TIME FOR ANOTHER PNW ROADTRIP

Every few months we seem to need to drive for days from San Diego, to Morro Bay, to our home in the Sierra, and up to the Pacific Northwest in pursuit of further affirmation that we REALLY do want to move north. So, we packed up the car and loaded the dog in his preferred seating arrangement, and headed to Port Ludlow, Washington. Again.

Our San Diego Home.

We're tugging on the docklines because.......?

Because we are hopeless wanderers.

Port Ludlow, Puget Sound, Washington.

Sweetness.

Scrimshaw's ETA: SPRING 2019

Before we get to our prized destination, we have a 6 hour drive to our first leg of the trip. Our first stop is always Morro Bay to visit our grandson, Jack. He makes our hearts sing.

 My boy Jack, and I checking out the water scene in Morro Bay. Lots of sea lions, sea birds, and of course, boats to count! I am teaching him how to recognize the difference between sail and power boats. There is also a great nearby park where Jack burns off lots of energy running and chasing Sparky.

J A C K

 We always stay at the same spot, the Inn at Morro Bay, mainly because of the pool. We also want to create some kind of constancy for Jack with his gypsy grandparents. Another constant is we always start our mornings at a favorite local pancake restaurant.

After two days of play, Papa and Mimi, share a cocktail and enjoy quiet time watching the sunset. We used to live in Morro Bay and have kept various boats there for decades, so our sunset ritual brings back fond memories.

The setting sun signals that its almost time for us to continue our journey north. Tomorrow morning we'll give Jack a big hug and kiss before we drive north to our Sierra home.

 The Feather River runs through our little mountain town.

 Returning to the Sierra almost always includes a walk to Lake Davis. In the summer months we camp, swim, and kayak. Snowy winters mean we put on our snowshoeing gear and trail blaze with Sparky towards the icy lake. There's something for all seasons.

My Sweet Japanese Maple greets us.

After a couple of days of relaxing, and visiting friends, off we go again. We travel towards Hat Creek, stop for a walk along the river at Fowler's near McCloud, and end up in Shasta for lunch.

A short walk to one of 3 waterfalls at 

Fowler's Campground.

We swim here in the summer months.

One of my favorite views of Mt. Shasta

A different perspective of my favorite view.

After lunch we targeted our next stop, Cottage Grove. It's just a few miles short of my alma mater, University of Oregon in Eugene. I made Darrell do the U of O walk down memory lane last journey north, so I didn't push my luck this time. We like to stop and walk along the Covered Bridges path in Cottage Grove before checking into our motel. The Best Western is comfortable, but finding a good meal is not so easy. Still, we prefer to stay out of Eugene's ever increasing traffic, and forfeit fine dining until we arrive at our final destination at the Resort at Port Ludlow.

Our covered bridges walk to stretch our legs.

A peaceful pasture at Cottage Grove.

The next morning, we drove 5 hours to finish our final leg.

Resort at Port Ludlow

Home Sweet Home.

 It was foggy the first day, but no rain!

Spark readies himself for his familiar run on the PL beach.

The sun popped out for a bit and we decided to cruise the neighborhoods looking for potential homes. There's a variety of new neighborhoods, but we preferred an older area with lots of mature landscaping and Mid-century homes. Just exploring possibilities now.

 Dreaming...

Eye on the Prize.

The next day we headed across the Hood Canal over to Port Gamble for lunch. I have written about Port Gamble in a prior blog post last October 2017 when we visited the area, so I will only share current pictures of the gorgeous and plentiful zinnias grown at the Port Gamble Post Office.

 WOW

 More WOW

Wowzer!

And,YIKES!

Our next outing was to Poulsbo in search of A.) cappuccinos, B.) a slip for Scrimshaw, 

C.) a hot lunch, and D.) a good market. We decided that as much as we LOVE Port Ludlow, and may buy a house there, we wanted Scrimshaw to be closer to restaurants and cafes. Poulsbo is a charming Nordic village with 10,000 people, 3 marinas, a yacht club, art galleries, and two independent bookstores! The Main Street runs along the waterfront, our kind of town! We found a welcoming spot for lunch that serves homemade clam chowder and warm baked bread. A,B,C,D on our listed, happily completed.

 An alley off the main drag with unique shops.

 A Scandinavian Bakery, art galleries, and 2 Bookstores!

Poulsbo oozes charm.

There is a lovely walk along Liberty Bay that we enjoyed.

 PNW gray was refreshing after a hot San Diego summer.

We secured a slip in this marina for the spring :-)

Perhaps, the one thing that really sealed the deal for us was the Poulsbo Central Market. It was acres of wonderful sights and fragrances that had our taste buds jumping for JOY. We took home a variety of paper containers filled with tasty treats for a fireside picnic in our Port Ludlow room. Yep, our room comes with a nice Bay/Marina view, a deep soaking tub, and two comfy chairs facing a toasty fireplace. The Resort at Port Ludlow staff are really fantastic. They microwaved our gourmet prizes, offered us china, silverware, and linen napkins to enjoy our cozy private dinner in our room. It's not just the staff at P.L. that are nice, everyone we encountered in Puget Sound was friendly and helpful.

Now this is a Happy Man!

Darrell found his favorite Stone Delicious beer, crafted in our hometown, San Diego. The thing that made him happiest, was it's cheaper at the Poulsbo Central Market than in S.D.

Crazy, who cares about the PNW cloudiness, D's beer is waiting for him! Full Speed Ahead!

We are falling in love with the Pacific Northwest, in fact, I just asked Darrell if he wants to fly up to the Seattle Boat Show again the end of January! Scrimshaw is scheduled to be shipped on a BIG cargo freighter from Ensenada to Victoria B.C. this March. Not sure we can wait that long to return!

Port Ludlow and Poulsbo here we come.

Oh, and, those miles and miles of islands and anchorages stretching all the way to Alaska.

Ready to Go!