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Month: August 2019

The Summer of Lisa: On the Oregon Coast

The Summer of Lisa: On the Oregon Coast

I was thinking about and planning for my retirement for months. Well, planning for years, of course, like you should when it comes to saving and investing. But ever since attending my friend Judy’s retirement reception last October I was counting the days, too. So March 28th, 2019, I walked out the door at work for the last time, and went to my own retirement reception. I had a great night with lots of friends I’ve made in the past…

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Olympic National Park

Olympic National Park

From Bellingham, I drove south on I-5, then took Highway 20 at Burlington to Whidbey Island to get on the ferry at Coupeville. It really shortens the trip not having to drive south of Seattle then back to the Olympic peninsula. The ferry lands at Port Townsend and it’s an easy hour drive to Port Angeles and the main visitor center at the park. I visited with my daughter and son-in-law. After arriving at the park, we got some trail…

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North Cascades National Park

North Cascades National Park

After leaving Seattle, I spent the night in Everett, as it was getting late and the weather was turning bad. Then after a lazy, rainy morning, I drove to the North Cascades. I don’t recall if I had been here with my family as a kid but thought I should visit. I was not really feeling excited about the visit, but I was so close, I felt obligated. Fortunately, after a mostly overcast, rainy drive, it cleared off to beautifully…

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Mount Rainer National Park

Mount Rainer National Park

I only spent a rainy afternoon in Mount Rainer, pretty much driving through, so don’t have a lot to say about it. It deserves more time, but I was driving north from Oregon to Bellingham, Washington, and it was essentially a short detour. I got there a bit after noon, paid $30 to enter, then stopped at the Nisqually Ranger Station to get a map of the trails and talk with a ranger. There are no trails for pets in…

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Redwood National Park

Redwood National Park

I thought Redwood was “just” another park in the National Park System, but was surprised to find it’s a combination of 3 California State Parks and a National Park. California created their protection for the redwoods in the 1920s but it took until 1969 for the federal government to create a National Park. California fortunately acted “early” to protect these forests saving some of these trees, but outside the state parks, 95%, NINETY-FIVE PERCENT, of the trees were logged before…

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