Another superb experience we had during our North American stay was a trip to the Olympic National Park lying to west of Seattle across Puget sound. I've seen the Olympic range many times from near Emily's home in Kirkland. On cannot miss it as it soars 8000 feet above sea level and is frequently draped in snow while only being maybe 20 + km away.
This time we took 3 days off over the Memorial Day long weekend to stay at an Airbnb home in Port Angeles on the Olympic peninsula's north coast. And, on the second day, which was bright and sunny, we drove up to Hurricane Ridge, one of the highlight spots in the national park to take in the view and walk a trail. All 6 of us took the trip, including Emily and Greg and their two kids, Flynn and Ella. Dot and I, as grandparents, made up the test of the entourage. It was a fantastic experience!
The road journey itself - only about 25 km from where we were staying - was exciting as the road snaked in a fairly gentle manner ever higher and the scenery grew ever more spectacular. At the ridge-top visitor's centre we alighted from our car and were met with a sweeping view of the snow-capped mountains. The first picture is one of 5 taking in the whole range and shows the highest point, Mt Olympus itself, reaching just short of 8,000 feet. Of course, the original Mt Olympus is in Greece and was thought 2,000 or so years ago to be the spot where the Greek gods hung out.
And this picture is a close-up version of Mt Olympus with its mini-glaciers.
Five of us then started to walk one of the park's main trail, which climbed for about 2.5 km (1.6 miles) to a great lookout which gave us even better panoramic views of the mountains and their surrounds. Take this for example:
And the countryside was not without its wildlife, including the deer shown here, brown bears which had been seen the morning of our arrival - but not on our route, chipmunks, and
It was also the season when the wild-flowers emerged from hibernation.
And this was our ultimate destination via a well-maintained walking track.
The higher we got on the track, the more panoramic the view across the mountain range. And, by the way, it was warm enough at c. 6,000 feet for me to wear summer geear.
This was despite a few remnant pieces of ice still on the hillside - the ice was useful for 'snowball' fights among some of our party - guess who.
And here's a cheerful little chappy - a marmot snugly dressed in fur looking for food and maybe human company.
The higher we got, the more expansive the views.
And those included Port Angeles below, followed by a feint image of Vancouver Island (British Columbia, Canada across the straight separating the two nations. Victoria, the capital of B C lies somewhere in the distant haze.
On the north-facing slope, the cooler weather had preserved rather more of the winter snow-drifts.
And here's another marmot looking for food, just like the young deer we found at the side of the trail.
And, finally, here I am taking a breather with a mountainous background.
This was a lovely experience, and highly recommended if you have the chance.
AS
This time we took 3 days off over the Memorial Day long weekend to stay at an Airbnb home in Port Angeles on the Olympic peninsula's north coast. And, on the second day, which was bright and sunny, we drove up to Hurricane Ridge, one of the highlight spots in the national park to take in the view and walk a trail. All 6 of us took the trip, including Emily and Greg and their two kids, Flynn and Ella. Dot and I, as grandparents, made up the test of the entourage. It was a fantastic experience!
The road journey itself - only about 25 km from where we were staying - was exciting as the road snaked in a fairly gentle manner ever higher and the scenery grew ever more spectacular. At the ridge-top visitor's centre we alighted from our car and were met with a sweeping view of the snow-capped mountains. The first picture is one of 5 taking in the whole range and shows the highest point, Mt Olympus itself, reaching just short of 8,000 feet. Of course, the original Mt Olympus is in Greece and was thought 2,000 or so years ago to be the spot where the Greek gods hung out.
And this picture is a close-up version of Mt Olympus with its mini-glaciers.
Five of us then started to walk one of the park's main trail, which climbed for about 2.5 km (1.6 miles) to a great lookout which gave us even better panoramic views of the mountains and their surrounds. Take this for example:
And the countryside was not without its wildlife, including the deer shown here, brown bears which had been seen the morning of our arrival - but not on our route, chipmunks, and
It was also the season when the wild-flowers emerged from hibernation.
And this was our ultimate destination via a well-maintained walking track.
The higher we got on the track, the more panoramic the view across the mountain range. And, by the way, it was warm enough at c. 6,000 feet for me to wear summer geear.
This was despite a few remnant pieces of ice still on the hillside - the ice was useful for 'snowball' fights among some of our party - guess who.
And here's a cheerful little chappy - a marmot snugly dressed in fur looking for food and maybe human company.
The higher we got, the more expansive the views.
And those included Port Angeles below, followed by a feint image of Vancouver Island (British Columbia, Canada across the straight separating the two nations. Victoria, the capital of B C lies somewhere in the distant haze.
On the north-facing slope, the cooler weather had preserved rather more of the winter snow-drifts.
And here's another marmot looking for food, just like the young deer we found at the side of the trail.
And, finally, here I am taking a breather with a mountainous background.
This was a lovely experience, and highly recommended if you have the chance.
AS
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