Leg 3: Driving the Pacific
Brett loves the ocean, we’ve never spent much time on the Pacific Coast and I wanted to explore the Northwest – so we decided to drive the entire Pacific Coast from Mexico to Canada and explore along way. We had some amazing times along the coast including a fun stopover in the San Francisco Bay area for a few days, exploring Oregon‘s rocky coast, the wonders of the Olympic Pennisula, Puget Sound and Seattle. In Vancouver we were lucky enough to see two baby beluga whales – one on her second birthday and the other only two days after birth. We were surprised that it was as cold and foggy as it was for the end of May and early June, especially compared to a 15+ degree increase only a few miles inland. Although numerous days lacked the coastal sunshine and warmth that I longed for, we made do with what we had and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Highlight 1: The Redwoods! After experiencing the majestic giant redwoods in Northern California, I welcome being referred to as a tree hugger. These trees are beyond anything I could have imagined – their width, their height, their presence – they are downright awe-inspiring. All measures should be taken to insure that the remaining portions of these unbelievable forests are protected for future generations to inspire the dreamers of future.

Highlight 2: Washington State I know that I am somewhat taking a shortcut by picking a state – but trying to decided between the beauty of Puget Sound, the awesome city of Seattle and the wonders of Olympic National Park – the lakes, the mountains, the rain forest, the seashore, I don’t know that it can be done. I loved Washington! The driftwood beaches of the Olympic Peninsula were beyond my dreams. I had no idea temperate rain forests covered in mosses and ferns were possible in Washington state. And I didn’t have any idea how ‘at home’ I would feel in Puget Sound’s numerous islands and in Seattle.

California - Oregon - Washington - British Columbia

Travel:
Number of Days: 29 – May 13 to June 10
Number of Miles: 3,079

Sleeping:
Nights in the car: 21
Nights in the tent: 1
Nights with friends/family: 7

Our trip was categorized into different travel legs, with five legs in total. This is a flashback about Leg #3.