Getting to the Peninsula:
The ferry ride to Kingston was a bit pricier than I had thought it would be. They charge for the car and driver, then there is an additional fee for each passenger in the car. Ridiculous. Heading back to Edmonds they only charge the price for the car and driver. The total round trip cost was approximately $43. Luckily, we were splitting that 3 ways. The ferry ride itself is very enjoyable. We went up to the passenger level where we sat and enjoyed the view of Puget Sound and the mountains in the distance. After relaxing for a bit inside we wandered out to the deck where we could hear the seagulls and enjoy some sunlight.
Ferry Info - http://www.wsdot.com/ferries/schedule/ScheduleDetailByRoute.aspx?route=ed-king
Me taking photos out the ferry window. Photo by Dani M.
Port Gamble:
From the ferry, on the Kingston side, we took HWY 104. This took us through the adorable little town of Port Gamble. This town is a popular wedding destination, as it looks out over the water, and is filled with quaint little guest houses. There is also an old steeple church which has a reception venue. We did not have a chance to stop in the town and look around, unfortunately. I definitely plan to return for further exploration. Below is a photo of the church.
Highlights:
Port Gamble - http://portgamble.com/
Port Gamble Weddings - http://www.portgambleweddings.com/
Photo by Dani M.
Lake Crescent:
From Port Gamble we continued along HWY 104, which merges onto HWY 101. We remained on HWY 101 through Sequim and Port Angeles and continued on toward Forks. On the drive we passed by Lake Crescent. Oh my heavens was that area gorgeous. The water was unreal; it was so still it was like a mirror, without a single ripple. Unfortunately, I was driving and could not pull over to get a photo. I did not think the cars behind me would appreciate my stopping in the road just for a photo, sorry guys! We did find some turnouts though, which allowed us to get some gorgeous photos of the water (even though there were some ripples). I am most definitely going to look into camping at that lake.
Highlights:
Lake Crescent - http://www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/visiting-lake-crescent.htm
Photo by Aleah Anne.
Forks:
After stopping at almost every single turnout around the lake, we finally moved on to Forks. We stopped off at the Forks Chamber of Commerce to get some information about the area. Now, the area is popular for Twilight fans, and while I did enjoy the books and the movies, I was not in Forks for Twilight tours and souvenirs. A lot of what they had was in this category. The lady working there was very friendly, and I was able to pick up some helpful pamphlets on local waterfalls, camping, food, etc. For people who are interested in the Twilight tours and souvenirs, the Chamber of Commerce is the place to go!
Highlights:
Forks - http://forkswa.com/
Photo by Aleah Anne.
La Push:
From Forks we traveled on to La Push. The drive was only about 20 minutes. It was quite a lovely drive. We went all the way out to First Beach (there are three beaches). It was sunny and beautiful. There were several surfers coming in from a day out catching waves. We wandered about taking photos, while climbing on rocks and fallen trees. It was very peaceful and relaxing. We drove to the parking areas for Second Beach and Third Beach, but could not quite figure out how to actually access those beaches. There was probably a path through the woods that led to the beach, but we were running short on daylight so decided not to pursue it. We called it a day headed back to the hotel since we had about an hour's drive to get there.
Photo by Aleah Anne.
Port Angeles:
On the way to our hotel, back in Port Angeles, we decided we would stop off for some dinner somewhere close to the hotel. However, my "navigator" did some poor navigating and we ended up in Joyce, WA at a place called Blackberry Cafe (which was nowhere near Port Angeles). According to Yelp, this cafe is known for its pies. Though we did not eat there, we did get some pies to go. Um, delicious! I had chocolate, and my friends had blackberry and rhubarb. Mmm mmm mmm. After our little detour and pit stop for pie (clearly someone knew we needed sweets), we finally made it to Port Angeles. We stayed at the Super 8 which was located on the south end of town. They had decent prices (approximately $70 for two beds) and the hotel was in a convenient location. After getting checked in we went out to get some grub. With the help of handy dandy Yelp we found a place called Next Door Gastropub in the downtown area. It was a super trendy little place. According to one of my friends they have the most amazing wings. She had the garlic parmesan I believe. I am a vegetarian so I cannot confirm nor deny this information. My vegetarian choice was a veggie sandwich with hummus, cucumber, olives and more. It was quite good. I also ordered some amazingly delicious fries. They have a whole build your own fries appetizer on the menu. Feta cheese, bacon, garlic and more can be added. Now, since we were at a pub, we of course had to get some drinks. I had a local hard pear cider (Finn River). Yum! My friends had a few different types of beers. The pub has their current selection posted up on a chalkboard on the wall. The bar tenders are all extremely knowledgeable about the beers and are happy to give you a sample to try if you are unsure of what you might like. After dinner and drinks we drove back to the hotel. Though we made sure to stop and get some beer and cider on the way for a fun girls' night in! Back in our room, with drinks in hand, we had a good time playing the hilarious (though dreadfully inappropriate) game of Cards Against Humanity (If you have never played this game before, go find it and play. That is an order!). Finally, at the extremely late hour of......10:30PM....we all crashed. Well...one of us crashed. I, and one of my friends, tried to crash without much success. We eventually did get some sleep, but we woke up early to take advantage of the FREE breakfast in the hotel lobby. Cannot say no to FREE!! It was a typical hotel lobby breakfast: coffee, OJ, waffles, cereal, bananas, etc. Nothing special-just the basic components of an ordinary breakfast, but it worked out fine.
Highlights:
Blackberry Cafe - http://www.yelp.com/biz/blackberry-cafe-port-angeles
Super 8 - http://www.super8.com/hotels/washington/port-angeles/super-8-port-angeles/hotel-overview
Next Door Gastropub - http://www.nextdoorgastropub.com/
Port Angeles - http://www.portangeles.org/
Me taking photos in the hotel parking lot. We woke up to a VERY foggy morning. Photo by Dani M.
Port Townsend:
After checking out of the hotel, we were on the road toward home. We stopped off in Port Townsend, as it is only about twenty minutes off the main highway. I had seen an article about it in Huffington Post, America's Best Main Streets, and wanted to check it out. Let me just say, if you are ever in that neck of the woods, STOP. Stop immediately, and visit Port Townsend. It is one of the most adorable little towns. The streets are filled with quaint little houses, and there is so much history everywhere. The historic downtown is just too cute for words. There are unique little shops in the old brick and victorian style buildings that line both sides of the main street. Restaurants, cafes, soda shops, home decor, gifts, etc. The people working in the shops were all friendly and helpful. The shop we spent the most time in was called Tickled Pink. They had a variety of fun gifts and trinkets. There were fashion scarves, funny signs, jewelry, headbands, soaps and lotions, etc. As we wandered around town, we couldn’t help but notice the most intoxicating smells coming from a local pizza parlor. Obviously none of us were willing to turn down pizza that smelled that good; as you can imagine, within minutes, we were seated inside enjoying some of the best pizza I have ever had. Their sauce alone was magical. The name you ask? Waterfront Pizza. Write that down, go there. If you’re just in the mood for a quick slice, sitting downstairs is fine. However, if you have the time, and would like to sit back and relax for a bit with a little people watching mixed in, head upstairs where you can sit down and order whole pizzas, while also enjoying some drinks. We opted for the latter.
Note: from HWY 101, take HWY 20 out to Port Townsend.
Highlights:
Tickled Pink - https://www.facebook.com/TickledPinkPT
Waterfront Pizza - http://www.yelp.com/biz/waterfront-pizza-port-townsend
Port Townsend - http://www.cityofpt.us/ & http://enjoypt.com/
Huffington Post Article - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/fodors/americas-best-main-street_b_4556756.html
Photos by Aleah Anne.
After we finished our lunch, we boxed up our leftovers and headed out toward home. It was a nice weekend away from the city with two good friends that I will miss dearly when I move.
Happy travels!
