A Fall Jaunt to the Olympic Peninsula

Our fall weather in the PNW has been spectacular. A perfect time to plan a quick get-a-way close to home and 10 days on the Olympic Peninsula fit the bill. It’s mid-October and we’re seeing sunny days with temps in the high 70’s. Yes, the air quality sucks from the wildfire smoke and yes, my plants are desiccated husks longing for rain, but we since we can’t do anything about the weather we might as well enjoy it!

Riley looks like he'd prefer Raney ride shotgun and stay out of the driver's seat. Lol. 

Brothers make the best pillows.
We have two great travel pups!

We had two main goals for this trip. Visit the annual Crab Fest in Port Angeles, WA and ride a portion of the Olympic Discovery Trail, specifically the section along Crescent Lake that was part of the Spruce Railroad. We were delighted to find campsites in the Dungeness Recreation Area near Sequim, WA. And yes, that’s campsites plural since we planned to do this trip with our friends, Bob and Carole and their puppers Ruby and Buddy. Raney’s at the puppy stage (5 months now) where having a friend along to wear her out is a godsend. 

Raney and Ruby - BFF's.
There is no more adorable left in the world. 

For the Raney fans, as you can see, girlfriend is growing like a weed! She weighed in at 5 ½ months at 109.6 pounds. How insane is that?? She has been a busy girl, with frequent playdates with her friends, Ruby, Max and Penny. We are also attending a handling class so I don’t totally embarrass myself at the upcoming dog shows. She went to a match in Bremerton and Chehalis and has three more shows later this month. It will be lots of fun to see her siblings again!

Check out how much Raney's grown in just 3 months!!

Pics from the Chehalis and Bremerton Shows. 
Family photo is Raney, Nova, Kiska (mom), Gunthar, and Ripley.

We left on Wednesday, 10/5, and arrived at Dungeness Recreation Area, a Clallam County campground situated on a bluff above the Straits of Juan de Fuca. What a gem! We were tucked under the trees just a short walk to the Bluff Trail with fantastic views of the Strait. 

View from the Bluff Trail.

Bob and Carole were delayed a bit due to family commitments, so we spent the first few days exploring the campground. The park is 216 acres with a great network of trails that wind through the trees, across an upland meadow and along a cattail marsh. Raney and I did a walkabout and I won’t say we got lost, we just weren’t sure where we were going. Lol.

Which way Mom? Just follow me!

We put Raney in her bike trailer and took her around campground loops to see how she’d do. She’s so tall she prefers to sit up and pop her head out the top like a giraffe in a circus car. Lol. That’s also when I found out it is possible for her to tip the whole thing over! Oops! She didn’t seem too upset, so we righted the trailer and she hopped right back in and we went around again so she could end on a positive note. On Saturday, we took her to Robin Hill Farm Park nearby and rode 6 miles to see how she’d do on a longer trip. She was an angel! She sat up and looked around and seemed content to just watch the scenery. No fussing or whining, which gave us the confidence to take her along for the trail ride along Crescent Lake.  

 

Ready to go!

Bob and Carole arrived on Sunday, 10/9, and we headed over to the Crab Fest in Port Angeles. We took Raney and Ruby in their strollers and that was genius. The kids got to see everything and enjoyed lots of attention and pets, but we didn’t have to wrangle them through the crowds or worry about the many other dogs in attendance. We decided to leave the grumpy old men at home (I mean Riley and Buddy, not Rog and Bob! Lol.) Rog and Carole were interested in the crab feed (a whole Dungeness crab and sides), but the line was enormous so they opted for crab cakes instead. Bob and I were happy to find lots of other dining options to choose from. I like crab, but can’t say I’m a fan of having to disassemble my dinner. Lol.

 

Port Townsend Crab Fest. Wait, that's not a crab!

The Dad stroller brigade. Lol. 

On Monday, 10/10, we converted the strollers back to bike trailers and set out for the Lyre River Trailhead to ride the Spruce Railroad Trail (love those Rail-to-Trails!!), a section of the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT). Rog did the research and I have to say, it was an inspired choice. It was one of the most gorgeous trails I’ve ever been on. The Spruce Railroad Trail follows the historic railroad grade of the Spruce Railroad built in 1918 to transport aircraft-quality spruce for biplanes in the First World War. The railroad was almost complete in the fall of 1918, but the end of the war that November meant the end of the operation and no Sitka spruce were ever processed at the local mills for biplanes. The railroad was purchased from the government and utilized as a common-carrier line and logging railroad until it was abandoned in 1951 and was eventually incorporated into the trail system. Put this one on your to-do list!!

Bob and Carole with Ruby. Rog and I with Raney. 

Tunnels on the trail are so much fun!

Crescent Lake.

We stopped along the way to hike the short side-trail down to the Devil’s Punchbowl. The water was an incredible dark aquamarine blue, trust me when I say the pictures do not do it justice. Ruby and Raney also enjoyed the walk and the chance to play and sniff.

Devil's Punchbowl.

A break for play time - Ruby for the take down!

Ready to roll!

Gorgeous paved path through the forest. 

Bob and Carole had visited the area years ago and remembered that Grannies Café on Hwy 101 served an excellent blackberry pie. Never one to pass up a chance for delicious baked goods, we happily added a stop at Grannies on the way back. Carole got the pie to go and we paired it with the New Zealand style ice cream (think very flavorful soft serve made with fresh local fruit) that we’d scored from Welly’s at the Crab Fest. What a treat!

Enjoying happy hour back at the campsite.

Carole with Buddy and Raney in the lead.
Walking off our dessert. Lol.

Tuesday, 10/11, was our move day but since we only had 36 miles to go we had time for the short walk from the campground is the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge. Sadly, no pets are allowed so the furry kids hung out in the RV’s while we hiked down to the Dungeness Spit.  The New Dungeness Light Station marks the end of the spit. Built in 1857 it is the second oldest lighthouse in WA state. It's also an 11-mile round trip hike, so not on the agenda this trip. But we did enjoy the scenery and the information boards along the trail. The Dungeness Spit was formed by sediment deposits from the eroding bluffs carried by wind, waves, and tidal currents. Extending over five miles into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, it is one of the largest natural spits in the world. We hope to make it back someday and hike all the way to the lighthouse. Better not wait too long though, since the spit continues to grow in length by about 13 feet a year and that hike just keeps getting longer! Lol. 

Dungeness Spit.

The lighthouse with Mt. Baker in the background.

Did I mention we had high winds and a small craft advisory? Ouch.

Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Kelp and driftwood and stones. Oh my!

I’ve mentioned the Escapee’s RV Club Co-op parks a few times in the blog, we’d stayed at Jojoba Hills near Temecula, CA and Timber Valley in Sutherlin, OR. So we were very interested in checking out the Escapee’s Evergreen Coho park in Chimacum, WA. It’s a lovely RV park with many of the amenities and friendly residents that we’ve experienced at the other Escapee’s locations. The kids loved the huge fenced dog run and we explored the clubhouse with its library, fitness room, game rooms, kitchen, and cozy fireplace and big screen TV. The landscaping was beautiful and nearly everything is built and maintained by resident volunteers. While we could easily have spent longer, we only had three nights booked, so we were not idle.

The short-term rental spots gave us a shared patio space. Perfect!

Loved the the extensive landscaping and fun statuary. 

Bob and Carole and I are huge cider fans and one of our favorites, Finn River Cidery, was only a mile and half down the road. Woohooo! We went Wednesday evening and enjoyed a flight of outstanding ciders. A few bottles mysteriously followed us home too… funny how that happens. 😊

 

Finn River Cidery - yes, yes, yes. 👍

On Thursday, we drove to Port Townsend and strolled the touristy downtown area. There were lots of fun shops, historic architecture, and interesting restaurants. But here’s a travel tip for Port Townsend, do not wait until 2PM to eat! I was starving and many of the restaurants close in the afternoon, so they were either about to close or wouldn’t open until 3 or 4pm for dinner. Ugh! It ended well though, because we had lunch at Tommyknockers (which thankfully did not shut down mid-day!) and served a truly delicious Crab Mac and Cheese. Rog and I shared that and the Washington Apple Salad – both were exceptionally good. They’re known for their Cornish Pasty and serve local craft beers and ciders too! A definite hit!

Old Port Townsend ferry dock.

Loved the restored buildings. Clam Cannery 1885

Speaking of old, when's the last time you saw a pay phone?
Bob tried it out, but no service. (Verizon? Lol,)

Sadly, our short trip was coming to an end and we departed Evergreen Coho for home on Friday, 10/14. It was marvelous to discover so many fun things to see and do in an area so close to home. We hope to return for a longer stay!

Carole got a great shot of Raney, she is up for a longer stay. 

I’d also like to note this is our 200^th blog post!! A huge shout out to all the faithful followers (those masochists among us). If you’ve made it this far, you rock!! Of course, epic scenery and adorable puppy pics don’t hurt either. 😊