A West-coast whirlwind (or, when the scenery is too gorgeous to be staring at a computer screen)

Today is the first day of December and tomorrow it will already have been two weeks since we left Juneau.  I haven't been able to write quite as much as I want to, mostly because there has been quite a bit of traveling down coastal highways with very spotty to non-existent cell service. And then there's my own unwillingness to stare at a computer screen when the scenery looks like this:









So here, my friends, is an uber-long post to summarize what we've been up to so far:

On Friday, November 22 we arrived on the ferry in Bellingham, Washington.

The sun had just begun to rise when we woke up on the floor of the Forward Lounge.

A friend of later keenly observed our ferry trip sans private cabin to be like camping out in an airport for three days... yep, right on. Though thankfully with better much better views.

But we did have a pretty good time anyway, especially the last day when a co-worker of Scotty's whose main job is on the ferry offered us a tour of the Malaspina's wheelhouse and had dinner with us later that night. Friends in sea-level places definitely help make the ride more interesting.

Upon docking we exited the Malaspina with the van and drove an hour and a half south to downtown Seattle where we picked up an essential piece of the van's transformation (i.e. vans-formation), the Yakima Skybox.



Then, we continued driving to the Olympic Pensinsula where we stayed for two nights at the Louella Cabin, a historic house maintained by the Forest Service in Sequim, WA.



The second day there, our good friends Annie and John drove out from the city to meet up and stay with us the second night. Great conversation + a Alaskan salmon dinner + Washington hard apple cider + s'mores + campfires... equals something like priceless.



The next morning we all headed out to check out Dungeness Spit, a National Wildlife Refuge. If you haven't been, this piece of natural wonder is worth the trip from Seattle alone.

After our nature walk on the spit, we had an excellent brunch in Port Angeles at the Yelp-recommended Café Garden before parting ways, with A & J heading back to the city and us bearing west on Highway 101 around the Olympic Peninsula.







It was still pretty chilly (though not as cold as Alaska, of course) and some spots definitely looked like winter had set in.





This route included a drive through Forks where Twilight was filmed (and approximately 3, 545 real people are probably trying to forget...).

After Forks, Highway 101 makes a turn from heading west around the Olympic Peninsula to head south.

We were able to watch the sun on its long, slow descent into the Pacific as we headed towards the Oregon border.





It was late that night when we arrived in Astoria, Oregon, right across the state line marked by the Columbia River.



In Warrenton, near Astoria, we opted to park at a KOA with nice, clean laundry facilities and showers (it was about time!). The next day, the mini camper also received new tires at Les Schwabb (also, about time!).



The next day we made it down the coastal Highway 101 to Eureka, California, where we decided on staying at another KOA for the night. In town, we also met up with new friends Scotty had gotten to know through work in Juneau. Good times were definitely had and we can't wait until our paths cross again. We really like our Eureka friends and the lovely place they call home.

The day after that, we cruised down Highway 1 all the way to San Francisco. This is no easy feat because it's pretty much the windiest road imaginable.



But until you say *%@* it and head back to 101, the views are pretty great indeed. We didn't do that because of course we don't swear like sailors and also happen to be *slightly* stubborn.



To be honest, I could spend months or even a lifetime on this stretch of the West Coast and the last few weeks have gone by all too quickly. This is only a snapshot, but hopefully does its beauty a bit of justice. I have no doubt we'll be back in this part of country before too long and maybe even (semi) permanently someday.