We LOVE the Pacific Northwest, it's become one of our favorite places to vacation! On this trip we visited Marrowstone Island, Olympic National Park, Washington Coast & the Northern Oregon Coast.
Our Washington & Oregon Itinerary:
Day 1: Late flight to Portland (PDX)- Stayed at airport hotel.
Day 2: Picked up rental car and drove to Marrowstone Island, Washington. We stopped in Tacoma, Gig Harbor & Brothers Greenhouses (Hobbit House) in Port Orchard.
Day 3: Port Townsend, East Beach Park on Marrowstone Island
Day 4: Olympic Game Farm, Jardin du Soleil Lavender farm, Hurricane Ridge (Olympic National Park)- Stayed in Olympic National Park
Day 5: Swimming at Lake Crescent Lodge, canoe rental, Sol Duc Falls, Sol Duc Hot Springs- Stayed in Olympic National Park
Day 6: Forks Washington, Hoh Rain Forest, 4th Beach (Ruby Beach was closed)- Stayed in Grayland
Day 7: Haystack Rock (Cannon Beach), drove along Oregon coast- Stayed in Garibaldi, Oregon
Day 8: Tillamook Cheese Factory, Rockaway Big Tree, Rockaway Beach- Stayed in Garibaldi
Day 9: Bridal Veil Falls- Flight home
🏔🏔🏔🏔🏔🏔
Day 1: ✈Flight to Portland, Oregon (PDX). We thought about flying into Seattle but the one way car rental fee was ridiculous! We also looked into flying in and out of Seattle but it was $1,000 more for our rental car (Washington taxes are higher)... So we flew in and out of Portland. We took a late flight into Portland and spent our first evening in an airport hotel.
Day 2: We stopped in Tacoma to see a family we met on a previous vacation in Idaho. Our daughters stayed in touch and were so happy to see each other again.
Gig Harbor
We stopped in Gig Harbor. It's so quaint and was the perfect place to stretch our legs and marvel at the views!
Hobbit House
We found a little piece of the Shire at Brothers Greenhouses in Port Orchard, Washington. The Hobbit House was built in 2015 behind a plant nursery. It's free and was one of the highlights for our daughters!
Mystery Bay
We finally made it to Mystery Bay on Marrowstone Island. We rented an early-1900's Farmhouse through airbnb. The owner was so kind and allowed my girls to feed her horses. We also found a goat farm nearby... the girls thought they were in Heaven! The owner also provided a scavenger hunt in her home and my girls also loved that! Here's the link. We enjoyed our relaxing stay at Mystery Bay.
Our Airbnb
Day 3: The next day we went to Port Townsend for lunch. This historic Victorian town is on the Olympic Peninsula. It has cute shops and beautiful views of the Puget Sound and Whidbey Island. We loved the Victorian architecture, art galleries, and William James Bookstore. We also spent way too much time and $ at Wynwoods Gallery & Bead Studio. 😂
Port Townsend
East Beach Park on Marrowstone Island
We usually go to places with warm water so Cicily was surprised by how cold the water was, 🥶 but it was a beautiful beach. We watched a cruise ship pass and realized it was probably the Alaskan cruise we almost booked. 😆
Day 4: We had a lot planned, so we got an early start.
Olympic Game Farm
Our first stop was Olympic Game Farm in Sequim. We had also gone there on our last trip and it was one of our favorite adventures. It's a drive-through wildlife exhibit where animals come right up to your car. They allow your to buy bread and feed the animals. We bought 5 loaves and its amazing how quickly it goes.
Jardin du Soleil Lavender
Sequim has earned the nickname "Lavender Capital of North America". They have dozens of Lavender Farms and we visited Jardin du Soleil Lavender. On our last visit we went to the Purple Haze Lavender Farm which is one of a few who grows, harvests, distills and sells it's own lavender.
Hurricane Ridge
We got lunch in Port Angeles then made our way to Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. It takes about 45 minutes to get from Port Angeles to Hurricane Ridge. The drive is curvy and windy and deer tend to pop out of nowhere so drive carefully. The area has great hikes and incredible views. We made our way to the visitor center then took several short hikes near the VC. Most of these hikes are fairly easy, plus there are deer wandering through the trails!
Lake Crescent Lodge
We drove back to Port Angeles and got dinner before making our way to the Lake Crescent Lodge. If you plan on staying in Olympic National Park you really need to book your accommodations one year in advance. The park lodges fill up fast! We were able to get a last minute cancellation.
Our cottage at Lake Crescent Lodge
Behind Lake Crescent Lodge is an easy 1.8 mile round-trip hike to Marymere Falls. My girls were having so much swimming in the lake that we didn't make it this time. These pictures are from a previous trip.
Day 5: Since we planned our trip last minute, we had to switch our accommodations the second night.
Log Cabin Resort
Our cabin at this Lodge was more affordable than the Lake Crescent Lodge. Unfortunately our cabin had a shared bathroom. 😬 They have a variety of accommodations, including full hook-up RV sites, and tent camping sites.
You can rent canoes & kayaks by the hour at the Log Cabin Resort. 👍 The Lake Crescent Lodge only has 4 hour rentals available.
Sol Duc Hot Springs
Sol Duc Hot Springs is located in Olympic National Park near the Sol Duc River. They have four pools, three mineral hot spring pools and one fresh water that will melt all of your stress away. 😃 The pools range in temperature from 98 to 104. You'll be surrounded by gorgeous mountains and evergreen trees. We had dinner at the restaurant next to the springs and it was great. They also have a locker room with showers and lockers. If you stay at the Sol Duc Springs Resort, the entrance to the hot springs is included. Make sure to bring towels, or you can rent them.
Sol Duc Falls
Don't miss a visit to the Sol Duc Falls. The hike to the falls is 1.6 mile round-trip. It's a beautiful hike through a forest filled with ferns and moss. A bridge over the falls allows you to get a picture from different angles.
Day 6: We started our day with a stop in Forks... Made popular by Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Novels. We came through this area years ago while I was reading the books and did a full Twilight Tour. Check that out here. We only made a few stops this time. 😏 Before leaving Forks we went to Thriftway to get food for a picnic. You won't find food between Forks & the Hoh Rain Forest.  |
| Don't miss Bella's truck at the chamber of commerce |
| We arrived to the Hoh Rain Forest at 11:00am and had to wait about an hour to enter the park. They have limited parking near the visitor center. Arrive early or be prepared to wait during the busy summer months. One of my favorite hikes in the Hoh Rain Forest is the Hall of Mosses! Just as described... lots of moss! Coming from the desert, makes it EXTRA special! I really love moss, trees, rain, etc. 😏 We also took the Spruce Nature Trail, which is 1.2 miles round-trip. We liked that at one point this trail is near a beautiful river. |
 |
| This family was trying to turn around to avoid the long line at the Hoh Rain Forest entrance & ended up in the water. 😳 |
4th Beach
Ruby Beach (Don't miss! It's amazing!) was closed, so we went to 4th Beach. It was beautiful! We stayed in Grayland for the evening at the Arena Del Mar hotel.
Day 7: We've driven the Oregon Coast many times but never went North of Tillamook. I was excited to finally see Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach. Unfortunately, it was a foggy day and we could barely see the rock. 😂 It might look familiar since popular movies have been filmed there. The Goonies, Twilight, and Point Break...
#KetchupTroubles #OregonCoast
 |
| Port of Garibaldi: Famous for salmon runs, albacore tuna fishing, and epic Dungeness crabbing |
Day 8: We loved our self guided tour of Tillamook Creamery! We started in the Farm Exhibit and learned how to feed a calf and milk a cow. Then we explored the viewing gallery, watching the factory workers make cheese while learning the process. At the end of the tour they offer free cheese samples. We loved the gift shop and planned on buying ice cream but the lines were too long!
 |
| The Rockaway Big Tree (cedar) is one of Oregon's biggest and is estimated to be between 800 and 1200 years old. It's a beautiful 1.2 mile out-and-back trail. |
We went to Rockaway Beach and found Tillamook ice cream. 😁 Another fun thing to do in Rockaway Beach is ride the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad, a historic steam locomotive. 🚂 You can enjoy a relaxing ride along the Oregon coast between Garibaldi & Rockaway Beach.
Awe... Garibaldi! We found someone on the dock crabbing and they were so nice to let my girls in on the fun!
Day 9: We went on a short hike to Bridal Veil Falls... near the popular Multnomah Falls. After, we made our way to the airport. Another great vacay in the Pacific Northwest!
Links to similar vacations:
0 comments:
Post a Comment