Catching up 6-3 through 6-6

Saturday, June 04, 2016

Yesterday, after packing up at Dick and Nancy’s, I left their house to get out of their hair while they finished packing up to head out to Portland. Remy and I went into Kingston to have a bite to eat. I was a little disappointed with the breakfast options there. I had a breakfast wrap without the wrap at a little café.

I found a salon that was willing to squeeze me in for a bangs trim (I thought) at 1:00, so Remy and I went to a small beach on the other side of the cove from the downtown of Kingston, right on the road to Indianola, not far from the new library.

I sat and read my book for a while. We found the Kingston Bookery, and I turned over my last four Harry Dresden stories to them. They only do a trade, so I put Nancy’s name on my card, since I most likely won’t be around long enough to purchase any books from them.

After the hair trim, we headed off on the route to the Elwha RV Park and Campground, west of Port Angeles on the Olympic Peninsula. I thought we might stop at the Chimicum organic market again, but the route turned off before we reached it. Eh. Maybe on the way back, although since we’re headed for Vashon, I have a feeling we won’t get back that far.

On the way to the park, I saw some of the most magnificent views of the trip: trees in undulating waves with the insignificant road running through them, and off in the distance, ocean.

We set up camp last night and talked to one of the owners about where to go to see the sunset, but we didn’t go last night, and it’s probably getting too late tonight, too, so I guess I’ll have to make sure I get out tomorrow night. He gave us two close options, Ediz Hook in Port Angeles, which is a long sand spit of land that curves out from the harbor; and driving west to Place Road, taking it to its end, and then walking out to the shore. Either one sounds pretty good. He also told me how to get to a designated bike trail that goes into Port Angeles, and actually all the way to Port Townsend, although I won’t have time to do that long a journey with my current plans.

This morning, Remy and I drove into Port Angeles and boarded a whale watching boat/ship. (I never got a chance to ask the captain – John – what the cutoff length is for a boat or a ship.) We probably weren’t at capacity. The galley area was pretty full at the end of the trip (when everyone was cold, and we knew the whale watching was done), but I got the impression they could have handled another 10 people probably. Right away, I met a young woman from Cincinnati (Chelsea) who is out here to run a race tomorrow (Sunday) morning. She was traveling alone, too, so we had a table together in the galley when we weren’t out on deck watching whales.

The trip out from the harbor was gorgeous. The sun was bright on the water, and we had a brilliant view of Mount Baker in the decreasing distance. Looking back toward shore was stunning, as well, with snow-capped peaks fronted by lush forest, and then town, beach, and ships and boats. Breathtaking.

Lee (Leigh?), our naturalist, (or maybe it was John) told us to watch for flocks of birds gathering, that the birds would be feeding on the same tiny fish as the whales. What actually came to pass was that we saw a flock of whale-watching boats, and that was where we found our first humpback. S/he would swim around one boat, slapping pectoral fins on the water, and sometimes nosing up toward the people on the deck. After 5-10 minutes on one boat, s/he moved on to another. We never got the privilege of being the designated boat, but we did get to see quite a bit of the whale as it moved around the other boats. In the end, it gave us all a nice fluke as it swam away.

After that, we motored slowly through a sanctuary area just off the coast of Vancouver Island. We had started to head back to the marina when someone spotted a whale breaching in the distance, about 5 minutes away at a pretty good clip. We headed over, and this time there was only one other boat in the vicinity. What we were seeing was a baby humpback and its mother. Mother was feeding, so she would make some longer dives below the surface, but the baby was still nursing, so it wasn’t submerging to feed. Instead, it seemed to be playing, repeatedly slapping the surface, rolling around in the water, and breaching again and again. Mom would come up and join in the play every so often. It was quite a show.

When they disappeared beneath the surface, we finally headed back. I guess some of the others saw another whale just floating along on our starboard, but by that time I was cold enough to just stay in the cabin and drink hot tea. I’m glad I wore shorts with jeans over them, a T-shirt and a sweatshirt. When we got back to shore, though, I couldn’t wait to get out of the outer layers. It was hot on shore.

Remy and I made our way to the New Day Eatery on Front Street, and I ate waaayyy too much. They had reasonably priced smoothies, so I had one that included cacao and coconut, as well as a burger (no bun) that came with regular and sweet potato chips. And I couldn’t resist (when will I learn?!) a gluten-free banana coffee cake.

Chelsea is running tomorrow morning from Port Townsend, I think she said. We’re going to meet for lunch when she gets into Port Angeles, and then she’s going to head out into the Olympic Park for the later part of the afternoon. I think I’ll bicycle into PA for lunch and then mosey around the town for a while. I’ll be leaving the area Monday morning, so besides getting out to see the sunset in the evening, I’ll probably be gathering myself together in preparation to move on.

This is a nice park. The people who run it are great. The room I’m in right now, where I thought I might have a better Internet connection, has three sets of washers and dryers, a microwave, fridge/freezer, and stove and oven. It also has cupboards with dishes and utensils. I was cordially invited to keep my food in the fridge and use whatever I might need. The bathrooms are very clean and updated. I haven’t showered yet – tonight or tomorrow morning – but I can see that everything is in top condition.

It’s an RV park. Most of the place is filled with gigantic rolling hotel rooms, but there are a few tent sites, and the proprietors ran an electric line to my tent so I can use my CPAP machine and charge my phone. They’ve also been very helpful with advice about restaurants and local places to see and things to do. From what I can tell, I’m still pretty far (at least 60 miles) from the Pacific Ocean, but if I can get out to a point where I can watch the sun set over the water in the distance, that’s all I need.

Sunday, 6/5

Chelsea was running a marathon from Sequim to Port Angeles, and we'd agreed to meet for lunch after she was done. I had breakfast early, as usual, putzed around the camp for a bit, and then got Remy ready to ride in his basket into PA. We headed out from the camp onto Power Plant Road. I kept the sun on my right, figuring that I'd be heading north and east and would eventually come to PA, even if I didn't find the paved bicycle trail. But I did find it, and it was quite nice most of the way. I had loaded a Map My Ride app to my phone and thought it was recording the trip, but when I got to downtown PA, it hadn't been. Looks like it was about 10 miles. 

Since there was a lot of time left before I expected to hear from Chelsea, Remy and I stopped at Country Aire Health Food Store. I was specifically looking for Kukicha tea and Rx bars. I didn't find either, but I did like the place. Then we headed up the hill toward Lincoln St, because I remembered having seen a bike shop up that way. I really wanted to find another front basket for Remy to use, at least some of the time. As we approached the light, I released my right foot from the pedal so I could rest it on the curb. But as the pet basket has deteriorated, so has its stability. Remy shifted, and I went over to the left, falling because I hadn't released that foot from the pedal. So, yes, I fell yet again on the same knee that I fell on twice earlier in the trip, and which had nearly healed. A passing couple helped me up, and I sat for a bit on a nearby wall, deciding how to handle the situation.

I had had the foresight to bring an alternative pair of shoes along, so I changed into those, and Remy and I walked the rest of the way to the bike store. It is mostly a repair shop, and while there were a few baskets to be had, nothing was designed for a pet, so they didn't have anything to secure him in. I decided I would have to make do till we could get to a larger market, and after having a cup of coffee at the shop next door, we made our way back down to the waterfront and locked up the bike.

I didn't hear from Chelsea till about 1:15. She had misplaced her phone temporarily and was in the process of getting it back after she finished her run. We met up at the park where the race was finishing and walked around trying to find a good (and not too expensive) seafood place. Most of the places that had been recommended didn't open till later, so we ended up at a kind of a hole in the wall called Turnip the Beet. Each of us got a salad -- mine was mixed greens, salmon, feta, and avocado with a vinaigrette dressing. We walked around a little bit after lunch, but I needed to bike back to camp, and Chelsea wanted to head for the Olympic National Park, so we said farewell. I strolled back to the bike, stopping at a gift shop along the way, and loaded Remy up. 

We didn't get far. The left side of the basket was collapsing. We might have been able to make it, but I could tell that it was going to be scary for both Remy and me. I called the camp. I spoke to David and asked what kind of public transportation might be available that could get me, the bike, and the dog back out to camp. He said, "Oh! My wife is in town right now for a meeting. She should be done in about 15 minutes. I'll get a message to her and have her get in touch with you." Before I knew it, she was rescuing me in her huge Explorer. We stopped at the grocery store, and I got some more giant band-aids for my latest knee injury. 

I had showered in the morning, but I rinsed off the salt and dirt of the day and changed into some nicer clothes. Then Remy and I drove back into PA for a real seafood dinner. I had the Dungeness crab and avocado salad at Kokopelli, as well as a Mock-arita. 

We drove out on Ediz Spit to watch the sunset, as recommended. I wasn't sure where to park, exactly. I didn't want to cause a problem. I found a small area hollowed out next to the road and parked there. The rocks have been piled up so high on the western side of the spit to keep it from eroding that it was hard to see over them to get a good view of the sunset. Also, it was darned chilly out there. I found some huge logs to step up onto to get a better view, and I snapped a few pictures before I got too cold to keep watching.

When we got back to camp, I blew up the air mattress -- sleeping on two 1 1/2" pads wasn't cutting it -- and Remy and I got ready for bed. As I was putting stuff away in the car, I looked over and saw him waiting patiently for me to unzip the tent flap. Apparently, he was more tired than I.

Monday, 6/6

Today's plan was travel to Vashon Island to see the Peterson/Jewell family. Because there was no set arrival time, I stopped off in Chimicum for some more wonderful chocolate, no-grain granola, and coconut water and milk. I also got off the highway near Poulsbo to go to the Barnes & Noble at Kitsap Mall. I picked up two more Harry Dresden novels. All that's left is a book of short stories which wasn't in stock.

The rest of the trip to Vashon didn't take very long. We waited at the ferry dock for about a half hour in the sun -- pretty hot, and then the ferry trip itself only took about 15 minutes, if that. Another short drive and I'd arrived at Plum Forest Farm.

I wasn't sure what the set-up was or where to find my friends/family. I heard pounding up the hill, so I figured Rob was up there fixing something. Remy and I strolled up the path in that direction, but as we approached the path was blocked by wire that looked as though it could  have been electrified, as well as a Scottish Highland cow with whom I was not familiar. I decided to return to the house, leave a note, and come back when I was expected.

Remy and I drove into Vashon and had a very vegetarian lunch at an organic place called Pure. It was delicious and temporarily filling. I say "temporarily" because veggies alone don't stay with a person for very long. Most vegetarians eat grains, which help to keep that full feeling for a longer period of time. We Primal people usually have meat with our veggies, which has the same effect. Nevertheless, it was delicous!

Just as we reached the car, I got a call from Rob. He had come in for lunch and seen my note. He was getting ready to bike over to get Rose from school, so Remy and I hurried back, hooked up the cart (I threw the nasty basket in the dumpster at camp this morning!), and followed a few minutes behind Rob, arriving at Rose's school just as she and Rob were heading out toward the main road. We pedaled back to the commercial corner, where Joanne was waiting. Rob & Rose got ice cream, while Joanne and I had kombucha. The place had kombucha on tap! Joanne got her bottle filled and got a small glass for me. It really hit the spot!

The rest of the evening has been spent in meal preparation (including picking beans and prepping them for cooking), eating, chatting, walking Remy, and now this.

While here, I plan to help Rob harvest greens tomorrow, with his regular crew. Sounds like he and Joanne both have something going tomorrow evening, so Rose and I may get to spend some time together.

Photos possibly tomorrow. Pretty good Internet connection here.