Washington – Olympic Peninsula
(Disclaimer: Yes, we did travel during the pandemic, however, we are very cautious and careful of where we go, what we touch, and who we interact with. We use an insane amount of Purell & Lysol wipes and always wear a face mask when we’re around other people. We also typically travel to non-populous dense places to avoid people, and we try to stay at home as much as possible once we return to limit others’ exposure.)
One of our favorite things about traveling west is going to Seattle. For some reason this city is just captivating to us – there is just so much to do and see! From Seattle, you can travel to the mountains, the ocean, a desert-like landscape, a rain forest, and so much more! I think we must be lucky or something, because every time we go to Seattle, we always have great weather!
On one of my first trips to Seattle, I sat next to a woman on the plane who was born and raised there. Of course, I started chatting her up and wanted to know more about hidden gems and lesser known visitor spots. I mean, we’ve hit up Pike Place more times than I can count – we wanted something unique to see or do. The woman recommended we take the ferry to Bainbridge Island and then drive up to Port Townsend. I shared this recommendation with some of our family that lives in the area, and they agreed Port Townsend was beautiful, but they also recommended we drive a little bit further to the Rain Forest.
Um, what?! A Rain Forest? In Washington?! Neither Donovan or I knew about the Hoh Rain Forest, so we knew we wanted to try to get there. We did, and it ended up being an awesome time.
For Thanksgiving week this year, we decided to return to the Seattle area for a few days, and Donovan agreed to go back to Olympic National Park – it’s so beautiful there!
This year we stayed at the Thompson Hotel in downtown Seattle for the first 2 nights of our trip. (photo from the bed above). I could probably write a whole post about the Thompson Hotel. We picked this hotel sort of on a whim – we wanted something close to Biscuit Bitch (our favorite breakfast spot), but also something with at least a partial waterview. Uhhh… this was definitely not a partial waterview! The Thompson Hotel hooked us up! Not to mention that I had shared with the hotel staff that we were celebrating Donovan’s birthday a little late, so they gifted us some champagne and cookies! Talk about customer service!
Since we had arrived so late to the hotel that night, we took a few swigs of champagne, and then headed off to bed so we could wake up early to head towards Olympic National Park.
The next morning (a Saturday), we woke up early (for Seattle time), and quickly showered and got ready for the day. No trip to Seattle is complete without coffee…lots and lots of coffee…so we made our first stop at the Starbucks Reserve – within walking distance of the hotel.
Just for the record, I am not a coffee snob by any means. Donovan usually teases me with comments like “oh, did you want some coffee with that creamer?!” HA! But — there is something smooth and tasty about the Starbucks Reserve. There are only 6 locations in the world, so it’s always a fun adventure to check out what they are serving. If you ever get a chance to go – look it up! The Starbucks Reserve not only serves coffee, but also alcohol, cocktails, and full on meals!
Since we visited during COVID, we weren’t allowed to eat/drink inside the building, so once we ordered, we took our coffees and pastries outside to a nearby table and chairs where we could overlook the water. It wasn’t as chilly as I was expecting, so dining outdoors wasn’t a huge issue.
On our way back towards to the hotel to get the car, we had to stop for the typical #basic picture in front of Pike Place.
It was so crazy to see how empty it was due to the pandemic. We opted to not walk around inside the market because 1) we had seen it all before and 2) we weren’t sure what would be open due the pandemic.
Speaking of ghost town – downtown Seattle was definitely the quietest it’s ever been! After seeing so many things on the news, we were a bit worried that things might be dangerous, but it was not that way at all!
Anyways, we hopped on the ferry in Seattle and headed towards Bainbridge Island. Due to COVID (and the cold temps), we opted to sit in the car during the ferry ride. The ride only lasts about 30-45 minutes, so it goes by quick anyway.
Once we arrived in Bainbridge, we kept trucking north towards Port Gamble for our first stop. Usually this is where we stop for a 2nd cup of coffee, but since we were so hopped up on caffeine from Starbucks, we stopped for a quick picture, and then kept going.
We do highly recommend stopping in the little quaint town of Port Gamble. It was established in 1853 and was largely a mill and lumber town. Until the mill closed in 1995, it was the oldest continuous operating mill in North America.
Our next stop was in Chimacum. If you blink while driving through Chimacum, you’ll miss it – seriously! It is also a tiny little town, however, we always have to make a pit stop at the Finnriver Farm & Cidery for some treats and cider. Honestly, I had never had cider before, and Finnriver turned me on! Unfortunately, Finnriver wasn’t open when we drove by – we were too early for lunch – so we stopped at the Chimacum Corner Farm Stand to get our Finnriver Cider fix. We’re always impressed with the farm stand and how mouth-wateringly delicious the produce looks.
From Chimacum, we were going to try to get to Hurricane Ridge, but the roads were closed because of the winter weather. Donovan decided he wanted to drive around Lake Crescent, so to the lake we went!
The drive along Highway 101 is so pretty, it really is hard to explain it. My great Aunt used to say that Crescent Lake is one of the deepest lakes in the world. We’re not sure that’s entirely true- but it’s still fun to think about!
Now comes my favorite part of the drive…entering the Hoh Rain Forest! On our way, we drive through Forks and always make “Forks in Forks” jokes and spy on teenage girls who’ve made the journey for Twilight photos. It always cracks us up!
The drive into the Rain Forest is an experience all on its own. The trees are covered in moss, and everything is so green! Donovan says he loves it here because you can just feel life – everything growing, breathing, and living. It also smells delicious here because there is literally zero city pollution.
At the end of the road, you can park your car and take a few different hikes. We chose to do the Hall of Mosses trail again because we just love it so much.
The trees are ginormous (scientific word HA!) , and it’s always interesting to see how trees and plants grow on top of, beside, and literally among other trees and plants. The ferns are also to die for here.
Because the trek to get out here takes so long (about 3-4 hours), we didn’t have much daylight left before we needed to start making the journey back. I always wish we had more time out here, and someday I’m going to camp or stay at the Crescent Lodge. Just being out in nature is such a good, hard, reset for me, and has been much needed since COVID started!
On our way back towards Seattle, we talked about our other favorite highlights on the peninsula:
- Ruby Beach – this is a no brainer for me, especially when the tide is out and you can walk for days along the beach!
2. I’d also recommend making the trip out to Neah Bay and Cape Flattery – the northwesternmoist point of the contiguous United States. It’s quite the drive to get out there, and there’s not much else to do there except hike out to the Cape – but it’s totally worth it.
Other things I want to see on the peninsula:
- Glass Beach
- Dungeness Spit
- Hurricane Ridge
- Olympic Hot Springs
Overall, the Olympic Peninsula is one of my favorite places because it has such unique vantage spots and things to do outdoors. What is your favorite part about the Olympic Peninsula?