Friday, October 20, 2023

Every Which Way

 Chuck and I did a day trip last weekend - a mini road trip. He loves to drive, drives a city bus here in Seattle, but of course that's much different than a relaxing drive through the countryside or the mountains.
 
 (Thanks Google - actual photos of Seattle)
 

 
We headed south through Seattle, through Tacoma and into Olympia. We stopped at the capital building and walked around. There were very few people around and we kind of had the place to ourselves. Found a WWII memorial that was so humbling to see. So many people have given their lives for this country. I wish we were more united for their sake.

 Goodbye Seattle
 

 
 
 
What looked like figures of soldiers turned out to be the names of everyone who had died. It was very moving.

 


 We turned west from Olympia and went up the 101 on the inside of the Kitsap Penninsula. I've lived here more than 30 years and had never taken this route before. (I'm sure Chuck has with all the driving he's done around here.)

We continued west for a little while then headed north and after a while found ourselves on a dirt logging road. Before we left the house Chuck was looking for places to visit and found the High Steel Bridge and we were making our way there.









Originally it was the tallest railroad bridge in the United States. It's now a roadway for cars and the Skokomish rivers runs under it. We saw a waterfall on one side, flowing down through the trees. I expect it's a lot bigger in the spring, once all the snow has melted.

The Skokomish river

 
 
The waterfall
 





We headed back out the way we came and continued north on the main road. We drove along the water most of the way home, stopped at a small diner for lunch, then took the ferry back across the water to Edmonds. 
 


 
The ferry heading toward the dock to pick us all up, with a cruise ship heading out to sea.
 




 
 
Can you see Mt Rainier to the left of the ship? (Downtown Seattle on the right, about 15 miles away.) Now you know that photos only give a small percentage of what the eye sees, right? Mt Rainier was about 60 miles south of us but was so bright and clear I felt like I could reach out and touch it! When the mountain is out here in WA state, it's breathtaking! 
 
The weather was beautiful, the scenery was stunning, it was exactly what we needed. We're already planning our next trip! 
 

8 comments:

Susan said...

I enjoyed all your pictures. I love those tall trees! Waterfalls are so exciting to see. I took a cruise to Alaska out of Seattle back in 2016. Enjoy your weekend!

Terri D said...

I love road trips like that and yours was so interesting! Your photos are lovely!! Thanks for taking us along!!

Pamela M. Steiner said...

What a beautiful ride you took! I love all the scenery, and that bridge and waterfall/river! Amazing! I've seen Mt. Rainier once in my life, from up in the air in an airplane! I could see the top of it in the clouds and thought at first it was a cloud and then realized it was the mountain! I took some pictures from my window in the plane. It was amazing! Thank you for sharing your lovely trip with us. I enjoyed this ride very much!

ellen b. said...

What a beautiful day for your road trip! Glad you found the bridge and were treated to many pretty views. Those memorials are very sobering. The one time we visited Olympia and the capitol there were just a couple other people there. Wonderful photos!!

Ernie said...

This sounds like such a lovely, relaxing time. I can see on the map that you aren't too far from Vancouver. That has been one of our favorite trips. Curly Irish danced there in 2019 and we all ended up going - the boys came the day after she was done dancing. So much to see. It was the farthest west I've ever been. So pretty.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

Yes I see Mt.Rainier. What a fabulous adventure you went on. Enjoyed all of your photos.

Anonymous said...

You live in such a beautiful part of the country - love your pictures!

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