Pacific Northwest – Installment 7

Wow, this re-cap is taking a long time. It reminds me of just how much ground we covered and the wide variety of AMAZING stuff we got to see…

At the end of my last post, we’d just arrived in Sequim, Washington, which was to be our “base camp” while visiting Olympic National Park (ONP).

The cool thing about ONP is that it encompasses three distinct ecosystems: sub-alpine forest, temperate rainforest, and the rugged ocean coast. On the way to Sequim, we’d stopped and experienced a bit of rain forest AND rocky shore. On this day, it was up to Hurricane Ridge to see that sub-alpine forest and wildflower meadow for ourselves.

2_IMG_6329 — Annelies checks out the map.

3_IMG_6334 — Looking like Fall in the Visitor Center parking lot.

After a quick stop at the Visitor Center just inside the park entrance (near sea level), we got back into the car. That’s when I heard Yves exclaim something like, “What? Look is that?”

He’d mis-read a sign outside of the center. Not because he can’t read English well, he absolutely can, but I guess because he’d read it too quickly.

Those of you not used to visiting national parks in bear country may not realize that backpackers and campers are required to store all food in bear-proof canisters, aka “bear cans,” to keep the bears at bay.

5_IMG_6338 — About halfway up to Hurricane Ridge.

6_IMG_6346 — View from parking lot at the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center.

7_IMG_6348 — ToadMama at Hurricane Ridge

8_IMG_6352 — Deer! (near clump of trees on left)

11_IMG_6392 — View toward Vancouver Island, Canada.

13_IMG_6405 — Closer look at the glacier.

15_IMG_6409 — I just loved the colors up there.

16_IMG_6411 — Evidence of previous fire.

19_IMG_6434 — Gnarled Pine (from the wind)

21_IMG_6419 — Teeny Tiny Tree (about 4″ tall) with Fall Foliage

23_IMG_6464 — Driving into the fog as we made our descent.

We spent a few hours exploring the Hurricane Ridge area. It was lovely. But we still had more to see. We’d also planned on seeing a couple other areas within ONP, which is HUGE. So off we went.

Pics from that afternoon will be in my next installment.

TRIP Re-cap

Installment 1: In the Beginning (Friday, August 30 – Monday, Sept 2)

Installment 2: Portland Morning (Tuesday, Sept 3)

Installment 3: Exploring the City of Portland (morning of Tuesday, Sept 3)

Installment 4: Beyond Portland (afternoon of Tuesday, Sept 3)

Installment 5: Olympic Peninsula, Here We Come!

Installment 6: First Rain Forest Hike & Another Gorgeous Beach

8 Replies to “Pacific Northwest – Installment 7”

Well at least it seems some got a better description of where the deer were and not “by the green bush” 🙂

Love ya!

Kathy:

it’s been a while since we were there but we saw deer by the parking lot. So glad it was a clear day up there
You sure covered a lot of ground

bob
Riding the Wet Coast

Lol, Amy.

Bob, we covered a ton of ground! And water, too. But I’m getting ahead of myself. ONP is one of those parks where I could easily spend two entire weeks. It’s huge and so diverse. Good thing we went before the government decided to shut down. I feel so sorry for folks that planned entire vacations around national parks this week!

Wow, looks like such a gorgeous trip!! It must all be stunning, especially this time of year.

I know we live close but I have to admit we’ve never ben to the ONP. Maybe next year we’ll go see the sights. Your pictures make it look beautiful.

Thanks again for sharing.

Jade, it was stunning!

Brandy, you guys should go. It’s beautiful. You have to wait for the government to start operating again, of course.

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