LAST DAY! Although it has been a great trip - enjoying incredible sights - it's time for VacationGirl and family to come home. Their flight leaves at 12:03 Tuesday afternoon and if all goes well, they'll touch down at 11:42 pm, Dayton time. Should be home and asleep by 1:00 a.m. However, since they are connecting in Chicago, anything can happen!
VacationGirl has made two very important discoveries on this trip. The first you already know about - look, don't climb, the lighthouses. Another very important discovery was made today - Don't drive and expect dear(???) husband and almost 16-year old to navigate! It's a recipe for disaster.
Making "very important discoveries" like these are critical to one's health and well-being - or better yet to the health and well-being of dear (???) husband and almost 16 year-old. Everyone should make such relevant, critical discoveries on their vacations.
Enough for the discoveries - on to the trip.....
Group decision was made to visit Mt. Rainier - why come all this way and not see one more big rock! So VacationGirl and family pulled out of Kelso around 9:00 and headed up I-5 to Rt 12. That took them on the north side of Mt. St. Helen's and the south side of Mt. Rainier. VacationGirl was starting to have panic attacks because there was a HEAVY cloud layer today. All she wanted was one more day of the incredibly beautiful weather that they had experienced all week. But it didn't look like it was meant to be.
They got to one "scenic" view of Mt. St. Helen's only to see all clouds, no mountains. But VacationGirl had faith, even with the clouds blocking out everything. And sure enough, as they neared Mt. Rainier, the fog burned off and as they made their way around the east side of the mountain to the Sunrise visitor center, there was nothing but blue sky.
Sunrise is not the prettiest view of Mt. Rainier but it is the closest view that you can get to by car. Most of the pictures were taken at a view point at 6100 feet up - and then some at the visitor center at 6400 feet. You could almost touch the mountain. From the 6100 ft viewpoint, you could also see Mt. Adams - he lives right next door to Rainier and St. Helen's. Very pretty view. So up the mountain and down the mountain and on to Seattle to visit the Space Needle.
VacationGirl was dying to get one of the beautiful pictures of Mt. Rainier from Seattle - the ones from the Space Needle were ok but she had to shoot between the wires that kinda hold the thing up. The view is really great - it's right on Puget Sound and they saw cruise ships and ferries all over the place.
After leaving the Space Needle, VacationGirl headed for the hotel in Sea-Tac near the airport. (This was when critical discovery 2 was made!) . As she pulled off I-5 onto her exit, the mountain was right in front of her - the view she wanted! So she did the only thing possible - she pulled into a park and took a picture - it's the one you see below. She found that it would be very easy to live in a place where she could look out to the mountain every day - for some reason, it seems to speak to her. (She hasn't figured out what it's saying yet, but someday she will!) It may be telling her to lighten up and not be mad at dear (???) husband and almost 16 year-old for being directionally, map-reading challenged - or maybe not! However, that's what she'll assume for now as she begins the repacking process so that suitcases will close tomorrow morning!
"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. " ~ Rachel Carson
See ya back home!
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