Later this summer we're going to visit my family in Washington state for a few weeks. The boys and I will be there for about three weeks, and dear husband will join us for a week, during which the whole family (us, my three brothers and their families, and my mom) will spend four days and three nights at a waterfront cabin resort on one of the San Juan Islands.
Our oldest son tells friends he's going to "Seattle" -- which is true enough. Easier to make a connection that way than by saying "Everett", "Ellensburg", "Bothell", "west Seattle", or "the San Juan Islands"!
When I started really doing some research a few days ago (ferry schedule and costs, things to do and see, etc.), my first shock was the typical temperatures for late July into August. I've been away from the Pacific Northwest for nearly 20 years, you see, living in hot-summer places.
Even for eastern Washington, with its hot inland summers, we may want to pack jeans and sweatshirts for the evenings. Now that we're pretty acclimated to the Oklahoma summer we'll need to wear a bit more than t-shirts, shorts, and sandals to handle nighttime lows in the upper 50s F. And western Washington, which has the mildest of summers, will be quite different. I must remember to pack the boys' thermal pjs!
I have a long list of Washington state things to share with my dear husband and sons, but that'll be easy to do, especially since we'll spend time all over the state -- so back and forth over the mountains we'll go. The boys will love going up Seattle's Space Needle and telling their friends, but besides that, I want to share with them:
Forests of evergreen trees
Mountains!
Big city streetscapes (Seattle)
Small Pacific Northwest city and town streetscapes
Green grass in midsummer - hahaha!
A ride on a big, car-carrying ferry among densely wooded islands
Rock beaches and cold saltwater waves
Scenic mountain highways on both the west and the dry sides of the state
Mountain rivers, or maybe just the moss and ferns in west-side suburbs!
My childhood home, block, neighborhood, schools
The espresso stands every half-block except in rural areas, where it's every intersection, LOL!
And plenty of time to get to know their cousins, uncles, aunts, and grandma
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4 comments:
Have fun on your trip... I'm in Coeur d'Alene and, of course, am very familiar with Washington (both sides)... So much to do around here, so little time.
So far, the weather's been mostly cool here around Spokane and Coeur d'Alene. But I want it to warm up so I can submerge myself in that wonderful lake down the street.
We'll be spending a little time on the San Juan Islands, and I think my kids might be surprised at how, er, downright cold that water is, even in summer! Maybe we'll have some nice warm days so we can dip a toe in.
You should take them up to Paradise Lodge in Mount Rainer National Park so they can see snow in the summertime! I'm now in North Texas and I so miss being able to see snow year-round just by looking at Mt. Hood or Mt. St. Helens from downtown Portland.
Also, you should take the boys to Pike Place Market to watch the fish fly.
We're not going to have time to go to Mount Rainer, but we'll probably take both I-90 and Hwy 2 over the Cascades at various times, and see whatever we see in the way of snow. I wish we had time to drive the North Cascade Highway (only open in summer)!
We will spend a little time in downtown Seattle, though. Thanks for the reminder about the famous flying fish at Pike Place Market! Last time we were there, Son1 was little and enjoyed the pig statue near the curb even more than the flying fish that were behind him. Kids! heehee
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