but here is the synopsis of the trip to Seattle.

We arrived in Seattle on a Tuesday afternoon, and hung around the house the rest of the day.

Lisa and I invited Janna, Andrew, and Uncle Scott to join us on a hike to Snow Lake (pictures). This is accessed form the Alpental Ski Area, and is a high mountain lake. Even in July, there was still snow on the lake, and on the slopes around the lake. It was a nice treat to be able to see snow in July.

All of us (except Uncle Scott) went to Pike Place Market (pictures) to see the sights and do some shopping. Lisa couldn't believe the great flowers that were available, and Mario couldn't keep himself from the cherries.

Lisa and I woke up early to catch the ferry across the Puget Sound to the Olympic Peninsula (pictures). She wanted to see the "lush NW forest", and Uncle Scott suggested the Olympics. We went up to Hurricane Ridge for a short hike, where we had a nice view of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. From there, we continued on to the Hoh Rain Forest, where Lisa was very satisfied with the sights. We went westward to La Push and the Pacific Ocean. The town wasn't so nice, but the beach (and hike to it) was. We saw driftwood, rocky spires in the ocean, a "keyhole", and a banana slug. We passed by lots of logging areas, small towns (Port Angeles, Sequim), and took a late ferry back across the sound.

We went back to Seattle (pictures) to Pike Place Market again, but also to visit the Troll, and see some floating houses (Sleepless in Seattle). We spent another day around the house, but also went to XXX Root Beer for a car show.

We spent our last day in town with a trip to Deception Falls (pictures) in the mountains. These are nice falls, with great areas to see them all. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my Crocs on this outing, and missed an opportunity to put my feet in the stream.

We did leave some things to do next time we go, like snowboarding, visiting Leavenworth, and hiking at Mt. Rainier.