The northwest part of our country is truly beautiful.  And – coming from dry, arid AZ – there is soooooo much water!!!!  Every bit of it was enjoyed in so many different locations.

First up – invade the home of very generous friends (the Fishers) in Nordland, WA on Marrowstone Island.  One can delight in daily walks at Fort Flagler State Park or visit the local coop – Nordland General Store – for wonderful local products.  Or relish in stunning views from the guest bedroom – –

A really interesting place to visit while in the northwest is Tofino, British Columbia, Canada.  Located a quick ferry ride from Port Angeles, WA on the western side of Vancouver Island about a 4 hour drive north of Victoria, Tofino is much like the California Beach towns – BUT, much more remote and therefore much less populated.  In fact, it is so far north and west and remote that it is the end of the Trans-Canada Highway – the sign says so;-)

Since Tofino is a resort area, there are many places to stay on the water.  The choice for this trip was Pacific Sands Resort, which provided a one bedroom with a full kitchen, fireplace, a fantastic view and hiking trails right out the door.

The BIG activity here is surfing.  But, spas abound and for the older crowd there is a quaint golf course.

It’s best NOT to plan a trip around the coasts of Washington and Oregon during a 4th of July weekend unless you make reservations far in advance.  This was learned from experience and very poor planning;-(  But, if you find yourself in such a predicament, hotels around Army and Navy bases are a good option as all the contractors that stay in them are home for the weekend and rooms are probably available.  Thus a stay in DuPont, Washington.  Making lemonade out of lemons, a day was spent at Point Defiance Park wandering the tree covered paths and having a nice dinner at Anthony’s with spectacular views of Mt. Ranier.  Mt. Ranier is one of our favorite NP’s and sitting on the deck at dinner it looked like one could reach out and touch the mountain.

The July 4th weekend almost over, it was time to move to the next stop – Salishan, Oregon.  The adventure getting there was a bit more exciting than the place that was a pleasant memory.  Astoria, Oregon was the perfect distance for a delightful lunch stop right on the Columbia river – –

The afternoon ice cream stop was timed for Tillamook, Oregon – something that has become a tradition if anywhere in the neighborhood (and that can mean within 100 miles!!!)😂😂  As always, the parking lot was overflowing and the ice cream line was 1/4 mile long.  Since the van has a freezer, we outsmarted them all and just went into the store, bought a box of those Mudslide ice cream sandwiches that are loved and ate in the van storing the extras for later👏👏

Back on the road, next stop was Jacksonville, OR where more generous friends (the Weavers) opened their home to us.  This is always a much anticipated “cultural” visit.  They are very involved with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, so we take in several plays while visiting and enjoy the sites and sounds of Ashland.  Priscilla is a classically trained pianist, so she and G have great fun trading classical for country during our stays.

Besides taking care of their few remaining sheep and watch dogs (as well as making us omelets from fresh farm eggs every morning), Steve has built himself a magnificent work shop where he now spends his daily hours – –

Now it is finally time to head to Park City for the remainder of the summer.  It is truly wonderful to have so many friends to spend time with and this is especially true of Park City.  Having lived there for almost 20 years every summer is a homecoming;-)  The dinners, the golf games, the theater, Starbucks meetings in the AM, afternoon cocktails on the decks/patios, hikes and walks, adventures to Sundance – there is so much to enjoy and share with so many welcoming friends.  Because of the prior travels, this year’s stay was only two months and it went by way tooooo fast.

There was the annual moose sighting, though.  And this year was a real doozie – with something not seen before.  One bull moose had apparently been spending too much time in ‘our neighborhood’, which was too populated by humans for it to be safe for the moose.  So the Department of Natural Resources was called in to tranquilize him, load him into a trailer and transport him to safer/higher grounds.  The whole operation took several hours and mesmerized the entire condo complex.  Mr. Moose was not really anxious to be relocated, so he jumped up several times after tranquilizing while being loaded on the ‘sling’ – scaring those loading him enough to get out of the way!!

The activity with the moose was definitely a highlight on the animal front.  But, the sand hills also fascinate – especially how their color changes throughout the season.

After all these years, a trip was made to the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City where a production of Hamilton was running.  This traveling cast was excellent.

There was a lot of neighborhood walking on a daily basis, but as the weather cooled and the leaves began to change the mountain hikes called.  Another trip to Sundance called as did the hike to Stewart Falls.

The mountains surrounding Park City really began to say “Autumn” just before leaving.  This called for the favorite hike there – Dawn’s Trail to Armstrong – starting at the Park City Mountain Resort.  This is about a 5 mile loop with 750′ elevation change taking one across some of the favorite ski runs with great views of Park City.  And this time of the year the leaves are beautiful – –

 

Think this was the cue to head home.  So – the nice, cool weather was left behind and Magic headed for 100+ degrees and home.  But, the summer travels this year gave us many fond memories of times with friends.  And that just can’t be replaced.

Grateful for friends and family – E&G