This weekend we headed out to Olympic National Park with Brianne and Mary. They spent the night on Friday so we could leave early on Saturday morning. We left at 8:45 am and the weather was promising - sunny and 70. Well, the minute we started hiking it began raining and it was like 55 degrees. This was Brianne and Mary's first hike-in trip and we wanted to make a good impression on them. The rain kept falling harder and harder and never stopped - the entire time! We hiked 3 miles on the Enchanted Valley Trail in the rain only to find our favorite campsite was taken. We found another site that was really small, and very tree covered so it was dark, but it was located on a rocky cliff (a small one) that overlooked the Quinalt River. We set up tents in the rain, and secured the beer in the river to chill it, then took another small hike when it actually was NOT raining. But as soon as we got back it started again. It took Mike 2 hours to get a fire going enough that we could cook hotdogs and s'mores in the rain and eat beans and drink our 24 ounce cans of Heineken in the rain. It rained all night then in the morning we made oatmeal and coffee in the rain and finally packed up our VERY wet gear in the rain. I have to say though, that everyone remained in good humor and we did have fun, although it felt GREAT to put on dry clothes and get back in the car!
Jun 24, 2007
First Hike-in of the Season
This weekend we headed out to Olympic National Park with Brianne and Mary. They spent the night on Friday so we could leave early on Saturday morning. We left at 8:45 am and the weather was promising - sunny and 70. Well, the minute we started hiking it began raining and it was like 55 degrees. This was Brianne and Mary's first hike-in trip and we wanted to make a good impression on them. The rain kept falling harder and harder and never stopped - the entire time! We hiked 3 miles on the Enchanted Valley Trail in the rain only to find our favorite campsite was taken. We found another site that was really small, and very tree covered so it was dark, but it was located on a rocky cliff (a small one) that overlooked the Quinalt River. We set up tents in the rain, and secured the beer in the river to chill it, then took another small hike when it actually was NOT raining. But as soon as we got back it started again. It took Mike 2 hours to get a fire going enough that we could cook hotdogs and s'mores in the rain and eat beans and drink our 24 ounce cans of Heineken in the rain. It rained all night then in the morning we made oatmeal and coffee in the rain and finally packed up our VERY wet gear in the rain. I have to say though, that everyone remained in good humor and we did have fun, although it felt GREAT to put on dry clothes and get back in the car!
Jun 18, 2007
Hiking with Brianne and Mary
Brianne had to work this weekend and Mike was supposed to work Saturday (but ended up staying at home and cleaning!!!) So Saturday Mary, Jim and I went strawberry picking in the afternoon. I got 4.33 pounds of strawberries for $3.50! In the evening, Mike and I went to Brianne and Mary's for some homemade chili and we saw Brianne off to work. Then we made a fresh strawberry pie and watched a movie. Sunday, the 4 of us took a hike in Snoqualmie National Forest - which was nice but not the same as the National Park. In a national park you would NEVER hear repeated guns shots so close that you were concerned and then on the way out, drive by two idiots shooting guns at targets such as an old computer and an old vacuum. We finished the night by stopping for pizza and a beer!
Jun 11, 2007
Camping on Orcas
This weekend we decided to see what Erin and Ray were up to since we hadn't seen them in a while. As it turned out they had a camping trip all planned and said they didn't mind us coming with them. So, Saturday morning Mike and I got up at 4:30am to meet Erin and Ray in Seattle by 5:30am. We took separate cars since Erin and Ray had a TON of stuff - including a futon mattress in the bed of the truck! We drove to Anacortes and caught the ferry to Orcas Island (one of the San Juan Islands). We set up camp (in the rain), then hiked to the top of Mount Constitution (in the rain) It was over 6 miles round trip and no view at the top - it was completely whited out with possibly the strongest wind I had ever felt. But once we got back to the campsite the rain stopped and we were able to sit around the campfire and cook dinner and play Scrabble. The next morning was beautiful and we stopped by a little resort on the water called Doe Bay Resort and had some coffee and then took a quick hike out to the Coast in Obstruction Pass Stat Park before heading back to the ferry!
Jun 4, 2007
Jeep Weekend!
It was a beautiful weekend, about 85 degrees both days. To enjoy the weather, we decided to take out the Jeep and drive around Mount Rainier. It was a lot of fun, especially considering that on top of the pass there's still plenty of snow. Something about driving through gigantic mounds of snow with the top down seemed a little funny. Once on the backside of the mountain we attempted some "novice" off-road driving. We did a lot of exploring on small dirt tracks that usually ended in downed trees covering the way. 
I managed to scare Marcie a little when she thought we were going to tip over while climbing a rock. But then she took the wheel and handled the obstacles like a pro :)On Sunday we threw the bike on the back and travelled over to a state park on the Olympic Peninsula. We had a great time riding along the single track until we looked around the forest and realized we were lost!
It took about and hour of following "male-induced" directional intuition before I finally asked Marcie which way she thought we should go. 20 minutes later, we were back at the trail head... It was a good time regardless of the whole getting lost thing and we plan on going back soon.
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