Day 33

Finally, no smoke. We stopped in Portland last night because I was tired and not in a decision making mode. After checking the ferry schedule from Port Townsend to Whidbey Island we made reservations for the 3:45 crossing and planned our route. I have been on the Olympic Peninsula before but always on the northern or eastern side. This time we would visit the western side along the coast. The temperatures were in the mid fifties when we left so I layered up to keep warm. Tigger does this thing with his fur to accomplish the same result. As we proceeded north and west it became cloudy which was expected. This ride was through very sparsely populated territory. The main industry here is logging and related enterprises. We passed at least three places where they made cedar shingles. When not in national forests the mountains are checker boarded with different timber growth cycles. These mountains are logged and replanted. It is sometimes difficult to look at a beautiful mountain that has one side stripped of its trees, but out timber has to come from some where. It is nice to have the national parks where these types of areas are preserved. We did manage to see the Pacific several times, but none of the views were exceptional.

As we made the turn from the coast to the northern side of the peninsula the clouds parted, the temperatures warmed to the low 70s and the sky was a deep blue. The first photo is a place we stopped along the road.

We had stopped in Olympic National Park on the western edge and stamped my passport but I really wanted to ride up to Hurricane Ridge because of the spectacular views. The attendant at the park entrance told me there was construction ongoing and they were recommending motorcycles not go through. I decided to take her advice and proceed on to the ferry. I did manage to get one picture form the approach road. The water you see is the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the hills in the background are Vancouver Island.

The ferry ride was fun. All of the motorcyclists were put in the same waiting line so Tigger and I were able to talk to other folks. The couple in front of Tigger was on their honeymoon.