Pacific Northwest

Our drive through North Dakota towards Montana included much of the same sights we have seen throughout the mid-west. Farmlands, cows, horses, crops, turbines, dilapidated building and ranch and mobile homes. With such lovely acreage, we wondered why there were so many homeowners who seemed to enjoy collecting various vehicle parts, broken down cars, junked cargo trailers and other random, useless yard furniture thereby cluttering and causing their property to become so unattractive. We also figured that the 650-mile journey would be different than some of the past ones, in so much, we were traveling on very rural roads and there were no Super Walmart’s, truck stops and/or overnight RV parking spots. We divided the drive into three days of 250, 250 and 150 miles per day which equates to about 6 hours of driving for 250 miles and 3 hours for 150 miles (with no stops). We called ahead to get permission to park overnight at Shopko, a Big Lots kind of store. After two days of driving and boondocking, we were both ready to park and relax for a while.

While we made our way into Montana, we drove through the Blackfeet Reservation. I had read a few signs along the route that spoke about the ancient and sacred grounds of this group and how it was being preserved. I felt optimistic about how the “wrongs were righted” and imagined a better life they must have achieved by having their lands back. That belief was diminished once I saw the condition of the reservation. Run down homes, neglected buildings, loose dogs roaming in the street, homeless camps along the street sides and debris littered throughout the area was a far cry from what I expected to see. I elected not to take pictures of these sights out of respect.

We finally arrived at our campsite, Columbia Falls RV Park and were met by the camp owners, Karla and Larry. This was by far the most meticulous RV park we have stayed at and the views were amazing. Paved and leveled lots, lush green grass, facilities that you could eat off the floor, exceptional wifi and plenty of space between the sites made this our new number one recommendation of places to stay. Since we arrived later in the afternoon, our first day entailed setting up, grocery shopping, cleaning and sight planning. While touring the area, I located a liquor/wine store that specialized in stocking local wines, beer, and liquors. I went with the owner's recommendations of an 80-proof chocolate whiskey and was pleasantly surprised how smooth it tasted with a little diet root beer added.

In the morning we made our way to the Glacier National Park where Darryl elected to purchase a lifetime membership for $80 (62 + does have its benefits). Let us let you in on a little secret. If you are ever planning a trip to see multiple national parks, buy an annual pass. Each national park ranges in entrance fees from $10-25 dollars per vehicle. We calculated that we had already spent $50 at parks we previously visited and since we still had several more parks to see, it made sense to purchase the pass.

The park was comprised of some of the most beautiful mountain views I have ever seen. Having lived in North Carolina for a few years, I thought I had witnessed majestic mountaintops, yet these were quite impressive. Various bloomed trees, high reaching mountains, swift moving streams, low, bright white clouds, trains chugging along and clutched to the side of boulders all in the most

serene and still surroundings. We walked some of the hiking paths and explored the lakes, waterfalls, and rivers. Afterward, we headed a few miles away to see the Hungry Horse Dam. The dam’s credentials were rather interesting with it being one of the largest concrete dams in the US; reaching 564 feet high.

With the following day calling for mostly rain, we decided to take advantage of the quiet time we had remaining and completed some household tasks like laundry, meal prepping for our boondocking days and finishing some consulting work I have been doing over the

past few months. In preparation for our upcoming time in Washington, we discovered there were certain recreational freedoms Washingtonians were enjoying that other states have not yet accepted. Tuned in, I did what anyone else would do…provided Darryl with the first “candy shop” address.

Feeling invigorated from the 3 days of relaxation In Montana, we packed up and headed west. This leg would entail 550 miles over the course of 2 ½ days and would involve lots of high altitudes and steep declensions.

As we made our way into Washington, we pulled over to a scenic

outlook. The views were stunning and made a wonderful place for lunch. Making our way into Seattle, we encountered a small animal crisis I could not drive past. A small, terrier escaped out of its family’s vehicle while they were pulled over and changing drivers. The dog was dragging its leash and running towards three oncoming lanes of traffic. I yelled to Darryl to stop the RV, so I could get out and assist the owners. The dog was so scared and ran so fast that she continued to run away making it near impossible to catch her. Honestly, after watching the dog dodge in and out of semi’s, motorcycles and vehicles, I did not see this story ending well. Yet, about 20 minutes and 7 people trying to corner it, the dog eventually tired and the owner was able to catch her.

After checking out the local area while waiting for our RV to have the oil changed, we arrived at the RV park and quickly realized our definition of a resort was very different than what this establishment considered as one. The sites were about 4 feet apart, had limited outside recreation area, and included a barely grassy dog walk area that was not conveniently located near the park. There was no pool, spa, picnic benches, trails or onsite activities and for $67 a night, we felt cheated. However, being the optimists that we are, we focused on

the attractions we planned to see while visiting the Seattle area.

Here are a few places we visited and our overall opinions:

• Pike Peak Market is a great place to pick up flowers, seafood, dried nuts/fruit and other handmade, skilled craft items. We enjoyed watching the employees at the seafood market effortlessly toss large bodies of fish back and forth to each other, clearly entertaining most of the onlookers.

• Seattle Space Needle was a bit overrated. At $26 a person, the whole experience was less than magical. Most of the needle was under construction and once inside, there wasn't much room or access to capture some city skyline photos.

• Edmonds to Kingston Ferry was the highlight of the trip. We really enjoyed driving the car onto the ferryboat and found an awesome hiking trail that led directly to the beach. The combination of standing on the beach, looking at snowcapped mountains while basking in 80-degree weather was a first for both of us.

• Snoqualmie Falls was worth the hour drive and we thoroughly enjoyed the 2-mile hike throughout the falls trails.