Whidbey Island & Fort Lewis

We had reservations at North Whidbey RV Park which was just outside of Deception Pass State Park. The island is filled with trees and bays....very beautiful. While we spent time on Whidbey Island, we took a ride north to Bellingham. We went on some back roads and found a great little manor that served the best crab cakes. We had great service and a view of the ocean. We found an oyster farm and learned how they harvest oysters....very interesting. Another day we drove up to Anacortes at the very north end of the island. We also took a trip midway on the island to Fort Casey State Park (an old army fort that guarded Puget Sound). We stopped in Coupeville to an Arts & Craft show which was right on the bay. You would have thought it would be cool but it was a very hot day for these parts. In the 90's so we did not stay very long. Just too hot for us with the humidity. Jack convinced me to go to a car show in Oak Harbor. This day was glorious as the weather was perfect. The rest of the time we just relaxed. The mornings were foggy but the afternoons were in the 70's and perfect to sit outside and have cocktails before dinner.

Our next stop was Fort Lewis just south of Tacoma. We had reservations at their RV Park which was really nice. We had a great private spot surrounded by trees. Our friends and neighbors from Mission Royal, Karen and Lance Thurston live in Orting which is about 30 miles from Fort Lewis. We were able to get in some golf with them. We golfed the 18 hole course at Cedar Creek and the 9 hole course. Karen and Lance live on this course in a beautiful home that overlooks both courses and Mt. Rainier. They were marvelous hosts. We had a delicious dinner that included fresh items from their garden. Karen was gracious and provide us with fresh green beans and blueberries and some home made blueberry muffins to take home. We also played the 18 hole course at Ft. Lewis with them. (For some reason I was another golfer that day as I hit the ball well....amazing.) We had a great time with our friends and wish we had more time there. We took a drive up to Mount Rainier which was incredible. We stopped at a waterfalls called Narada Falls which was one of the most beautiful site. What a great week!

We are now in Pacific Beach Park which is overlooking the Pacific Ocean. More on that later. We do not have a date when we are heading back to Arizona as the weather still looks too hot.

Photos: Mt Rainier, Narada Falls (if you look closely you can see a rainbow in the falls) and Carol at Ft. Lewis Golf Course

Yellowstone and Grand Tetons

We spent a few days exploring Yellowstone National Park. We saw several hot springs which were very interesting but the best part were the waterfalls. I have a passion for waterfalls and we saw some that were absolutely amazing. We drove into Old Faithful just as it started gushing so we really missed that site. We did not want to spend another 90 minutes waiting for the next one. It had been a long day because of the road construction going on in the park. We did see some wildlife but did not see a bear which Jack really wanted to see. I am not sure his passion for bears but personally I like the stuffed cuddly ones much better.

We decided to pass on Glacier Park this year because I really wanted to see the Grand Tetons and "Wow". They were just awesome. After driving through the park we stopped in Jackson Hole and had lunch and did some shopping. It was a beautiful weather day so we got some great photos.

After several weeks of site seeing we were tired. We decided to spend a couple of days to recoup. We found a campground in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and did just that. Once we felt renewed, we called Russ and Carol Griffin (friends from Mission Royal) to see if they would like to get together. Russ and Jack decided to golf. While they played golf, Carol showed me downtown Spokane and Gonzaga University (I never knew that Gonzaga was in Spokane)...Really a neat old city and university. We had a late lunch and a nice visit. We sure enjoyed the day.

We are now on Whidbey Island which is about 85 miles north of Seattle. We are going to spend 10 days here relaxing and do a little site seeing. We just love the pine trees and bays that surround this island so it is a perfect spot for us to just chill out.

Everything is going well the summer other than locating RV spots this summer. There is a 30% increase of RV travel so it has been a challenge. We are enjoying our summer and will continue to keep you updated as we move on. Thanks to you that sent me a message. I do want to know how your summer is going also. Love to all.