Saturday, 9 September 2017
Photos of Seattle
Seattle Fri 8/9
Yerterday turned into our personal walking tour of Downtown. We set off for the Visitor Centre but detoured to the Pike Street Market. This extends for two city blocks and about 4 levels. Seattle is almost as hilly as San Francisco and the Market is down beside the waterfront. Then the area has become a tourist mecca so restaurants have grown back up the hill adjacent to it. The Market is primarily fresh food and flowers interpersed with restaurants and small tourist oriented businesses. The flower stalls extend for almost the entire front of the Market and the fish stalls are amazing. Everything from huge deep sea fish to monster Alaskan Crabs to oysters. We wandered almost the entire area and then set off uphill for the Visitors Centre. We circled the entire block of the huge Convention Cente looking for an Information sign before we found the Visitor Centre in the foyer. The young woman who greeted us was extremely helpful and gave us two pointers which we opted for. There is a " hop on hop off" trolley bus tour around the cental area and we have always found these usful for getting the overall picture of a city. Then we asked about the State
ferries which go to the Islands in Puget Sound. She recommended her personal favourite out to Bainbridge Island which features the Bloedel Reserve. This is the former home of a timber baron set in 150 acres of landscaped natural forest and garden. Meanwhile we walked back across town to collect our car to move it the Convention Centre 24 hour car park. It had spent the first night parked on the street in the residential area of nob hill about a mile from our hostel. This was the recommendation of the hostel staff because the 24 hour parking near the hostel is not particularly secure. They implied that they were very insecure. However this option left us feeling concerned and as we were reassured that the Convention Centre Parking was fairly reliably secure we hiked across town to retrieve it and were able to set off for the day's activities feeling that we had done what we could.
We thought at first of the hop on trolley and even stood at the bus stop for 10 minutes but then realised there was a cool breeze blowing on a cloudy day and everyone waiting to board the trolley had at least light jackets compared to our short sleeved shirts. I didn't want to repeat my experience of ending the trip feeling frozen so we changed plan. We walked back to the hostel collected jackets and then walked down to catch the ferry. We bought a sandwich on the way to eat while we waited for the ferry. I say 'sandwich' deliberately because we had half each and it was plenty. The ferry was huge and cost us $4 each return. This compared to the tour boats which were up to $50 each. It was a car ferry which had two levels and we watched in amazement as it just kept disgourging cars upon it's arrival. The cabin area was very comfortable and the trip was about 30 minutes so we relaxed and enjoyed the ride.
At the Island terminal there was a shuttle to take us out to Bloedel which was at the extreme end of the Island. We had approximately two hours to saunter the 2 miles of paths. The garden was beautifully maintained in a very understated way and included a number of large ponds, streams, a variety of huge forest trees, the landscaped residence gardens which overlooked the waters of the Sound and a Japanese guest house and garden. It was a delightful walk and we headed back to the ferry thinking that we had been somewhere special.
For dinner we decided that the Morrocan Restaurant across from our hostel was worth exploring. When we arrived we discovered that it was quite busy and we were asked if we would like to share a table with the couple who arrived just ahead of us. We were all agreeable and were taken to a low table surrounded by a couch. The restaurant was decorated with a soft fabric to represent the ceiling of a tent and the walls were hung with Moroccan carpet squares to give an authentic atmosphere. We discovered that the menu provided a choice of main course dishes but the remainder of the meal was a set 5 courses for $21 plus tax of course. It was a thoroughly enjoyable meal and our companions were interesting. They hailed from New Jersey and Pennsylvania. They were in their early 60's. She worked as a nurse and he was a heart specialist who now worked for the veteran's service. We talked briefly about families, their decision to leave private practice for the salaried option of the DVA, travel and told them a bit about Australia. He was unaware that Aussies had served alongside the Americans during WW2 and Vietnam and they had as usual only heard of Sydney and Brisbane. They were returning from a cruise to Alaska and added a couple of days in Seattle to their holiday. They had thoroughly enjoyed their experience but had not seen a bear.
We walked back across the road to our bed and were asleep almost immediately.
ferries which go to the Islands in Puget Sound. She recommended her personal favourite out to Bainbridge Island which features the Bloedel Reserve. This is the former home of a timber baron set in 150 acres of landscaped natural forest and garden. Meanwhile we walked back across town to collect our car to move it the Convention Centre 24 hour car park. It had spent the first night parked on the street in the residential area of nob hill about a mile from our hostel. This was the recommendation of the hostel staff because the 24 hour parking near the hostel is not particularly secure. They implied that they were very insecure. However this option left us feeling concerned and as we were reassured that the Convention Centre Parking was fairly reliably secure we hiked across town to retrieve it and were able to set off for the day's activities feeling that we had done what we could.
We thought at first of the hop on trolley and even stood at the bus stop for 10 minutes but then realised there was a cool breeze blowing on a cloudy day and everyone waiting to board the trolley had at least light jackets compared to our short sleeved shirts. I didn't want to repeat my experience of ending the trip feeling frozen so we changed plan. We walked back to the hostel collected jackets and then walked down to catch the ferry. We bought a sandwich on the way to eat while we waited for the ferry. I say 'sandwich' deliberately because we had half each and it was plenty. The ferry was huge and cost us $4 each return. This compared to the tour boats which were up to $50 each. It was a car ferry which had two levels and we watched in amazement as it just kept disgourging cars upon it's arrival. The cabin area was very comfortable and the trip was about 30 minutes so we relaxed and enjoyed the ride.
At the Island terminal there was a shuttle to take us out to Bloedel which was at the extreme end of the Island. We had approximately two hours to saunter the 2 miles of paths. The garden was beautifully maintained in a very understated way and included a number of large ponds, streams, a variety of huge forest trees, the landscaped residence gardens which overlooked the waters of the Sound and a Japanese guest house and garden. It was a delightful walk and we headed back to the ferry thinking that we had been somewhere special.
For dinner we decided that the Morrocan Restaurant across from our hostel was worth exploring. When we arrived we discovered that it was quite busy and we were asked if we would like to share a table with the couple who arrived just ahead of us. We were all agreeable and were taken to a low table surrounded by a couch. The restaurant was decorated with a soft fabric to represent the ceiling of a tent and the walls were hung with Moroccan carpet squares to give an authentic atmosphere. We discovered that the menu provided a choice of main course dishes but the remainder of the meal was a set 5 courses for $21 plus tax of course. It was a thoroughly enjoyable meal and our companions were interesting. They hailed from New Jersey and Pennsylvania. They were in their early 60's. She worked as a nurse and he was a heart specialist who now worked for the veteran's service. We talked briefly about families, their decision to leave private practice for the salaried option of the DVA, travel and told them a bit about Australia. He was unaware that Aussies had served alongside the Americans during WW2 and Vietnam and they had as usual only heard of Sydney and Brisbane. They were returning from a cruise to Alaska and added a couple of days in Seattle to their holiday. They had thoroughly enjoyed their experience but had not seen a bear.
We walked back across the road to our bed and were asleep almost immediately.
Thursday, 7 September 2017
Winthrop
I completely forgot to mention yesterdays morning tea stop. This was the delightful town of Winthrop. As we drove in we saw all the old wooden buildings and decided to stop. We pulled up beside a beauty parlor and Bob announced that he was going to get a hair cut. I pointed out the feminine focus and implied that he didn't quite fit the inage but in he went. There were no other customers and the room was fitted out with male and female style barbers chairs so the hairdresser was happy to accommodate him. We chatted and the female hairdresser helped us with some information about the Native American names in the area. For instance the previous town which had the unusual name of Twisp was named for it's abundance of wasps. The River passing through town was the Chewach. However the town was named by the first Post Master back in the 1880's in honour of an academic who explored the area. It was also the place where the author of "The Virginian" which is recognised as the first western ever written holidayed. The town was also known in it's early days for a publican who hated drink. He built the pub to keep out the opposition and would throw out any customers whom he thought had consumed enough.
New painting that the hairdresser was very proud of.
Ad on the side of the saloon.
Town Hall
Bakery where we had wicked morning tea.
Photos from the Cascade Mountains Washington State
The road just visible below Washington Pass
Omak to Seattle 6/9 &7/9
Yesterday as we left Omak we discovered that we had been staying in an apple growing area. We wound up through the valley surrounded on either side by red apples ripe for the picking. As we gradually climbed higher the forest returned and we were soon driving between dense pine forests. We kept climbing into the Northern Cascade Mountains. The highest point was Washington Pass. There was a delightful lookout there and we wandered around the overlook and a short walk trail. The view was spectacular because the road has been cut into the side of the mountain. There was an information board giving the history of the road construction. When it was decided that a road was needed through the mountains the route was planned and work began from two towns on opposite sides of the mountain. The middle section took two years in the 1920's with the men working for $2/day. When it was almost completed the whole road was washed away in a winter storm. This delayed things somewhat and it wasn't until the late 1960's that a new survey devised the current route. Modern explosive technology was used to blow the new path through the rock in one big bang. It was completed in 1972.
From there we drove on to the Northern Cascade National Park and found the picnic area for lunch. We then tackled the Visitor Centre and picked a nice relaxing 3 mile River Walk Loop. The water in the rivers in the mountains is wonderfully clear and a beautiful greenish blue when there is depth. We were walking along the path when we came upon a family of flightless birds. The biggest (mumma) was the size of a small hen only a bit closer to the ground. They were fairly untroubled by us so we managed to get some photos. Back at the Visitor Centre we checked and found that they were Sooty Grouse and the rangers have only noticed the one family.
Our accommodation that night was on the Highway between two small towns. There was not a lot of choice in that part of the world but the Totem Trail Motel was very comfortable and had interesting benefits. Before dinner we were sitting outside in the Gazebo and I was eating my fill of juicy blackberries. They are everywhere in this part of the world and the motel had a huge hedge of them around the back of the units and the car park. We had to drive a couple of miles back to get dinner and I tried my first "pulled pork". It was tasty but as usual I couldn't eat it all.
Today we had a short run into Seattle where we have accommodation for 3 nights at the City Hostel. So we have two days to explore. We stopped at the outlets on the way into town and did some shopping because we couldn't check in until after 2pm. The traffic coming into Seattle was very heavy but Bob and our faithful GPS managed it safely. Photos of the Cascades Loop Hway separately.
From there we drove on to the Northern Cascade National Park and found the picnic area for lunch. We then tackled the Visitor Centre and picked a nice relaxing 3 mile River Walk Loop. The water in the rivers in the mountains is wonderfully clear and a beautiful greenish blue when there is depth. We were walking along the path when we came upon a family of flightless birds. The biggest (mumma) was the size of a small hen only a bit closer to the ground. They were fairly untroubled by us so we managed to get some photos. Back at the Visitor Centre we checked and found that they were Sooty Grouse and the rangers have only noticed the one family.
Our accommodation that night was on the Highway between two small towns. There was not a lot of choice in that part of the world but the Totem Trail Motel was very comfortable and had interesting benefits. Before dinner we were sitting outside in the Gazebo and I was eating my fill of juicy blackberries. They are everywhere in this part of the world and the motel had a huge hedge of them around the back of the units and the car park. We had to drive a couple of miles back to get dinner and I tried my first "pulled pork". It was tasty but as usual I couldn't eat it all.
Today we had a short run into Seattle where we have accommodation for 3 nights at the City Hostel. So we have two days to explore. We stopped at the outlets on the way into town and did some shopping because we couldn't check in until after 2pm. The traffic coming into Seattle was very heavy but Bob and our faithful GPS managed it safely. Photos of the Cascades Loop Hway separately.
Tuesday, 5 September 2017
Spokane to Omak Tues 5/9
This morning as you will see in the previous post we went out early to retrace our steps and take photographs. We then had some domestic chores to accomplish including and oil change for the car. Bob had realised that it was due 1000 miles ago and he can't leave something mechanical undone. By the time we set off it was close to 11am but we didn't have far to go. We were travelling over those undulating plains of golden stubble again at first. The most remarkable thing we saw was a huge pile of barley grain dumped beside two huge silos which must have been full. They were using a front end loader to load it into trucks (we surmise beasues there was no train line there). They are obviously not expecting rain.
The obvious place to stop for lunch was marked on the map as " The Grand Coulee Dam". When we arrived we were almost rendered speechless. It is indeed GRAND. The first phase of construction was in 1933 to dam the Columbia River. Even then it was a grand scheme. It was part of Roosevelt's New Deal recovery plan after the Great Depression. It expanded under the leadership of Truman after WW2 and then again in the mid 1980's. It is so big that I couldn't fit the whole dam wall into my photo frame. Bob had to use video to get it all. It generates enough power to supply about 7 States around it. Then there is a complimentary process with 17 tributary rivers having dams on them which provides water right across to Seattle - approx 200 miles.
After that we were back in the mountains but lower than the Rockies and forested with pines. Tonight we are staying in the Omak Inn which is located much to our amusement in Koala Drive. The family restaurant across the street apparently has suitable Aussie themed decoration. So we should feel right at home when we go for a meal tonight.
The obvious place to stop for lunch was marked on the map as " The Grand Coulee Dam". When we arrived we were almost rendered speechless. It is indeed GRAND. The first phase of construction was in 1933 to dam the Columbia River. Even then it was a grand scheme. It was part of Roosevelt's New Deal recovery plan after the Great Depression. It expanded under the leadership of Truman after WW2 and then again in the mid 1980's. It is so big that I couldn't fit the whole dam wall into my photo frame. Bob had to use video to get it all. It generates enough power to supply about 7 States around it. Then there is a complimentary process with 17 tributary rivers having dams on them which provides water right across to Seattle - approx 200 miles.
After that we were back in the mountains but lower than the Rockies and forested with pines. Tonight we are staying in the Omak Inn which is located much to our amusement in Koala Drive. The family restaurant across the street apparently has suitable Aussie themed decoration. So we should feel right at home when we go for a meal tonight.
This only shows 2 sections, the 3rd is obscured by smoke.
I am not going to talk about smoke again. We saw a map of fires burning in Washington State and they are all down the coastline so take it as given from now until I can say we have clear skies.
Photos of Spokane
Waterfall in the centre of Spokane.
Bing Crosby Theatre built in 1914.
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