Our Route Thus Far....

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Back to Portland

We took advantage of the 12:00 checkout time to catch up on some rest and TV watching (first time in a month and it didn’t seem like we’ve been missing much).  We got on the road to head south towards Tacoma to see what everyone had been making fun of (phrases like Tacom-aroma, etc) and to get lunch with Beth’s friend Eric from Denison.  Then it was algebra time, but both the public and the campus libraries were closed since it was Sunday (it is very hard to know what day of the week it is on this road trip).  We gave up and headed south towards Portland to find a campsite for the night.  Upon arriving in Portland, it was raining steadily so we made the executive decision to find a cheap hotel for the night (we got spoiled the night before).  It was well worth it as we found a nice, clean EconoLodge with free wifi and all the bells and whistles.  Not much exciting today.  Sorry. 

Seattle Wedding

We were delighted to wake up without much of a hangover before heading to breakfast at Eddie Vedder’s favorite restaurant (Endolyne Joe’s).  There is something about the Pacific NW that produces great food.  We guess that when it is raining, people need amazing restaurants to go eat at to cheer them up (not that we are complaining though).  This one even changes their “theme” every 3 months, redecorating the restaurant and changing the menu.  This time it was “Santa Fe” and Robbie got what was in his opinion the best breakfast ever. 

After hanging out in the McArthur yard and enjoying the rare Seattle sun and heat over some homebrewed apple cider, we packed up the car and hit the road again.  This time the drive was pretty short to a nearby hotel to get ready for the wedding that evening of one of Robbie’s good friends, Kyra.  The wedding was beautiful and was perfectly timed to capture a picturesque sunset over Lake Washington.  It was a great time catching up with old Colorado friends and dancing the night away before walking back to our hotel.

Seattle Wine and Beer

After convincing Grayson to skip work to entertain us we fueled up over an amazing homemade breakfast and took off toward the wineries to the East of Seattle.  For lunch we did cheese and crackers with a bottle of wine over an intense game of Bocce (which even with the power of Robbie’s mustache, we lost). We then went to Columbia Valley winery where Grayson and Katie were members, which meant way too many free samples of delicious wine. 

If we weren’t feeling nice and toasted yet, we drove down the road to Redhook Brewery for some beer, and a tour that was incredibly efficient at getting us drunk (especially Robbie drinking everyone’s unwanted samples).  After a great dinner and a blur of a car ride we went to a pirate themed local brewery that specialized in German styles of beer (go figure) and hung out for the rest of the evening.  The end.

Downtown Seattle

This day’s entry runs the risk of being as long as July 3^rd, but for better reasons.  We will do our best to make it shorter.  Katie volunteered to be our tour guide for the day and do the tourist thing around downtown Seattle.  We started by taking a water taxi across from West Seattle to downtown and headed towards the famous Pike Place Market.  This is the fish-throwing, crowded farmer’s market that everyone that has been to Seattle has probably visited.  It actually was very cool and they really did throw huge fish pretty long distances.  There also were these flower arrangements that cost either $5 or $10 depending on size and were seriously huge.  After seeing all the yummy fruit, the three of us were hungry and went across the street (next to the original Starbuck’s location) to Beecher’s for the “World’s Best Mac and Cheese” (for breakfast).  It really might have been the best we have ever had and was frighteningly addicting even though it was very filling. 

We then caught a free bus to Pioneer Square for Seattle’s Underground Tour.  This actually was very cool.  Tons of history and funny stories from Seattle’s past.  There also was plenty of civil engineering information for Robbie to enjoy like streets over 8 to 35 foot tall retaining walls in front of stores in that area.  It is too hard to explain in the blog, so go check it out or ask Robbie to explain.  During the tour we kept on smelling really good food so we hiked up to Chinatown to a wonderful Chinese restaurant and ate wayyyy too much for lunch.  At least we had a long hike ahead of us to the monorail across town. 

We took the monorail to the area around the space needle and the new Science Fiction Museum/Experience Music Project.  They were both very cool places and the SFM had a whole floor dedicated to Jim Henson and his Muppets.  There were walls made of muppet fur and plenty of cool sketches.  The EMP had a great exhibit on Jimi Hendrix and an amazing hands-on area that taught you how to play various instruments ranging from guitars and keyboards to sampling equipment and DJ turntables.  Robbie would have played there all night if Beth didn’t drag him away. 

That night we had a yummy dinner at a fish and chips place near Alki Beach and then went to an Irish pub for some beers and something called “Irish Root Beer” that was like 75% alcohol but managed to taste like root beer.  Then it was bed time after all of the tourism.  Good night.

 

Ferry to Seattle

Packing up camp while it’s raining is never fun.  The tent never gets rolled up smoothly and everything is a cold, wet mess thrown in the car.  After some coffee (we see why it is so popular with the Pacific NW weather), we were on the road toward Bainbridge Island.  After almost missing our ferry while eating lunch, we were crossing Puget Sound on a boat.  It is a weird sensation to park your car and then see the scenery moving by a few seconds later.  Also, we would later find out that the Seattle ferries were approaching 80 years old and had seen better days.  We made it without sinking though.

Drove to Grayson (Robbie’s old roommate from Colorado) and Katie’s house and got a much needed shower (sorry to announce every time we shower, but we don’t want people to think we were too unsanitary).  After hanging out for a bit in the McArthur abode, we cooked out before heading to a patisserie where the pastry chef had won some world cup of desserts in France before opening up shop.  The cakes were dangerously rich and good.  Then we went across the street to Elliott Bay brewery for some beers before heading back to their house.  It is nice to have a real bed and bathroom again.

 

Dangerous Goat

We woke up to an even rainier day today and decided a shower would be nice.  The campsite suggested the swimming pool in nearby Port Angeles that was closed for the month of July (odd timing).  No shower so we decided to go on a hike in the park again.  The drive was ridiculously foggy and it is actually kind of scary to go through a tunnel filled with fog.  There is this eerie dim light at the end but otherwise it is just an oppressing darkness.  Try it sometime. 

The hike was actually above all of the clouds and it was amazing to see the valleys from above filled with thick clouds.  At the trailhead there was a sign that said in large letters “Goat Warning”.  The sign went on to describe a goat in the area that had been aggressively approaching hikers and trying to ram them (it was cuter when we pictured a little farm goat, not a mountain one).  The sign suggested throwing rocks and insults at the aggressive beast to scare it away.  Also, urinating along the trail was discouraged as the asshole goat was perverted enough to enjoy licking up the pee.  This was all very funny but we took the warnings seriously during the hike.  We wondered how many innocent goats had been stoned in this area because of the one bad apple and the sign he inspired.  Otherwise it was a very steep hike that was filled with beautiful wildflowers and great views of the valleys below.  Since it was chilly and damp back at the campsite we just tuckered down in the tent with Oso and relaxed before going to sleep.