Pacific Northwest, Day 4: Evergreen Giants

recently consumed

vacation: Olympic National Park, Washington

tasting notes

We spent our last meal in Portland back at Ken’s Bakery. Tom had a craving for a fruity tart, and I was just happy to sit and watch the bakers make fresh bread while sipping cappuccino. We left feeling like we hadn’t scratched the surface of this city, but it was time to venture into the great natural expanse that is Olympic National Park.

Immediately upon entering Washington, we were greeted by mountains in the distance, Mt. St. Helen and then Mt. Rainer. There were rolling hills covered in hugely tall pine trees as far as the eye could see. Most of them were covered anyway; some had been shaved bald by the local lumber industry, leaving a stubbly hill of stumps. We saw truck after truck pass by us carrying massive logs which was a little terrifying… although not as terrifying as the backwoods local Star Wars memorabilia shop.

It was a long journey to get to our first destination, Hoh Rain Forest. We kept stopping for pictures along the way, pine covered mountains and crystal clear lakes, which slowed our overall progress down. We looked for spots to picnic but ended up finding none. After a while, we just gave up on the picnic idea and snacked on our goodies in the car on route. We did, however, a large bush of wild blackberries ripe for picking.

It was about 4:00 pm when we finally arrived at the rain forest. The road that leads back to the park was crowned by hundred foot tall pine giants, many of which were hung with gorgeous green moss. These were all signs of the temperate rain forest environment. Lots of moss and lots of ferns.

We took the trail called “Hall of Mosses” which featured, as you might guess, giant regal ancient trees covered in thick moss. We spent about an hour wandering the trail, which can’t be described, only experienced. Words don’t really do it justice, neither do pictures. Tom kept saying how much if felt like a theme park, and by that I imagine he meant that it just all seemed very surreal.

Next stop, after a quick drop off of luggage at our B&B, was Rialto Beach. This was my planned sunset view for the evening, but a co-worker of mine had forewarned me that it might not be as romantic as I had anticipated… in fact, I might have to beware of dangerous flying trees. It was an unusual warning, but after visiting the beach I understood more of what he meant.

The whole beach was covered in dead wood. While the winds were not very strong that day, I can imagine how dangerous the loose branches could be in stronger winds. Tom and I had fun climbing up and down over the fallen trees and taking a million photos.

We ended the evening at a non-memorable restaurant along the river, before heading back to the B&B for some wine and relaxation. We lit the fireplace and reflected on the days adventures.

Tomorrow: Hurricane Ridge and Vancouver Island