More Northern California Fun

Here are some other pics from our Northern California trip last summer.  Above is a beach on one of the state parks.  Below is a delish Thai curry- California-style with avocados!!  It was SO good and pretty too- we went to a little Thai place in Crescent City really close to our hotel. (Although we left the kids in our hotel with some Little Caesar's Pizza... lol... their first time having it!)

 Famous Victorian-style houses in Eureka and Ferndale, CA.  The first pic is Carson Mansion, Eureka.

This bathroom, below was my fave.  It's inside an Indian restaurant in Crescent City, CA.  They had a great lunch buffet and then as a sweet surprise... this double-toileted bathroom.  Best thing ever. 

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California Redwoods!

At the tail end of our Northwest trip last summer, we spent a week in Northern California.  We spent the time in both Eureka and Crescent City.  We went on lots of easy hikes, drives, etc to see the Redwoods.  Eureka had a great zoo with redwoods right in the zoo that we loved. Some highlights- Fern Canyon- this was our favorite hike.  You hike through a canyon where the walls are literally covered in ferns! You'll need water shoes.  Below is the only pic I really have without our fam in it (I don't share people pics here). We hiked to the end and back, and then went down and had lunch at picnic tables on the beach.  Other assorted pics, below.  The last pic is of my meal at a great restaurant we stopped by after hiking in the redwoods all day.  It was a great trip!

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Oregon Coast 2019

After Central Wa, we drove down to the Oregon Coast.  We all love the Oregon Coast, no matter how many times we visit.  We stayed in Rockaway beach at the tiniest cabin ever, but it was just what we needed at a great price.  We crossed the street every day and walked down to the beach.  Some of the fam rented beach bikes one day and rode those around.  One night, my fave, we had a beach campfire and made S'mores.  Our Airbnb had firewood and matches, and I walked to the nearby post office and took all the grocery fliers for kindling.  Lol.  We spent some time in Seaside, Or, too.

Eating clam chowder at Mo's restaurant.  Picking blueberries near Rockaway Beach.

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Central Washington State

On our Northwest trip last summer, we made a stop in Central Wa to see relatives before going on to the Oregon coast.  We always enjoy our visits here.  A few years ago I posted these pics.  This time, we went to Soap Lake just to drive around and touch the water, lol..  Pic below.

This area has some super great Mexican food.  We went with my aunt and uncle to their summer church picnic, and a local restaurant had catered these tacos.  They were some of the BEST tacos I've ever had! I got seconds even though I was full.  The beans were good too.  I wish I could have them again!!!

We also went to Leavenworth, Wa.  We love going there.  We tried a cute little bakery with tin-can cakes.  So good! It was a beautiful day.  We left some kids with at my Aunt's house to enjoy the farm- they didn't want to go so it was a win-win for everyone.

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Seattle, Washington

Seattle and the surrounding area is in my thoughts right now while they deal with the Coronavirus.  Seattle is such a nice and beautiful area.  While staying in Bremerton last summer, I took two day trips over to Seattle on their awesome ferry system.  One time with my daughter to meet a friend, and another time with just my husband.  I'll share some pics of both days below.  The first time I went, it was nice and sunny.  The second time, it was raining.

Eating a delicious crab melt at Cutter's Crabhouse on the water.  We also ordered an appetizer of friend cheese and veggies.  I couldn't finish everything.  It was so good, though. 

Clam chowder in a bread bowl with Caesar Salad at Anthony's, above.  Below delish Creme Brulee cheesecake with Northwest berries, also at Anthony's. 

Above, view of Seattle from the top of the Space Needle.  Below, riding the monorail away from the Space Needle. 

 Above, cookies from Nordstrom's coffee shop in Seattle.  Below, Ivar's clam chowder on one of the ferries.

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Bremerton, Washington

Nobody is traveling right now, and with the extra time at home, I'm finally going through my old pics from last summer's trip to the States.  We had a great summer in the Pacific Northwest.  We were in the Puget Sound area in Washington State, went up to Canada for a few days, then down to Central Washington, then down to the Oregon Coast, then to Northern California, and we ended the epic trip with a few days in Portland, Oregon before flying home.  First, though, we stayed in Bremerton, WA and we really loved it.  Today I'll post about that. We had only driven through before, or maybe skirted it, back when we lived in Puyallup WA many years ago.  I'll share some pics of Bremerton in this post.  I think Bremerton would be a great place to live. I'd love to go back.  It's a great place and we have some great memories there. 

Taking the ferry to Seattle.  From Bremerton, members of our fam took the ferry to Seattle 3-4 times (we never went all at the same time, lol, just in small groups.  I LOVED the whole ferry ride.  Loved it.)  Below, inside the giant ferry.

On the deck of our great AirBnB.  I ate breakfast out here every morning for 2 weeks.  So peaceful. Quiet, not hot (like Italy is in the summer!) with big trees everywhere, so very green.  Below is the quiche I had for breakfast a few days in a row.

We brought salmon back from Pike's Place Market in Seattle twice and cooked it at our Airbnb.  I blackened it and we had it with pasta and Caesar salad; perfect meal.  Best salmon ever.

At one of the many State parks in the area.  We were able to drive just a few minutes and hike in the forest or around the Sound.  Loved it.  Pic below- we drove into Olympic National Park one day.  Took two little hikes and had a picnic (in the car, lol).

Last pic below is walking in the forest in Port Townsend.  We visited a friend up there for the 4th of July.

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Neah Bay & Cape Flattery, WA

The last place I'll blog about from our summer trip is our day trip to Neah Bay and Cape Flattery in Washington State.  Cape Flattery is the farthest Northwestern point in the continental US.  Neah Bay is the town nearby on the Makah Indian Reservation.  The smoked salmon above is from a place in Neah Bay; the Take-Home Fish Company.  It is SOOOO good!  Best smoked salmon ever.  I'll post more pics in a minute.

The three pics above are taken from our drive up to Neah Bay from Sequim, WA.  There were SO many gorgeous beaches on the side of the road; we stopped a few times on the way there, and a few times on the way back to get out, play on the beach for a short time, and take photos.  The mountains you can see in the background of the 1st two pics are Vancouver Island, Canada! The pic below is Neah Bay.

 Above is the little trailer the delicious smoked salmon is sold out of.  Best salmon of your life!!!

The guy's sign outside the trailer.  We didn't call before we went, but since it's unpredictable, if you're planning on going, I would try calling that number on the fish tail. Sometimes he's out of salmon or doesn't have any salmon available to smoke.  We were so lucky to score not only some hot fresh salmon, but some cold, vacuum packed stuff to take home.  The whole fam LOVED it.  BTW, this place isn't on Tripadvisor (and they wouldn't let me add it; I tried!)  It does have a few great reviews on Yelp, though.

Where the magic happens.  For reals.

 Cape Flatter trail head.  Quite an easy and beautiful trail.  Below, first view of Cape Flattery.

 Below, another view off Cape Flattery.  Tatoosh Island.

 One more view of Cape Flattery.  We loved this part of the world!  We have great memories from the Summer of 2015.

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