Monday, June 4
So, Port Angeles seems quite lovely. Today we got up early (for us on vacation) and headed out on a whale watching expedition. Island Adventures, with our captain Mischa and crew, McKenzie, Kylie, Billy, and Amanda, were personable and informative. The company advertises the trip as 4-5 hours, reserving the right to extend the trip up an additional 60 minutes if we are having a good viewing opportunity. I have to say, we started out slowly. A juvenile bald eagle on the way out of port, and then all quiet. There was a report of a whale west, so we headed out further than they usually go. No luck. We turned around and slowly headed back looking at various small islands and outcroppings along the way. I should mention that we were across the maritime boarder, so technically in Canada today. Anyway, as we were about to look for Ollie the sea otter, Captain Mischa caught a glimpse of a fluke. Away we went, and were rewarded with a humpback whale breaching. They said young, but we thought it was big. Ryan, Gillian and Audrey got to see the breach. Greg, Elizabeth and I saw more of the ending splash. Greg has a picture. Apparently, whales don’t just hover in the air waiting for me to see the right spot. Still cool, though. And, we now headed back to find Ollie. As we passed by this particular lighthouse, we saw Ollie sleeping on a bed of kelp, sea lions, seals, and lots of birds. AND, it gets even better. We received a report that an orca had been spotted off Victoria Island. Of course we went there right away. It wasn’t just one orca, but a pod, including a baby. We watched them for about a half hour as they swam leisurely by the shore. They were right by someone’s dock. If I lived there, I really don’t think I’d go swimming. A long day on the water, but well worth it. Captain Mischa keeps his record of sighting whales 100% of the time on his trips.
Tuesday, June 5
Today we got up early and drove into Seattle. It’s quite a haul from Port Angeles, not mileage wise, but time wise, and the road twists and turns, and there is a ferry crossing. But, we wanted to see Seattle, so we did our best to get a one day feel for the city. We parked in the Pike Place market area, walked through a bit, and found a café overlooking the water for lunch. Pike Place is one of the oldest continuously run markets in the country. It is a busy and vibrant area, at least around mid-day. It has pretty much a little bit of everything: fresh fish, flowers, imported goods, fruits, desserts, collectables, jewelry, and on and on and on. It’s also intermixed with street performers (some just singing into a paper cup), and packed with people. Some of our family really enjoy the pulse of the market, and some of the family (Audrey in particular) does not care for the crowds and smells.
Next, we took an urban hike up to the Space Needle. Nothing like learning the city by walking through it—you can see the most interesting people, and marijuana is legal in Washington, so you also get a lot of smells. Anyway, onto the Space Needle and center city. This area was less crowded today. We enjoyed the observation deck from the top of the needle. It’s been under renovation, and they are replacing the barriers with all clear windows with clear benches along the edge that allow you to lean back and look out. Next, we went through the Chihuly Glass museum. The glass works are really beautiful. I’d be curious to know how many pieces of individual glass are used to comprise each of those chandeliers. I really love the outdoor garden area where the glass corresponded and was complemented by matching flowers. We had a little extra time before dinner, so we went into the MoPop (museum of Popular culture). This was kind of a fun place. They have these areas set up with different genres of popular culture, often with interactive things to do. We explored science fiction, horror (again, Audrey is not a fan), fantasy, something with sound, and the special Avengers exhibit. Based on the boots with his Starlord costume, I think Chris Pratt has big feet.
Took an uber back down towards the market area for a lovely dinner, and then off for our 2 ½ hour drive back to the RV. Seattle was fun, but I, personally, do not feel compelled to live there.
Wednesday, June 6
Drive day, with the family split up so Ryan and I could stop and visit Evergreen College. This is a non-traditional university on a 1000 acre campus (800 forested acres). If you are interested in a non-traditional college experience, they have some compelling things we can go into (They have emphasis instead of majors, and the average age of their students is 25.), but Ryan is thinking it’s probably not the place for him.
Thursday, June 7 overnight into Friday, June 8
Today we had two vastly different types of activities in two different states. First we got up early-ish to drive and see Mount St. Helens in Washingon. Even from the closest viewpoint (drivable), I don’t think you can adequately grasp the enormity of the volcano and it’s eruptions. The 1980 eruption was the equivalent of 1000 atomic bombs. The lava dome inside the crater is over 1000 feet tall. Everything looks large, but when you see pictures with people standing next to these identifiers, you see that it is just beyond large.
Another fun sighting at Mt. St. Helens—the Maurice Family! Proving that it really is a small world. Also, we saw the fattest chipmunks we’ve ever seen. Just go by the snack trailer in the parking lot of the visitor’s center and they’ll run right over your foot! Huge and funny—and you just know the people working in the snack trailer were rolling their eyes and saying, “They’re just chipmunks.”
We stopped at a little souvenir shop on the way back off the mountain (Passed a lot of trees that were planted in 1983 after the eruption, I think they’re Douglas firs, but the way they’ve grown creates almost an optical illusion. We call them blurry trees.) so we could take a picture next to a concrete sasquatch. Turns out not only was the squatch made with ash from Mt. St. Helen’s, but there have been numerous sasquatch sightings in the area. They keep a notebook where everyone can document their experiences. My vote would be to make copies of the notebook and sell that; I could have read those for hours.
Now out of Washington state and back to Oregon for Gillian’s birthday. Yes, Gillian’s birthday is in February, but one of her gifts was an overnight experience with sloths. Rainier, Oregon is home to a sloth sanctuary and you can spend the night. It was a really fun and unique opportunity that I’m really glad we did. Basically, you stay up all night in a little building full of sloths. We had 9 (8 females, 1 male; 1 female was pregnant). About every hour, the heater kicks on and the sloths wake up and come down to eat. You get to feed them cucumbers and pet them. They are so cute. You can not hold them. What I learned: sloths actually move much faster and more often than I had imagined. These were very friendly. While vegetarian, they have really pointy teeth. Their potty dance is real. The room is warm for the sloths (rainforest habitat), but not uncomfortable at all for these hearty Nashville natives—until you have to climb into the tent, and especially if you are sharing that tent. That was hot. While they do have a distinct animal smell, the odor in the room was not overpowering while we were there. We did discover (after we showered) that we smelled a lot worse that we realized. Sloth smell apparently sort of seeps into all your clothing. Sorry to those gentlemen who sat at the table next to us when we went to breakfast (immediately after leaving the sloths, and before showering). I hope that’s not why they left…
We also had a bonus animal experience during our sloth time. We got to feed, pet and hold Kiki the black and white ruffed lemur. Kiki was very active, leaping back and forth from each of us, eating fruit loops. His paws (feet?) were quite large and really soft. A once in a lifetime experience (I think) for all of us. Happy birthday, Gillian!
Friday, June 8
End of our overnight with the sloths. I haven’t pulled an all-nighter in years. Even when the kiddos were tiny babies, or at the Junior Theater Festival I manage at least a little sleep. Breakfast, showers, a cat nap for Greg, and we’re off to drive to Idaho.
