We’re safely at our next campground, in the lovely Sequim (pronounced skwim), WA. We are now just a short drive away from another highly anticipated National Park location – Olympic! As we planned this leg of the trip, the big decision was boat ride or no boat ride. We opted against a ferry ride, especially with it being Sunday of a holiday weekend. While it would have been neat, it also invited stress that we didn’t need or want. Plus it was a fascinating drive day without it.
We got on the road early since we had lunch plans with friends. The fog was so dense for the first hour, just as you would expect in this area. It thwarted any wildlife viewing opportunities, which have been limited to date on this trip. The skies became clearer just as we got up to the highway. Honestly, it was refreshing to just drive some normal American highways again, seeing familiar suburban gems such as Target and Starbucks (this is the home of Starbucks, after all). Because we chose to not go on the ferry, we drove right through Seattle and Tacoma, getting great views of the Puget Sound, the Space Needle and other lovely landmarks. It is the first time in this area for both of us; while we know that there are plenty of good things to see in the city, we will have to save that for another day when we aren’t in our tiny house on wheels. It may be a tiny house, but it is still too much to navigate in an urban setting. It didn’t take long before we had had enough of the suburban/urban scene, as well as the poor road conditions that often go with it. We were grateful to travel across the beautiful Tacoma Narrows bridge into the calmer settings that it offered for the rest of our travels. The bridge was stunning, reminiscent of the Golden Gate but with serene surroundings.
Our first destination of the day was Poulsbo, WA. This is where Rick’s friend, the fellow former skateboarder, lives with his wife Patty. It just so happened that they were directly on our route today, although both Rick and Ron would have travelled in order to make today’s time together possible. And it was wonderful.
I will let Rick share his thoughts at some other time, as I am sure that he will do in quite an eloquent fashion. I will simply say that a woman from a neighboring table summed it up for me. I noticed her looking over at us multiple times, wondering if she was looking for someone or admiring something on the wall near us. A few minutes later, she came over to tell us how much she admired the “joy and exuberance” coming from our table. Now we were well behaved, she just recognized the joy of people being together and telling stories. And yes, it was a wonderful time for me getting to know one of Rick’s childhood friends and his wife. Plus they gave us some great travel tips for the area! Plus it is always nice to spend time with another couple who really enjoys being together. Those are our kind of people.
The town sits right on the water. Apparently on a clear day we could have seen both the Olympic mountains and Mount Rainier, but a local wildfire plus clouds kept it rather overcast. Nonetheless, beyond the harbor, the town was filled with cute galleries, bakeries and coffee shops. How many of these wonderful little towns do we miss along the way? I was glad to get to know this one, and we would never get far if I spent time finding all of the great little spots like this all around the coastlines. That’s why I enjoy letting Rick do the planning.
We had one more stop to make before we got to this campground… Walmart! Oh how I have missed this. Cute little markets are fun, but we needed the basics after a couple of weeks away from this retail giant. Coffee creamer, yogurt, salads, def, etc. Our carts full and my satisfaction level on high, we proceeded to the checkout only to find that we could truly complete our shopping list all in one stop. Hold onto your hats…. Washington Walmart sells liquor! And I don’t mean just my grandma’s cheap Kamchatka vodka, this was a full array. Yes we wanted a couple of things and they had them right there at Walmart. Quite exciting.
We’re so excited to spend the next few days exploring this beautiful area, while being grateful for today’s memorable joy and exuberance.
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