A journey to fill my soul

One of the most obvious things about me is I love to travel. As I’m getting closer to my stick home, I already have this strong desire to leave on the next grand adventure. I feel so fortunate to have traveled to several countries on different continents in my life, but the one thing that always gets me is when I see that ‘Welcome to the USA’ sign. I’m not saying there is anything wrong, or bad, or whatever with any other country, but I just get this warm feeling, a sense of relief when I step back onto our shores. On this trip the people of Canada were very kind, welcoming, helpful, and I thank them for that. I also really love the exchange rate (38%), but that’s a different story.

Leaving Vancouver Island

I’m pretty sure I’m like a lot of people, I love to drive but I’m not a fan of large cities and traffic, especially in a city I’m unfamiliar with. After spending three months on the road, most of it completely off-grid with more than a 1,000 miles of gravel, my final drive was a bit nerve wracking. All I can say is, thank God for Google maps. I had about a 3 1/2 hour drive from my mid-island location down through the city of Victoria to the ferry landing located within the downtown port. I’m sure you can imagine, but when you say the word ‘downtown’ you think tight streets, lots of traffic, people and bikes everywhere. I guess something I would call chaos, especially in a wide truck. I would say getting into the ferry lot and turning about in the tight lanes was fun for me, I think not so much for the lumber trucks hauling what looked like power line poles across the sea to the USA. The police had roads blocked off so these guys could snake there way down an alleyway in order to get a straight shot at the lot entryway. It added some entertainment while I waited and made me thankful I arrived early.

Victoria, Vancouver Island

The city had a very European feel, the architecture and street layout made me think of my travel to Paris, France. I said in my last post that I didn’t feel I had the time to dedicate to the southern section of the island and I feel correct in that. This is very much a place I would love to come back to, but not in my mode of transportation I am in right now. To fly into this city and rent a car, spend 3-4 days in the city and then venture up the west coast up to Tofino would be an excellent way to spend a 7-10 day vacation. That’s my hint to those looking for a cool place to visit. And I’ll say it again, I love the current cash exchange rate. With a discount like we’re currently in, travel to Canada is very affordable.

Port Angeles, Canada

Unfortunately, with the chaos of getting off the ferry and out of the city to my current location, I didn’t take many photos. But I will try to explain the city of Port Angeles. This is very much an old port town. The US Coast Guard has a large presence, as well as the US Navy, and don’t leave out the fishing trawlers.

The homes are very old, the population, from my observation, very Hispanic. I had a hard time choosing a Mexican restaurant. I have no regrets with the chosen one, the tacos were delicious!

I really did have to stop in this place. When you walked in the door you were within the butchers cutting up and preparing fish for delivery. The owner came out of the back and with a gruff voice said, what do you want?!!!! He really was a nice guy once I explained I was just a curious tourists passing through. He explained that every day a ship hand from one of the many commercial fishing ships brings in a load from their catch. That explains all the blood and mess on the ground outside the building. He said he ships fresh fish all over the US and Canada, mostly to small vendors, mostly restaurants. In his gruff voice he said he doesn’t have time for those, in his words, piss-ant wholesalers trying to make a buck off of him. I did laugh at that, he wasn’t laughing. This was one of those fun visits. He did have a few small freezers for carry outs with all kinds of fish and jerky. I did buy some salmon jerky to be shared with a loved one when I return home.

Olympic National Park

This was the reason for crossing into the US at this point, Olympic National Park. I was a little disappointed, mostly my own fault, but also due to the number of visitors and lack of manpower. This is a huge park taking up most of the upper left corner of the State of Washington. I’m currently on the east-central side of the park on the very northern edge, or on the sea. The park visitor center is just outside the city of Port Angles, another reason to come here and stay as a base camp.

Day one I went to the visitor center to talk to the rangers and get their take on my next move. I intended to go to the western edge, or out to the Pacific and stay a couple nights and explore. God bless these park rangers for what they do, for their knowledge and kindness. There days are spent jumping from one assignment to the next, never quite sure what the day will be like. I spoke with two rangers, they were interested in my travels. I admitted I didn’t do the homework I should have done, my mind had been busy in the island travel and making the most of that. Guess I just figured everything would fall into place like pretty much everything on this trip. One ranger could read me like a book, she said I should drive to the western edge but I probably would not like the environment. What she saw in me is that I like wilderness, no people, time to do as I please when I please. She said the western edge, or the Pacific side of the park is so busy that there are waiting lines for everything. Guess that explains why I couldn’t find a campsite on short notice. What I wanted is see the ocean but go to the Hoh Rain Forest which is a bit inland. Her reply, every day there is a 1-2 hour wait line, when one car leaves, one is allowed in. There is no way around that wait, it’s just crowded. Her opinion, go ahead and drive there, just so I can say I’ve driven there and have seen. Her suggestion, go up to the north corner, known as the furthest northwest corner of the lower US. There’s a sign that says that. All the land is tribal land, there are rainforest you drive through, private shoreline you can walk on but not stay. Almost more beauty than the National Park with very few visitors. The roads are rough, in poor shape, but very drivable. I did as she said, all I can say is, thank you. The day did not turn out as I planned, by any means, but that ranger was spot on, the drive and views were spectacular. No regrets. And yes, I went to the western edge of the park and never made it to the ocean, too many cars and no place to park.

If interested, I took Highway 113 up to Highway 112 where I went west to the point and the tribal city of Neah Bay. From there I turned back and followed Highway 112 all the way back to Port Angeles.

Her second suggestion, drive due south from Port Angles and the visitor center up towards Hurricane Hill and the Klahhane Ridge Trail for a hike. 7.5 miles of grueling hills, enough to make my hips and knees cry out for ice. But it was worth it. I definitely got a cardio workout, to say the least. Unfortunately, I’m back in the smoke…My lungs need a rest. Brings back memories of Grasslands National Park in Canada, my first park stay. The hiking there was beautiful, but the smoke did me in.

What’s next?

Tomorrow early I head east. I’ve spent hours prepping for this one, I’m excited for the next several days of travel. I first needed to book another ferry. I want to avoid the city of Seattle, plus, I want to drive the historic Highway 20 across Washington. I’m headed into the North Cascades National Park, called the least visited National Park in our nation. I have my first night booked within the National Park, that is September 7, the last day for the reservation system. Every night past that is first come, first serve, and at anytime the road may be closed due to snow. Hope that doesn’t happen just yet. Highway 20 is known as the first cross-state roadway in Washington, just under 500 miles of remote, mountainous driving. I’m excited and have several planned stops, but most importantly, don’t rush. I’ll stay on Highway 20 till it meets the Continental Highway 2 on the Idaho border. I will enjoy this one.

That’s all for now…

That’s it for now, another visit, another chapter in the books. I’m getting close to home, I suspect 2-3 weeks I’ll be back to my darling. I’m looking forward to that.

As always, thanks for making it this far, longer than I expected. As always, thank you for following along in my journey. And as always, till next time….Cheers and Peace!