Olympic

I took the ferry from Edmonds to Kingston across Puget Sound this morning. As I drove into the ferry, I felt so excited. The lower decks of the ferry are the parking lots for cars and motorcycles. Drivers can either stay in the car or go up stairs to sit in the passenger sections at the main deck. As for me, I went up to the sunny deck to enjoy the pleasant sunshine and breeze and stayed at the bow playing Jack in Titanic. This fresh experience really lifted up my spirit.

From Kingston to Port Gamble, there was a gorgeous green tunnel mixed with “fall color” along the road. I was so fascinated by the scenery that I just had to take shots even while I was driving. OOPS~

Then, I took State Highway 19 to Port Townsend, a Victorian historical town according to Miss P. However, having lived at Boston, the town looks not that historical to me at all. (Perhaps I just didn’t go to the right places.) Afterwards, I followed State Highway 20 to US highway 101. I stopped by at Port Angeles and took a picture of its ferry building and headed to my first stop at Olympic: Hurricane Ridge.

The road snaking up to Hurricane Ridge has wonderful mountain views. Travelers can see Mt. Olympic along the way. I took a picture of my rental car, 2007 Dodge Caliber, just for the record. (It is a typical American car, powerful but energy-consuming. Yet, it surely gave me a joyful and speedy drive.)

In addition to the scenery, the sight of the deers adds more flavor to the pleasure. The photo above is one of my favorites from this trip. The foreground of the deer particularly stands out with the background of grand mountains covered with snow in distance.

The only trail I had finished today is Hurricane Hill trail. I thought 1.7-mile-trail was nothing so I did not bring my water bottle with me. It turned out that the trail was surprisingly lengthy. The good news was that I ran into a nice young man who kindly shared a can of cola with me as I got extremely thirty. Without that drink, I would have given up half way. Yet, the view from the top was definitely worth it. I would see a panoramic view of Victoria, Canada and Mr. Olympic at a higher elevation.

Having fulfilled with peak experience, I drove back to Pork Angeles and continued west to Lake Crescent Lodge. It is really a beautiful cottage in the woods right by the lake. Its scenery is a gift of nature. I am so happy to get a chance to stay here over night. At night, I was thrilled to find out the countless stars in the sky. The stars are so numerous that I could even see the Milky Way. I was almost moved to tears.

They say that it rains almost every day in Washington State around this season. I guess I am really a lucky girl to have a sunny day today.