Our first day in Seattle included a ferry boat ride in the fog, a long search on foot to find the relocated Elliott Bay Bookstore (well worth the looong walk), a monorail ride to Seattle Center, lunch at a lovely French restaurant, and a trip to the top of the Space Needle for Ben and Doug.

Rain Forest Mossiness and Ben swimming at Lake Crescent

Lake Quinault Lodge, Olympic Natl. Park

Lake Quinault Lodge was wonderful. We had a beautiful view of the lake from our room, the food was delicious (although we found out after dinner that they would have brought us bread if we had only asked), and the lounge area was big and quiet and relaxing.

This set of photos:

Doug and Ben played chess on the big honkin' chessboard.

Doug and me at dinner - a closed-in porch with windows all around looking out over the lake.

Me with Harvest Moon, a basket weaver and story-teller at the lodge.

Day 2 in the Olympic Peninsula

After saying goodbye to Eric, Carla, and Ryan on Saturday afternoon, the 3 S-Y's stayed the night at Lake Quinault Lodge and explored the Olympic Peninsula and Olympic Natl. Park on Sunday. This took us through Forks, Washington, made famous by the "Twilight" books and movies. In the photo below, Ben is brandishing his Harry Potter book at Bella's red pickup (Bella is the main character in "Twilight").

The top 3 photos are from our stop along the coast, where the forest bordering the beach looks eerily like the forest in "Lord of the Rings" where the hobbits hide from the big black devil horses.

After lunch at the Nilsen's (C and E made teriyaki chicken and rice), we caravanned to Aberdeen, WA with Erik, Carla and Ryan, stopping at Fort Clatsop on the way. We  hiked in the Olympic National Forest with Carla, Erik, and Ryan, and saw a honkin' big tree, as Ryan would say.

Seeing Old Friends

In Portland, we stayed with Carla and Erik Nilsen, wonderful friends from pre-Ben days. Friday morning we took the kids (Ben, Kari, and Ryan) to the indoor bouldering center, and Bill McFarlin joined us. Erik and Carla were my first friends in Ann Arbor, MI, when I lived there on my own for a year while Doug was still in Venezuela. Then when Doug had a temporary teaching job in Portland, they had moved there, and kept Doug from getting too lonely while I was still in Texas.

Bill and Beth McFarlin were our first friends in Fort Collins. We're sorry we missed out on seeing Andrew and Bryn Nilsen, and Beth, Katie, and Sam McFarlin.

Columbia River Gorge

Last Thursday we left the fly-fishing mecca of Ketchum, Idaho, and drove to Portland, via the Columbia River Gorge.

A Best Western in Fort Hood had a wonderful restaurant with patio seating overlooking the gorge.