Exploring the Pacific Northwest

My summer has been so full of fun adventures outside! Ian and I have loved having a chance to branch away from Seattle and visit some stunning places! Instead of blogging about them individually (because summer is on the downhill) I thought I'd share the highlights of our adventures!

Mt. Pilchuck
At the beginning of July, Ian decided one Saturday morning to go on a hike and we chose Mt. Pilchuck. Joey and Rachel went with us. We thought it would be a standard PNW hike, but we were very wrong. Instead of walking through old growth forests, we spent most of the time on a large granite dome walking over many rocks in the direct sun. It was so hot! Dani had her first encounter with snow, and just ran to the snow and played on it everytime she saw it. The views along the way were amazing! You could see every direction and we were so high up! At the top there is an old fire lookout that you have to climb a ladder up, and it was quite hilarious to watch Ian carry Dani up the ladder. Ian loved this hike, but did not love my complaints along the way.

hiking up Mt. Pilchuck

the view and one tired pup

beautiful views up to the top!

Backpacking at Goat Lake

This was quite an adventure for me. I had never been backpacking before this, so I was VERY nervous. We went with Mikalla and Brett, and all their neat expert gear. I packed my camelback and tied my large sleeping bag to it, and Ian carried everything else in his pack. The hike to Goat Lake was 5 miles and it was a gorgeous hike through a forest, avoiding many mosquitoes. It didn't take us long at all, and we got to Goat Lake much sooner than I thought we would! The lake was beautiful and we got on logs and walked around the lake for a bit. We set up camp, ate dinner, and it started drizzling and raining. Ian and Brett decided that instead of us sleeping in a tarp like a taco, we should have a lean-to, so they made that. It was much drier and less claustrophobic than the taco idea, so that was good. We played games and went to bed early. The Cheney's got in their tent, and we drifted in and out of sleep as mice and other creatures visited us, one even crawling on Ian. Dani was not a good guard dog, but she did cuddle with Ian which he just loved. We made it through the night, and enjoyed a peaceful morning and a great hike down. I'd even recommend this hike for a longer day hike if you get an early start! It was great for me as a first time backpacker, and I think I'd even go again if I had some of my own legit equipment and a backpacking tent (not a hammock that Ian wants). However, the downsides of backpacking were the lack of delicious food and snacks and desserts that I love with camping. Such a strange thing to sacrifice.

eager beaver

Goat Lake

camp and the boys setting up the lean-to

beautiful waterfall below Goat Lake

My first time to Canada! 

The Reeds were heading to Vancouver and kindly invited us on their journey, so we of course hopped in their car and were extremely excited to go! The Reeds are Canada lovers and experts, so obviously we were in good hands! We drove to the border and got our passports stamped (first stamp for me!) and then continued to Granville Island. It was very fun to walk around and see all the vendors! Ian and I split a chicken pot pie which was delicious and we sat by the water and looked downtown. Then we headed to Queen Elizabeth park and looked at the gorgeous gardens! We headed to Safeway to spend far too much for delicious chocolate, and then went to Stanley Park. We looked at totem poles, the view of the city, and watched a harbor seal for a bit! It was great! We also got poutine (french fries, gravy, and cheese curds) and by that time we were feeling very Canadian. The Reeds then took us out to a suspension bridge that was free and it was a blast! Our last stop was at Tim Hortons and we got some Canadian doughnut holes! Yum! We thoroughly enjoyed our Canadian adventure and can't wait to go back!

Queen Elizabeth Park

Vancouver from Stanley Park

suspension bridge!

A Dry Camping Adventure!

We decided we needed another camping trip and another opportunity to eat s'mores, so we headed up to Mt. Baker and drove along forest roads. All official campsites were full (it was a last minute decision and we got stuck in traffic) so we drove to the end of the road and camped in a flood basin with other people. It was right next to the river and beautiful, but offered little shade. We set up camp with the Heaths and it was dark by the time we were eating dinner. Ian got a Sawyer filtering water bottle so we played with that and drank yummy water from the river. Rachel calmed down a mean woman who was mad at Dani for barking, you know, in nature. Saturday morning we ate a delicious breakfast that Joey cooked of eggs, pancakes, and bacon. Yum! We then headed up a long, windy, and steep road to hike to Watson Lakes. The hike itself was very beautiful and gave us great views of Mt. Baker. We did not enjoy all the mosquitoes though. Also, we ran out of bug spray. We made it to the lake and ate, and headed back. On the way back to our campsite, we headed into town and got some yummy onion rings and shakes from some local burger and shake place while we got gas. It was a great decision. We then headed back to our campsite and cooked up dinner, and enjoyed the evening. It was a great camping trip and our first dry camping experience in Washington!

our camping spot

Mt. Baker

hike to Watson Lakes

gorgeous view of Watson Lakes

Binks Family Vacation

This past week we enjoyed a whole week of exploring and fun in the Pacific Northwest with the Binks! We went to Pike's and Ivar's, and enjoyed a Mariner's game! We also hiked Lake Twenty Two with them, and Dani went swimming for the first time. Olivia thought she was eating blueberries but we learned they were actually not blueberries. Poor Olivia. Our big adventure was heading out to the Olympic National Park. We drove out there and drove all the way to the Hoh Rainforest on the first day. We hiked and wandered and then ate pizza in Forks. We stayed in a fun chalet that was on the shore of Lake Crescent. The next day, we headed out to Rialto Beach during low tide and saw some great tide pools and watched Ian and Carter get splashed by waves. We headed to Solduc Falls as well and loved that as well. We tried to go to Hurricane Ridge twice, but both times it was fogged in. We have terrible luck with weather on the peninsula. It was great to explore with the Binks and we had a blast!

Carter and Ian in Pike's

Post Alley

Mariners game with 7 runs in one inning!

hike to Lake Twenty Two

Hoh Rainforest

wandering around the tide pool

And for all of you who made it this far and wonder how we crammed so much in this summer...we have no idea how we did it. Now, summer is fading and real life is coming back in full swing. It's hard to go back.