Deception Pass State Park Ride and Boat Tour

On Oct 2nd, 2011 we took a family end of summer ride out to Deception Pass State Park.  If you've never been there it is a beautiful narrow channel that connects the inner part of the Puget Sound with the Pacific Ocean.  It is located at the north end of Whidbey Island.  Google Map of Deception Pass State Park.

Edie could not make the trip this time but both of my daughters, my youngest grandson and my oldest daughters boy friend Rob were all able to make the trip.  I took off from Eatonville fairly early with the weather looking like rain (it is the northwest afterall) and arrived in Lynnwood just in time for us all to head out.

It was still dry when we headed out!!

This was the first time I have been able to ride with both of my daughters at the same time.  I have been trying for many years to get my brothers/sisters/aunts/uncles & cousins to understand why I love riding motorcycles.  They just don't get it, none of them ride and none of them are interested in even thinking about riding.  It was during this ride that I came to the realization that my daughters and grandkids all not only understand why I ride, but they love it too.  When I get on the bike all of my problems and concerns just slough away.  All of my concentration is on riding and controlling this 2 wheeled extension of my own body.  I'm out in the open with nothing between me and the 360 degree view around me.  I love the feel of the bike under me as we wind our way through the corners and on to the next rise in the road.  The bike becomes a part of me and I a part of it.  I can't wait to see what vistas presents themselves just over the next hill.  My daughters and wife get it, they understand and they enjoy it as much as I do.  For this I feel extremely lucky!!

Its about a 1 & 1/2 hour ride from my oldest daughters house to the park going up I-5 and then west on Highway 20 toward Whidbey Island.  On the north side of the bridges there is a brass plaque detailing why this place is called Deception Pass.

To connect Whidbey Island to the mainland they built 2 bridges over the pass, a short one from the mainland to the small island in the pass and a longer one from the island to Whidbey Island.

Both bridges from the tour boat just outside the pass looking back toward the east.

The longer of the two from the island in the middle.

So much water passes through the channel when the tides change that whirlpools are created.  It is spectacular to stand on the bridge and just watch the water come and go through the pass.

Rosario Beach, a fantastic place for a picnic is located just to the south west of the bridges  There is also a campground available in the park if you are interested in staying overnight.

We took a walk across both of the bridges, the view from there is spectacular.  On both sides of the park is old growth forest and beautiful hiking trails.

Looking out to sea from on the bridge.

We had just enough time after visiting the bridges to get down to the harbor to take the tour boat ride out through the pass and around the small island you see in the picture above.  We bought Groupons which cut the price down to 12 dollars each instead of the 25 that it normally costs.  If you get a chance to visit the park make sure you take the boat tour!!

Someday I'll have to get even with Nathan!!

These guys were headed out as we came back in.  Notice the clouds starting to build.

My wife and I had taken a friend of our (Alex) and our niece (Kippie) to see the park the weekend before.  I happened to catch them in a moment of jolly.

I'm not sure what they were laughing at, but is sure was contagious.

When we got back from the boat ride the weather was starting to turn darker so we decided to drive down and take the Mukilteo ferry back to Lynnwood.  By the time we got to the ferry it was pouring down.  The great thing about Washington State Ferries is they let you on first and off first.  We spent the ride over setting in the restaurant section enjoying coffee and hot chocolate.  By the time we docked it was starting to get dark.  So after dropping my grandson off at his house I said goodbye to my daughters and headed back home.  It was a bit of a wet ride back home but the enjoyment of having spent the day riding with my family kept me warm and cozy all the way there.

If you have never been to Deception Pass State Park -----  GO!!

West Coast Wingnuts Jamboree and Mosquito Roundup Aug 18-21, 2011

Some of you may be aware that I participate in a forum on the internet for Goldwing Motorcycles.  Steve Saunders Goldwing Facts Forum.  While the forum is mainly geared toward Honda Goldwing Motorcycles they don't care what you ride, just that you ride and enjoy it.  For the last 5 years a group of guys have set up a get together for anyone who wants to come called the West Coast Wingnuts Jamboree and Mosquito Roundup.  From its title you can tell they don't take them selves seriously.  This year everyone voted and settled on Diamond Lake, Or. as the camping spot and Crater Lake, Or. as one of the rides while there.  We took 2 days off from work and headed down.

I was raised in South Western Oregon from the time I was 3 1/2 until I was 15.  All of my Brothers and Sisters still live there.  This gave me a great excuse to revisit many of the roads and views that I enjoyed as a kid and share them with my wife from the seat of our Goldwing.

We drove down to Cottage Grove on the 18th and met up with Dick - also known as UBarW on the forum.  You'll get to see Dick in a great pose later.  The ride to Diamond Lake was great, we got there in plenty of time to set up camp and visit with many of the folks from the forums.  Some we had met before, and many we had not.  Ken - aka Dusty Boots came the farthest, he came from Eastern Canada.

Just finishing setting up the tent.

Getting to know each other the first day.  Not sure what the other campers were thinking with all the bikes present!!

More people arriving, turned out to be a good size group!!

Trail along the lake through the campground.  Fireweed is in full bloom!!

Part of Diamond Lake with some of the campground visible.  The fishing is great here!!

After dinner most of us gathered at the campfire across the road from ours campsite renewing friendships and making new ones.  After a long day of riding to get there this topped off the day.

The real delight of the trip would come the next day when a group ride was scheduled for Crater Lake.  Most of the people there had never seen it and were in for a real treat.  This lake is amazing to say the least.  It is the result of a Volcano erupting and then collapsing in on itself.  It is so high up in elevation that there are no rivers feeding into or out of the lake.  All of the water in the lake is a result of snow melt from the mountains around the rim of the lake.  It is the deepest lake in the US at 1,932 feet deep.   It is hard to imagine just how beautiful this lake is until you get to see it for the first time.  Here is the view they saw when we made our first stop along the rim.

Yes the lake really is just this blue.  The water is extremely clear and clean, you can see down quite a few feet into the lake along the shore.

As we drove around the clouds started forming and reflecting in the lake.

It's very hard to believe this lake is 6 miles across, imagine what the eruption was like.

The view changes as you go around the rim revealing more and more beautiful vistas.

 We stopped for a break and to just enjoy the view, when we did Dick decided to pose for a picture and afterwards played with the ground squirrels.

Taking a short break.

Great picture of Dick (UBarW)

These little guys were everywhere begging for food.

We drove on around to the Phantom Ship Viewpoint and then on down to the Pinnacles.  Although I had been to Crater Lake probably a dozen times I hadn't been to the Pinnacles before.  They turned out to be an interesting addition to our day.  If you ever get to Crater Lake don't miss them.

While looking at the "Phantom Ship" we noticed a tour boat making its way toward the formation

There are 20 plus people on the boat, you can see the size of the phantom ship is deceptive, its bigger that you think at first

Fumaroles hardend up the pumice keeping it from eroding away so quickly.

 After a visit to the lodge and visitors center we headed back to camp to cook dinner for the evening.  On the way out of the park you get treated to a view of Mt. Thielson.

Mt. Thielson on the way out of the park.

 We had another great evening of sitting around with friends over a campfire.  The Mosquito's were out in full force but were kept at bay by liberal dosings of Deet!  We settled on a plan for the next day of riding towards Roseburg on hwy 138 then cutting down alongside I-5 to Myrtle Creek, out south Myrtle to Tiller and back to Diamond Lake along the Rogue River.  Well, at least this was the plan.  The next morning is when the adventure began.

We got up and had breakfast and then met at the Lodge for coffee with most of the guys.  Around 10:00 we headed out and enjoyed a spirited ride till we got almost to Myrtle Creek.  It was at this point that Dick noticed the Greg's back tire was down to the cords!!  He had started out this trip on an OK tire but had worn it down during the last couple of days.  We decided to limp into Roseburg and see if we could find a shop with a tire that would fit.  It was already 3:00 on a Saturday afternoon and we had no clue where anything was.  Lots of calls were made and a tire was located at Hobie Equipment.  The salesman said if you can get here by 4:00 they would stick around to put it on for us!! Fantastic!!

We arrived at the shop at 3:45 and were in for a definite treat.  The mechanic who helped us out is Jeremy Bolduc, Land Speed Record holder for a motorcycle in his class.  He rides a 1936 Indian and has set records for the last 3 attempts.  His latest last year was 109mph on a 75 year old motorcycle!!  Come to find out he was supposed to be getting off at 4:00 so he could go home, finish putting the bike together and heading off to Bonneville for this years attempt.  Jeremy put all that on hold to help us out and make sure we could get back on the road!! The entire shop stayed open an hour later on a Saturday afternoon just to make sure we were taken care of.  That is fantastic service!!

Here is a link to the article where he broke the record in 2009, here went even faster in 2010 and is headed back for another attempt.   Jeremy Bolduc Breaks record on 1936 Indian

Jeremy in the shop working on Greg's bike

The offending tire!!

 We got out of the shop just after 5:00 and decided to skip the rest of the ride due to the lateness of the day.  This may not have been a great decision, Karma caught up with Greg on his way back to camp.  We were riding back along hwy 138 enjoying the curves and the views when Greg yelled out over the CB......WHOA---YEAOW----OWWW!!!  Greg had been stung by a Yellow Jacket just above his right eyebrow.  Greg saw it come over the windshield and it hit him and stung him at the same time.  He pulled over and we checked him out.  He appeared to be alright so we went on back to camp.  By the time we got to camp he had some slight swelling where he was stung.  Greg applied some bee sting medicine (antihistamine) to the sting and went on about the evening.  The next morning Greg woke up to a swollen eyelid that looked painful but he said it wasn't.  He used an antihistamine tablet this time and within 3 hours the swelling was almost completely gone.

OUCH!!!

 Well the weekend was coming to a close and we had to get home.  We followed John (Jluvs2dive) and Greg(NaturallyGW) over to the Oregon Coast on Hwy 42 and took Hwy 101 up the coast.  Had the fog stayed away this would have been awesome but due to the fog we got very few good views in.  It took us until 11:00 Sunday night to get home.  We were tired, sore, and very happy from having spent a great weekend visiting with friends at a very beautiful place.

If you haven't been to Crater Lake or Diamond Lake I highly recommend you make the trip. You won't be disappointed.  Just be aware that the snow stays on the hills around Crater Lake until sometime in July!!  It can and has snowed as much as 100+ feet up there in a winter..  You are up around 7,500+ feet in elevation so expect to be out of breath if you are not used to it.  Once you get there you can see why it was turned into a National Park!!

Olympic National Park Aug. 12th to the 14th 2011

Our friends Rick and Nancy invited Edie and I to go camping with them this last weekend.  We had thought about where to go and it came down to either Victoria, BC. Canada or the Olympic National Park.  As it turns out we had our grandson Nathan with us for the weekend.  He does not yet have a passport so we decided on the Olympic National Park.

Edie, Rick and Nancy took off early Friday and made camp in Port Angeles.  Nathan and I headed out on the bike after work.  The ride up was pretty smooth considering it was work hour traffic and I had to drive across the Tacoma Narrows and the Hood Canal Bridges.  If you have never driven over them the views from both are fantastic.  We arrived just in time for dinner.

When it got dark we were spent some time looking for meteors during the Perseid Meteor Shower but due to the lights around and the full moon we didn't spot any meteors.

Saturday morning after breakfast we headed off to Sol Duc Hot Springs.  Along the way we stopped at Lake Crescent.  We stopped there a bit longer than planned, the view of the lake is mesmerizing.

Crescent Lake

Edie, Nancy and Rick enjoying the lake!!

As we were leaving the lake this little one and his mother walked right out in front of us.

 Instead of going to the Hot Springs we decided to hike the trail to Soleduc Falls.  The trail takes you alongside the Soleduc River through giant trees lined with mosses and ferns.

 

Beginning of the trail to Soleduc Falls

Along the way to the falls we passed a lot of plants growing on top of stumps and deadfalls, some even growing on the moss on the living trees.  It reminded us of some place you would find Fairy Villages.

Fairy Village?????

Nathan enjoying a short rest alongside one of the many small streams along the way.

The falls were 0.8 miles up the trail and you could hear them quite a ways before you arrived.  The picture does not do them justice, they drop into a narrow crevasse that continues down the mountain for several hundred yards.

Soleduc Falls

We stopped at the falls for quite a while just enjoying the spray and the view.

Rick and Nancy enjoying the falls!!

A quiet moment with my grandson.

Nancy and Edie taking a break at the falls.

On the trail back out, the size of the trees make you feel like your walking alongside giants.

We enjoyed lunch in the parking lot and then headed out to the Hoh Rain Forest.  If you have never been there it is one of those places you should place on your bucket list.  The drive in is almost as good as the trails at the end of the road.  In many places the trees form a complete canopy above the road and it is like driving through a living tunnel of large trees.

Yes it really is called the HOH Rain Forest, it is named after the HOH Indians who live in Washington.

Hoh!

The water is amazingly clear in the rain forest, in this next picture the water is over 3 feet deep and crystal clear.

Greeted by Ducks at the start of the Trail of Mosses

There is over 200 inches of rainfall here every year.  The trees are covered in Moss and there are other plants growing in the Moss.

Check out the ferns growing on the upper limbs!!

Almost surreal, which way is north??

Hard to line up the shot when your messing with the cameraman

Nathan looking out from the roots of a "Nurse Tree:

When trees fall in the forest other tree's and plants will take root on them and grown down over them.  As the tree decays it feeds the new growth ensuring a healthy forest.

Rick enjoying a short rest on the roots that grew around a nurse tree.

We had spent much more time enjoying our day than we planned and it was getting a bit late so we headed back to the camp ground.  A quick dinner and then off to see "The Rise of the Planet of the Apes".  After getting back to the campground close to midnight we set up listening to the Coyotes over in the hills calling to each other.  That put a great nightcap on the day!!

Sunday morning after Nancy, Rick and Edie got back from church we headed out to Hurricane Ridge.  It was pretty heavily overcast so we had no great expectations of what we would see.  Even though the fog kept rolling in and out it was still a great view.  We saw a lot more wildlife than expected.  The deer at the meadows on top of the ridge were not afraid of people and there were quite a few of them.  The meadows were in full blossom and gorgeous!!

The deer were eating away and not afraid of people...

First view of the mountains from the ridge as the clouds were parting.

The clouds cleared just long enough to get this shot then closed back in again.

Don't step back!!

Nathan was checking out the view when this doe popped her head up surprising him!!

I caught Nancy and Rick taking a short break after climbing up one of the hill trails.

It wasn't long after this the fog rolled back in and blocked the views.  Even the deer started going down the hills so we made lunch and then headed out for home.

Fog rolling in blocking out everything including the Visitors Center!