Driving Mount Rainier Today I explore Mount Rainier in earnest. My first order of business is to find a campsite. With everything going on, I forgot to get reservations for tonight. I have to take a chance with getting one of the first come sites, and that means getting there early. The first sight I saw today is the bridge over the Nisqually from yesterday. The clouds were replaced by a perfect view of the river going straight up a large white mountain! Despite the time risk, I had to see the view from the official pullout, which was even better. Mount Rainier filled half the sky in all its glory. The mountain is big from a long distance (see ); close up its overwhelming. I bypassed Paradise and its traffic headaches, so the next thing ... read more

Today was another day mostly for chores and driving. At least the scenery was nice. The first notable sight is Manchester Beach. This beach is located in downtown Manchester, one of those small towns where everyone seems to own a boat. It is also located almost directly across the water from Seattle. The beach gives a fantastic view. On the southern end was something that rarely appears, snow covered Mount Rainer again looking like a white mirage. The next notable thing is Bristol Bay. The highway runs along the side of the bay, directly opposite a Navy base. Two aircraft carriers were sitting directly in front of it. Needless to say, stopping on the road to take a picture would be a rather bad idea. Incidentally, the Navy is incredibly open about this base compared to ... read more

Port Angeles Art Center I need a break from the wilderness, at least for a little while, so I went to the Port Angeles Art Center. The site overlooks the city of Port Angeles and the Strait of Juan De Fucha. Many cities have a museum like this, which shows work of local artists. The quality varies considerably. In the Olympic Peninsula, this is one of the better ones. The first difference for this museum is the parking lot. It has a wonderful view of a group of trees and the city, but no museum. On the far end are three metal sculptures that resemble cartoon word balloons. A sign at the base points to a sculpture path. The museum is hidden in the woods, and the path is the only way there. The main path ... read more

Today I explored something that harkens, in its own way, back to my earliest childhood. In first grade, my class was divided into groups that had to create a presentation on a National Park. I was part of the group that got Olympic. For me, the highlight of the project was getting mail from a place far away; I suspect my wonder lust was triggered even back then. My memories of the final presentation have faded at this point, except for a striking picture of trees absolutely covered in hanging moss. I’m pretty sure it was taken at a spot I’m seeing today, the Hall of Mosses in the Hoh rain forest. The drive to the forest perfectly illustrates the contrasts of this peninsula. The outer part was all tree farms, with clear cuts in places ... read more

I spent most of today in a hotel in a small town in western Washington state. I needed to deal with paperwork and rest up before heading into the woods for another week. I chose the location mostly because it was convenient to where I was going next, and the hotels had good reviews. The most notable thing for today was dinner. I’m in one of those areas where most prepared food comes from a convenience store, fast food restaurant, or pizza joint. I went with the convenience store because I figured the variety would be a little better. This one sold burritos. They also had a liquor section. In most parts of the country it would consist entirely of Budweiser and other national brands that leave much to be desired. Here, they had microbrews from ... read more