We are currently working in Northwestern Montana and we had a week off from work so we decided to take a road trip to Washington. We had never been to Washington but had been told by many how beautiful this evergreen state was and were they absolutely right! Coming from Montana our first stop was Mount Rainier National Park. There is this little town just about 20 minutes out of the way called Zillah that has a national monument teapot gas station, so of course we had to stop by and see this historical site.
Upon entering Mount Rainier National Park from the East side of the park we headed towards Paradise where we were going to hike the Skyline Trail stopping along the way soaking up the gorgeous views of Mount Rainier on every corner. With it being middle of June, this hike was still snow covered but we hiked some of it anyways just to be able to see some of the beautiful views. After walking around the snow covered mountain we drove on down the road to view the roaring Narada Falls. This is definitely the time of year to see water falls because they are full and rapid from all the snow melt. Our visit to Mount Rainier was short and sweet since a lot of the hikes we wanted to do were still snow covered. That evening we camped just outside of the West side of the park in the national forest.
The next day we headed up towards Olympic National Park. That day was overcast and foggy but we decided to do our hike anyways in Olympic National Forest called Mount Ellinor Trail. This was a difficult hike 6 miles round trip with 3000 feet elevation gain in less than 3 miles. When we reached the top we couldn’t see a thing and we were totally in the clouds but what made this hike worth it was getting to see several mountain goats and baby mountain goats. Definetly an experience of a lifetime. After a challenging hike we always like to treat ourselves with a brewsky so we stopped by 101 Brewery and had pizza and a beer afterwards! Very delicious and rewarding! That night we camped in Olympic National Forest.
We rose pretty early the next morning to try and catch low tide at one of the coolest tide pools, Salt Creek Recreation Area. Be sure to check the tide pool chart before going to one to be sure you catch it at its lowest. We saw tons of sea anemones, sea urchins, mussels, crabs, and some small starfish. A very cool experience if you have a chance to go to a tide pool in Washington.
Afterwards we headed over to Olympic National Park. We did a short hike to Sol Duc Falls. A beautiful cascading waterfall full of lush green plants and moss surrounding it! The next hike we did was another short hike with gorgeous scenic views called Blue Mountain Trail. It was such a beautiful and clear day that you could see Mount Rainier and Mount Baker from the view on this hike!
We had been camping for a few days so it was time for a nice bed to sleep in. We arrived in Seattle that evening and found a hotel to stay in for the night. The next morning we headed to Pike’s Market. This was such a fun experience to see all the fresh fruits ,vegetables, fresh flowers, and fresh seafood. A very crowded place so the earlier you arrive upon them opening the better. We couldn’t leave without purchasing a pound of fresh salmon to cook that evening. Once we got out of the big city we headed towards Mukilteo to catch the car ferry to take us to Whidbey Island.
Our first stop on Whidbey Island was Langley. It was an adorable little town by the water with lots of cute stores and places to eat. Everywhere we go if there is an ice cream store I have to taste it so we stopped and had ice cream at Sprinklez. Then we headed on up to Coupeville.
We walked around this little town also full of cute stores and restaurants. They also have a pier that offers boat tours. This town is known for whale sightings and on every corner that faced the water was a bell to ring if you sighted a whale.
While we were on the pier there was a sea lion feeding underneath the dock. Our time on Whidbey was short and sweet but I would love to get back there. It was such a fun island with so many cute little towns to relax in.
We had to make it to our next campsite before dark so we left Whidbey island and made it to the national forest just outside of North Cascade National Park before dusk. The next morning we entered North Cascade National Park from the West entrance. We drove along Highway 20 until we stopped at Diablo Lake to hike the Thunder Spur Trail. This trail was moderate, approximately a 3 mile in and out trail. This trail was gorgeous and brought you to a beautiful overlook of Diablo Lake.
Diablo Lake is a glacier fed lake so that is what makes the water such a pretty blue. After our hike we completed out trip with driving the scenic highway out of the park. We enjoyed getting to see some parts of the evergreen state. Washington is definitely a state we would love to travel to again one day!
