“The poetry of earth is never dead: When all the birds are faint with the hot sun, And hide in cooling trees, a voice will run From hedge to hedge about the new-mown mead; That is the Grasshopper’s–he takes the lead In summer luxury,–he has never done With his delights; for when tired out with fun He rests at ease beneath some pleasant weed. The poetry of earth is ceasing never: On a lone winter evening, when the frost Has wrought silence, from the stove there shrills The Cricket’s song, in warmth increasing ever, And seems to one in drowsiness half lost, The Grasshopper’s among some grassy hills.” —John Keats,…

We arrived to Hoh Rainforest unit of the Olympic National Park right before dinnertime and since the campground is first-come-first-serve we made a beeline for the camping area to find a spot. We found a nice spot tucked in the forest with enough cover not to really see too many people other than the folks directly across the road from us. The self registration was near the bathrooms (no showers in the bathrooms if you are inclined for cleanliness, but there is running water for a rag bath if you are desperate) and after registering we headed for the Hall of Mosses Trail. Evening was setting in which made the…

On our way to the Hoh Rainforest we quickly stopped in at a general store before we entered the park. We bought some sodas and walked outside to look at the display case to see what was posted. I looked down and saw what I thought was a bat. I looked closer, yeaahhhhh, looked like a bat. I squinched my eyes together to determine if it was fake and determined that it was breathing—nope, very real! We asked the girl working the counter if she knew it was there but this seemed to be a surprise to her. It’s not every day you get to see a bat up close…

+We didn’t spend enough time at the beach, maybe an hour. This area deserves to be explored more. I could poke in all of the tidepools and search the surf for marine mammals. We watched something poke its head up out of the water a few times. Sealion? Seal? +I’m going to have to start making photo books out of our photos because I’m going to want to come back and drool at an ocean I don’t get to look at often….ok rarely! “Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life.” -Rachel Carson

+I think the photos speak for themselves. +No matter how long away from the ocean, no matter how much I think that I’m ok with just being a land lover (lubber!), the ocean always tells me otherwise when it slaps me in the face with a bit of salty air. +Tidepools, tidepools…tidepools. *sigh* “One way to open your eyes is to ask yourself, ‘What if I had never seen this before? What if I knew I would never see it again?’” -Rachel Carson

As we approached the outer reaches of Olympic National Park we suddenly saw a sign for the worlds largest sitka spruce tree. Being big/ancient tree lovers, we made a quick detour down a side road to find the worlds largest spruce tree. This was a very short walk from the car, I believe around a quarter mile one way. We quickly learned that there are many giants on the Olympic peninsula, however we didn’t have the time to devote to visiting all of them. Having seen several large and old trees it is hard not to pass them up, particularly because you never know when they will be gone. What…

+Going to Pike Place Market was on my list of things to do in Seattle. I had no idea that the flagship Starbucks was located right there at the market—but I should have known, Pike Place Roast! We did not go in the store as the line was long and I’d already had coffee at the hotel that morning. +Honestly, the market itself was a tad disappointing. It felt more like a spiced up flea market than what I was envisioning and the farmers/craft market on San Juan Island a week later was much better. We came there expecting a bit more art than was exhibited, hoping to purchase something…

+Our stomachs were still on Central Standard Time when we finished with REI and checking into our hotel. Intially we thought about heading to a Mexican restaurant a few blocks away but instead I spotted Bahn Thai caddy-corner from the hotel. We headed in and were asked if we had a reservation—no—but were seated relatively quickly due to an open table in a corner. We sat down and I noticed quickly that there was only one other person in jeans in the restaurant. Apparently people in the city get dressed up for Saturday evening dinners. Even in Texas I think that is rare except for the restaurants with a dress…