Ferry to Bainbridge
Back on the highway, headed north to Port Angeles we passed various memorable streets and small towns, our favorites of which were Lovgreen Road, Kitchen-Dick Road, and Humptulips, WA. The invasive, but beautifully bright yellow flowered bush, Scots Brush, lined the roadways with various evergreens towering overhead. A wide shoulder reserved as a bike lane lined the road all the way to Port Angeles as we drove past small port towns all of which claimed to have the best shellfish on the Peninsula. Stopping for a nutritious lunch at the Taco Bell in Port Angeles and picking up supplies for chile verde at the grocery store, we headed for my friend, Will Minehart’s house on the shore of Lake Crescent in the Olympic National Park. The octagon shaped house was previously owned by the government, but was given to the Olympic Park Institute in order for OPI’s outdoor educators to have a place to live. Located within the park, no one can argue that the idyllic home is not one of the most amazing places to live in the USA.
Lake Crescent
Basking in the sunshine on the dock, we kicked back for a while, bundled in fleece jackets and pants. Later I cooked a pot of chile verde, a rich stew of pork chops, kidney beans, cumin, tomatillos, and cilantro, which filled our bellies as we stood on the porch with Will, chatting and shooting rocks into the lake with the three-man slingshot. Unfortunately I was distracted in the midst of cooking and forgot to add the cilantro. When I did add it, I added the entire bunch (without having chopped it well) to the stew after most of it had been eaten so it tasted much like a cilantro salad for those who returned for seconds. All I’m going to say about that is that I really like cilantro, thank you very much!
Family Photo, Lake Crescent
We left early the next morning and drove straight to the Western coast for a trip to the beach. This was an epic moment since it was Matt’s first time seeing an ocean. After placing bets on whether or not he would be able to see Russia like Sarah Palin (Quarles has killer eyesight and could read road signs a ½ mile before anyone else in the car), Micah led him across the rocks and trees to the sandy shore. Quarles grinned the second he opened his eyes. The beach, though gray and cold that morning, was quite beautiful. It’s dark sand, smooth gray rocks, and hundreds upon hundreds of down, weather worn tree trunks lined the shore, creating the most amazing natural playground I’ve ever seen in my life.
Being a rather devious friend, I encouraged Quarles to go play in the waves for a few minutes, even if just to his knees to avoid wetting his pants. I might have failed to audibly mention the Alaskan currents which carry the ocean waters to Washington. Mere seconds after coming into contact with the frigid water, he was quick to leave, scowling (but grinning ruefully) at me for my sly pranks. Shortly after, Micah and Quarles filmed an infomercial which asked people to donate money to educate stupid people. Surprise! The commercial was directed at me. I had no idea what they were filming and chose, with ill-timing, to make monstrously ridiculous faces which distorted my eyes and mouth when they directed the camera at me. Ever since then, they’ve been throwing quarters at me for every foolish thing I’ve said or done. Though I’ll note that once we reached the Bay area, the majority of the flak went from me to Lauren. She wanted to buy an adult sized tricycle with her quarters, but didn’t have enough so bought a candy bar instead.
Hoh Rainforest
Exploring the Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park was absolutely incredible—the experience was made wonderful by valuable interactions with a certain charming American tourist. Jabbering in a one-ended conversation balanced with Nick’s intermittent “Mmm, yes’s”, I admired the curious subject, noticing first his glowing white hairless kankles, then evaded catching sight of his what appeared to be a small mammal sticking out from under his tacky green Hawaiian print shirt but was actually his hearty sized belly. His eyes were obscured from sight by his ill fitted clip-on sunglasses (which framed his well-kept mullet quite nicely) but his toothy gray grin stretched a mile wide as he related his experience in the wilds of the West Yellowstone RV park, television and all. “My wife and I like to live comfortably,” he said with his straight shooting chum tone of voice, mistaking our complete disinterest for genuine curiosity about the best RV camping in the west. I might call him innocent were he not hiding behind his clip-ons while in a gray Peninsula rainforest. I feel fortunate to be traveling with three fantastic friends and not some backwards (yet typical) tourist. I’m not sure how we managed to escape him. It may have been his impatient wife, an apple shaped woman with bleach blonde hair and sparkly kittens on her shirt. I found them to be the classiest of folks. Don’t you agree?
Hoh Rainforest
The Hoh Rainforest was one of my favorite places in the US. Our footsteps seemed muffled by the mosses coating the North face of the trees and entire trunks in other parts of the forest. Evergreens several hundred years old stood, grand yet docile amongst Fiddler’s Ferns and small grasses. The forest was surprisingly clear, even for an old growth, which allowed for fairly good vision under the canopy. At one point, Nick and I came within 60 feet of a female elk—a relatively respectable danger at the time since they were birthing and nursing heavily those two weeks in early June. Several tourists had been charged and trampled that season from approaching the elk. Bear in mind, we did not intentionally approach the large wild animal (larger than a horse!). We simply rounded a curve in the path and stopped mid-step, breathless to see such a beautiful, large mammal at such close range. Naturally we wanted to move closer, but thought better of it and chose to leave the heavy elk in peace as she ambled through the forest munching on her favorite greens. The best way to describe this forest is to have you go see it yourself. But since that’s not possible for most folks, I’ll just encourage you to picture yourself in such a place when you look at the photographs I took under the shady canopy. I didn’t use a tripod, but leaning against trees works pretty well for low-light photography.
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