Washington - July 2018

July 25, 2018.

This morning did start really bad. I have a difficult time getting Nicolette out of bed. She would like to sleep until 10:00 AM.

I wake them up at 7:00 AM to drive while the temperature is still pleasant. This morning I told her to let me fold up the couch and then she could sleep at the regular position while I am driving.

I finally got it organized and decided to move the motorhome forward to be able to attach the car.

When I got out of the motorhome I saw the electric cord behind the motorhome and also the water hose with the faucet attached to it. Where the faucet had been, was now a geyser. I looked for a shut off valve but could not find one. I had broken my regular routine and forgot to remove the electric cable from the box and disconnect the water hose. I was lucky the pipe was PVC pipe and broke easy. The inlet fitting at the motorhome tore out of the wall but did not rip out completely. At least I do not have to take the inside wall apart to get to the water pipes.

People were in the pool doing laps. I went there and asked whether one of them was an official at the Elks Lodge. None of them was. They rent time in the morning from the lodge for their training.

When their coach arrived, he made some calls.

A man arrived and he could not find a shut off valve either. He made some calls and was told the valve was in the annex building.

The office people come normally at 9:00 AM. Today they came early and gave the man, who wanted to shut off the water, the key for the annex.

I told the office manager that I would pay for the damage as soon as they send me the bill.

After all was settled we left for cooler weather and found it at the coast. I had to change my itinerary because of the heat.

We stopped at the replica of Fort Clatsop for a while. Lewis and Clark and their crew had spent the winter here.

Since it was still early we drove to the Elks Lodge in Hoquiam, Washington.

Nicolette wanted to eat Italian food and we walked 1.7 miles one way to an Italian restaurant. We needed to wear sweatshirts.

July 26, 2018.

We arrived at the Elks Lodge in Forks at about 10:00 AM and 45 minutes later we were on our way to the Hoh Rain Forest.

We walked the Spruce Trail and the Moss Gallery Loop.

We also walked down to the Hoh River.

After having lunch in the picnic area, we drove tp Rialto Beach, near La Push.

Nicolette and Jacob had fun climbing on the thrift wood.

It was foggy and cool on the beach. In Forks the temperature was 72 degrees F.
When we left the beach I talked to a couple who had big back packs and were waiting on the side of the parking lot. They had finished a 33 mile hike.
The woman looked very German to me. Actually she is from Austria and is here to walk with her friend. His wife will pick them up tomorrow in Forks. The two completed the hike one day early.
I gave them a ride into town.

July 27, 2018.

This was a super day. We left Forks at 7:00 AM. Nicolette had slept on the couch without making it to a full- size bed. That saved me from begging her to get up. There is no problem with Jacob.

We arrived in Sequim at about 9:00 AM. The drive along Lake Crescent is always a pleasant experience for me.

One of those days I will drive it by car and stop at places. There is no room for a motorhome with car along the road.

At 9:45 AM we were heading for Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park. There was construction going on, on the park road, and we had to wait 30 minutes.

The Hurricane Hill Road was partly closed and the Hurricane Hill Trail was closed. I would have liked to hike the trail again, this time with the children.

We hiked instead the Cirque Rim Trail to Sunrise Point. This was a good workout.

When we came back to town we went to Safeway and did some grocery shopping.

July 28, 2018.

When we arrived at Mel Wick’s home, in Gig Harbor, we were given the spot where he parks his bus.

The bus is now somewhere else. Mel is getting ready for an operation.

We have full hook-ups.

Brenda, Dick and Sharon are here too.

After setting up the motorhome we drove to Tacoma and visited the Museum of Glass.

First, we went across the Chihuly Bridge of Glass. On the side of the bridge are glass cases with some of his creations.

The bridge is covered at some places and on the ceiling are more works of art.

On the other side of the bridge was a concert. Young people were entertaining an audience.

A the museum we stopped first at the glass blowing area. Here they produce fancy glass wares.

At the gallery they have modern glass art on display.

The outside pond has a lot of glass figures.

From the museum we drove to a park near the zoo to do some walking. We could not find a parking space and went to a little park instead.

July 29, 2018.

This was another hot day. We had to use the air conditioner in the motorhome.

In the early morning I walked in the neighborhood. I left at 7:00 AM and returned at 9:45 AM. The kids were still sleeping.

I left the motorhome a different way then what I did the last few years. I walked down the hill to the water and walked along the shore, and then up another steep hill. This was still they way I remembered. When it came to get off the road and make a right turn I was lost. I walked and walked and finally gave up and turned around and walked the way I came from.

I was looking for a side road with a lot of big pot holes. They must have fixed the road and I did not recognize the street.

When I came back to the motorhome I woke up Nicolette and Jacob and we drove to Poulso, the small Scandinavian town.

We had lunch there and Jacob told us that he had the best pulled pork sandwich.

After lunch we walked the main street and visited some stores.

At the Scandinavian Market I bought some bread and Nicolette bought German chocolate.

The bakery is one of the beautiful houses in Poulso.

The German restaurant is beautiful too.

There was a bicycle with a sidecar.

After shopping we walked along the water front.

July 30, 2018.

We left Mel’s place real early to get trough Tacoma. Our freezer is filled with birthday cake and ice cream. Donna Lee had bought several cakes and a lot of ice cream for Mel's 75th birthday.
A lot of people did not show up, perhaps they are on vacation.
The Elks Lodge in Kelso has many sites with electric and water. They also have a dump station.

After we set up the motorhome we drove to the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. We stopped at the Johnston Ridge Observatory.

First, we saw a movie about the eruption in 1980 and the recovery of the area.

Then we listened to the ranger explaining the recovery. I listened and my grandchildren were bored. They do not like the movies and talks.

We walked up to an outlook and checked out the caldera from a distance.

Our next stop was the Weyerhaeuser Forest Learning Center.

Here they have a lot of displays about forestry. The company has a lot of land next to the National Monument and did reseed the area. Their trees are pretty large now.