POSTCARD | From Washington


Postcard from Washington | biblio-style.com

So, this trip has not been without learning opportunities. I’ve picked up valuable knowledge, like, did you know you can download full seasons of SpongeBob to your device on Amazon Prime? And did you know that SpongeBob is a proper noun that spellcheck will autocorrect the appropriate capital letters for you? 


Seriously though, week three felt like sliding into a new routine and all of this pack-up-and-go all the time started feeling like our new normal. I’ve learned that there are very few sins of the kitchen that can’t be covered by sriracha. I’ve learned how little water is really necessary to take a shower or brush my teeth. I’ve learned how to celebrate five bars of Verizon service. 


This week, our friends Chris and Alexia flew in from Chicago to meet us in Seattle and join the caravan for a few days. Cozy quarters over here, but this is a total dream come true. 


Should we jump right in? Here's the quick look -- 


Best Part of the Week: Collecting Chris and Alexia from an Uber in a Lowe's parking lot. We had beverages cracked open in under five minutes and it was the best kick-off. 

The Part We'd Like to Forget: Squeezing through the busiest national park beach I've ever seen, power-packed with drunk teenagers and cars parked on both sides of the road, winding up a one-lane road up a mountain and the related tension of four nervous adults. Thank God for a random, very buzzed local lady who was wandering around up there too. She gave us the 411 and everything turned out cool. 

Coolest Place: Swimming in Lake Cushman and fishing at Crescent Lake. 

Funniest Moment: I don't want to share someone else's personal business too much, but Chris had us crying laughing at 5:30am when he refused to use the camper's bathroom, and our campground closed their facilities due to Covid. 


On to the details -- 

GLACIER NATIONAL PARK

I’m just going to be honest, after Yellowstone, Glacier was a little bit of a letdown - BUT I have to be transparent that we couldn’t drive the main road - Road to the Sun - because of a length limit. It’s a narrow road with rocks over the road and we had hoped to rent a car for the day, but couldn’t find anything available for the next five days. Can you even believe that? We couldn’t, but it is what it is. I’m sure we’re not the only people with that idea, so next time we’ll just plan a little more in advance. 


That said, Glacier lakes are magical. They’re the bluest water you’ll ever see. 


Glacial Lake in Montana | biblio-style.com


Working Out in Glacier National Park | biblio-style.com

Glacier National Park | biblio-style.com

Rottweiler in Glacier National Park | biblio-style.com

MISC. MONTANA

So Montana is huge. I feel like we were there for a week, which felt like a long time after crossing a handful of a states in a day or two. Then I looked at a map and yeah, it's about 3x as big as Michigan, so it took a hot minute. 


Montana is a place I could live. When I was in high school, one of gals I was friendly-ish with moved to Montana and I felt sort of bad for her, like she was moving soooOOoos far away from civilization and Hollister.  I take it all back now. I don't know if she stayed here, but I'm jealous. 


Kootenai Falls, Montana | biblio-style.com

Kootenai Falls, Montana | biblio-style.com

Kootenai Falls, Montana | biblio-style.com
This is Kootenai Falls and you guys, this is one of those places that you can take a million pictures and none of them will ever look like the place in front of you. 
Kootenai Falls, Montana | biblio-style.com

Washington

First of all, the Cascades. I was deep into reading The Girl Who Played with Fire, which took a lot to get me to put it down, but the Cascades did it. We drove through mountains so high, there was snow on the sides of the road. It melts into these pretty little waterfalls as you descend. I mean, there’s no book that can distract you from that. 


The Cascades | biblio-style.com


The Cascades | biblio-style.com


The real treat though is Diablo Lake. I’m just going to let the pictures do it here. I’m an okay writer, but there’s no words for this one. This is a real place you guys! I don’t have  fancy camera and my photography skills are limited to instagram. These are iPhone pictures and this is just what this place looks like. 


Diablo Lake, Washington | biblio-style.com


Diablo Lake, Washington | biblio-style.com

Olympic National Park and Forest

On Thursday, our friends, Chris and Alexia, flew in from Chicago to meet us in Seattle. They came to join the caravan for a long weekend, and got in just as the temperature dropped to a delightful 60º. Lots of Titos, lots of snowcapped mountain views, and lots of fun. We hopped on a ferry and went over to Olympic National Park and spent my 32nd birthday bopping between the Pacific Ocean and swimming in a river that runs through Hoh Rainforest. 


Lake Cushman, Washington | biblio-style.com

The Pacific Ocean | biblio-style.com

The Pacific Ocean | biblio-style.com

Lake Cushman, Washington | biblio-style.com

Crescent Lake | biblio-style.com

Hoh Rainforest | biblio-style.com

Breakwater Seafood, Aberdeen Washington | biblio-style.com

Today, we dropped them off at the airport and like everytime Chris flies out after hanging out with us, it was heart-racing. We dropped them at SeaTac at 3:15 for a 3:55 flight, but no biggie. They made it. 


Looking very forward to the next crew that we'll meet up with next week!


***


I half joked with a ton of people that I might find a new place to live with all this traveling and you guys, I’ve really loved Montana. We rolled through Whitefish, Montana a couple of days ago and I said to Ryan, “this is where I could live” and I meant it, too. But the thing is, while we walked through the downtown area, we kept commenting on how much it felt like Traverse City. No psychology needed here. Home is home and I know where I belong, but this sure is a nice diversion. 



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