This morning the fact sunk in that we have rounded the horn and are headed east again. The gorgeous blue Pacific is behind us. I wonder if I will ever see it again and hear its surf pounding on the beach. We have gone as far west as we can go without leaving the country. Turning east carries the thought that our adventure, that once seemed endless, does in fact have an end.
This has been a special time for me and Darlie. There is no one and nothing that takes our time from one another. We have enjoyed every minute doing whatever we have been doing. I know when we get back east, our focus will change to visiting with family and friends. We do look forward to that but with it this special time will come to an end.
Even though we are doing different things, we are only about an arms length away from each other all day. I am writing my blog while Darlie sits on the other side of the booth searching her bird book for the birds she spotted today. At home we are usually in separate rooms doing whatever. Living in such a small space makes you more aware of each other. It also teaches you to be more considerate of each other. One thing for sure. If we ever start to feel disconnected, we will jump in the old bread truck and go somewhere.
As I was walking around the old bread truck this morning I noticed he had a smile on his face. I asked why he was all aglow. He said he is happy we bought him. He spent most of his life going nowhere. He just sat around and didn’t get to do what he was born to do...... travel. He said we have driven him places he always dreamed he would take his owners someday. Every morning he is ready for the new adventure set before us. He really cheered me up.
Our plan was to drive up to Port Townsend and take the ferry across to Whidbey Island. It would be a pleasant drive up Rt 101, avoiding the traffic of the greater Seattle area. The Lord had other plans. He knows my yesterdays, my todays and my tomorrows. He already knows what the day holds for us. There is comfort in knowing He directs our paths.
I tried to call the ferry company to make a reservation. RVs have to make reservations at least a day in advance. They can only put so many large vehicles on at a time. The recording said all slots for today were filled. Some of the slots for tomorrow were also filled. I waited patiently on hold for fifteen minutes. No one picked up. I wasn’t going to drive up there without a confirmed reservation and not be able to get on. So plans were changed. I will drive through Seattle though I loath cities.
The Seattle metro area is made up of several large cities in a row. Olympia, Tacoma, and Seattle along with a dozen smaller cities make an eighty mile long traffic snarl. We flew along pretty good at first. Then the dreaded start and stop driving began. We inched along for a long way until we came to the reason for the backup. Some poor soul in a delivery truck was broken down right in the middle of the freeway. He wasn’t having a good day.
I have two GPS units. One is a Garmin 255. The other is a Tom Tom XL with lane guidance. I will take the Tom Tom over the Garmin. It tells me what lane to be in two miles in advance before any turns or splits in the traffic pattern. With a large vehicle I have time to move over if I have too. It sounds a trumpet call if I get over the speed limit. It also warns me of those traffic cameras at intersections. It recalculates a new route fast if you make a wrong turn.
We could see Mt. Rainier and Mt. Baker from the interstate. It was a clear day so their tops were not in the clouds as they usually are. We had talked about driving over to Rainier but figured we wouldn’t be able to see it if we did. I guess we were wrong.
Look real closely. See the mountain?
Someone told us to drive Rt 20 through North Cascade NP. That is where we are now.
We camped in a very dense forest on the banks of a rushing stream. There is still lots of snow on the mountains up here that is keeping it well fed. The water is turquoise blue and so cold it numbs your hand in a minute.
The forest is some of the thickest I have seen out west. The tall stately Douglas Fir predominates. Red cedars also streak skyward as if trying to complete in a race for the heavens. Their relatively smooth bark was pounded into fabric by the Indians to make clothing. The closet in the Tee Pee probably smelled wonderful but I would think a set of bark underwear would leave a rash.
The forest floor is covered with green plants of every description. The only ones I recognize are very large ferns standing more than three feet tall. Large logs of long ago fallen trees lie rotting amidst the vegetation. In God’s creation nothing is wasted. The old rotting log feeds the new generation that sprung from its own seed years ago.
Crows, steller’s jays, a humming bird, robins and a squirrel visit our campsite. As compared with other places, wildlife seems sparse. I think they are well hidden in the thick forest. Occasionally you catch movement out of the corner of your eye. Whatever it was is gone. Hidden in the dense foliage.
I think robins should have been named the national bird. We have seen robins in every state we have visited. They seem to be in abundance everywhere. Hearing one chirping happily away is like hearing the voice of a familiar friend everywhere you go.
There is a dogwood tree right next to the MH. They don’t have as many flowers on them as the ones back east. But they are very large flowers. Darlie had to take a picture, of course.
There are no services in this park so we are dry camped. The price is right though. It is just $6.00 with my Senior pass. There are other campers out here with us but you wouldn’t know it because we are spaced out so well.
We built a fire and cooked some steaks. We spotted some bear sign around our camp. Darlie kept an eye out for an evening visitor. So far the bear hasn’t appeared.
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