This trip was our first vacation together (&the one just before Kam went to basic training), and is the culprit for giving us the travel bug. It set our souls on fire for adventuring together, and even more specifically for the mountains. Washington State, although known for its plush, green landscape- has the mountain views of all mountain views. In just F O U R (& a half) days we covered some of the most beautiful country that one could hope to see && yet only a fraction of the Evergreen State. This itinerary is a great starting place to get you acquainted! If you’re thinking, “Eh. Mountains. I prefer the beach..” don’t worry, because we have that in here, too! If THAT doesn’t hook you- we definitely stood on the steps of the famous Grey’s Anatomy house, how could anyone turn that down? That’s what I thought! *Muuwahahaha* KEEP READING, LOVES!
Day 1: June 9th
12:00 p.m. flight leaves from DFW Airport. We just utilized priceline booking for this particular trip. This was before my obsession with the Hopper App that I am always raving about. Nonetheless, flights to Seattle (from Texas) are extremely affordable! Our total was $335 for two roundtrip tickets through Priceline. You are likely to get even better deals with the Hopper App- track away!
5:30 p.m. arriving in Seattle! The weather in June is a beautiful 70 degrees with that cool night air in the evenings requiring only a light jacket! *When visiting Washington State always pack for rain, because it’s a daily occurence* We were booked for a hotel in Des Moines for our first night, Des Moines is a 30 minute drive south of Seattle (but only a 10 minutes trip from SeaTac airport). This was ideal for our first full day in the city- keeping reading to see why!
*SPOILER! We did not book any Air BnB stays for this trip. This trip was planned and budgeted in a month, therefore we kept it simple with hotel stays. Granted, if I had planned more in advance we would have found amazing Air BnBs along our route! I encourage you to do your research in regards to this! We will be for our next trip here!
Des Moines- We checked into the SeaTac Airport Value Inn. At only $54 per night, you get exactly what you pay for! This is not a five star hotel situation. Although it was clean and comfortable, and was perfect for a budget friendly option! Since we were not picking up our rental car until the following day we decided to take the nice 1.6 mile walk over to downtown Des Moines. A gorgeous town nestled in the harbor- of course we wanted to eat fresh seafood. Willy’s Chowder House did not disappoint! I think we sampled one of everything on the menu- Ugh! Delicious! *if you think you aren’t a fan of clam chowder- YOU ACTUALLY ARE* I only eat clam chowder in harbor towns, and it is absolutely Heavenly. Try it!
Day 2: June 10th
Taking an Uber back to the airport we shuttled over to the rental car pick-up at 7:30 a.m. We booked our rental through Thrifty.com this go around. This was my first experience booking a rental car independently, and it was an absolute nightmare, y’all. Being underage makes the whole process such a pain in the ass. UNLESS you know what you are doing! I did not… Luckily, I do now. Anywho– learn from my mistakes, please. The total cost of the rental was not all that bad looking back, but nonetheless we had to jump through all of the hoops. WHEN BOOKING- have every form of identification known to man available. Bring your printed confirmation e-mail from your booking. Proof of insurance coverage. AND A VALID CREDIT CARD WITH YOUR NAME ON IT- PREFERABLY VISA TO MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER. I showed up with my Discover card in hand to place on file as my safety deposit hold, and was informed that they don’t accept Discover cards. They also do not accept debit cards for payments at Thrifty rental. Man, oh, man. I had to flip my lid on the sales guy to get out of there with the rental for which I had already paid $200 for. It was a fiasco. We did it though, and learned our first traveling lesson! Off we go.
SEATTLE! Driving here is a nightmare, traffic is a nightmare, but it is a nightmare that is worth going through! Love, love, love this city! We knew we wanted to see the Public Market, so we chose to park in the parking garage closest to the market. The Public Market is a whole adventure in itself! Before you step inside take the short walk up the road to ‘Biscuit Bitch’. This is a MUST eat when visiting the city! For all inclusive purposes- the environment is one of a kind, and the food is made to perfection (We still think about it to this day). The wait can be extensive on weekends & at peek times- so just know that it is worth the wait in our opinion! Location: 1909 1st Avenue, Seattle, WA
Breakfast with a view- just behind the Public Market! The harbor is gorgeous!
Pikes Place Market is a location that provides you with so much culture of the area! We strolled the narrow halls, and purchased fresh street flowers, gazed at the amazing freshly caught seafood, drank delicious coffee (Starbucks originated here after all), and took in the view of the harbor. Take your time. We are on vacation after all. Location: 85 Pike Street, Seattle, WA
I CAN HARDLY CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT ABOUT THIS NEXT PART!!! BUCKLE YOUR SEATBELT PEOPLE! Live and in the flesh- we stood in front of the Grey’s Anatomy house. I think I died ten times from fan girl-ing so hard. It was an absolute bucket list item- is it on for you?! It’s just a drive up the road from the city!!! Destination… MEREDERE’S HOUSE!
Location: 303 Comstock Street, Seattle, WA
If you walk the half block up the road from here- you get the BEST views of the Seattle skyline! Take your pictures here. This an iconic spot!
*we opted out of maneuvering the city traffic to go up in the Space Needle. We are not all about hitting the most “touristy” spots on our vacations, but if this is something you are interested in… Throw it in the itinerary!*
Next stop- Tumwater, WA. Being only 62 miles it takes approximately an hour and forty minutes to get from point A to point B. Tumwater was ideal because of its proximity to Olympia, but far enough away to not come with all of the crime! We checked into our hotel for the night: Motel 6 Tumwater was a very nice stay at $75/ night it was an affordable option! Before heading into Olympia for dinner we stopped through Tumwater Park! Tumwater Park is free of charge, and is actually very pretty! It’s home to some awesome bridges, and Tumwater Falls. This was a nice start to our mountain views, and something close to our hotel.
Olympia is only a 10 minutes drive from Tumwater. We recommend parking street side downtown, close to the businesses. The outer remnants of the city are covered in homeless communities. We actually witnessed multiple drug deals on our walk from a parking lot, and kind of felt on edge just getting to our dinner spot (it was okay but I would not recommend wandering about too much). Dinner at Pizzeria La Gitana is the golden standard for us now! Kamron will tell anyone that will listen that this is the best pizza & dessert he has ever had to date! I would agree with him on that! House made ingredients are apparent in each of their dishes. Especially the tiramisu and decadent chocolate cake (the owner’s wife makes them fresh daily)! Pictures do not possibly do it justice. If you are in this area I cannot stress enough- STOP AND EAT WITH THEM! Location: 518 Capitol Way South, Olympia, WA
The street art is around each corner! Just pick a spot and look for the huge mural paintings! I am a sucker for some good street art, so I enjoyed this bit! Just remember to be aware of your surroundings & never find yourself alone or too far from a crowd!
Day 3: June 11th
Early bird special is the call of the day! We are on the road: destination Forks, Washington! That’s right, baby! Twilight fans will be giddy with excitement for this part of the trip! I, too, enjoyed the books/films, but more or less wanted to visit the area for the amazing scenery. It did not disappoint, and was even better in person. There are so many opportunities for stopping along this route that it is difficult to keep your eye on the prize- if we had more time we would have spent a day or two in each individual park *sigh* From Olympia we plugged in Shelton, then followed highway 101 through Queets. You are driving through the ever so amazing HOH forest (we could spend days here alone). We did make a pit stop at Quinalt Lake to have a picnic lunch and grab some fuel for the Kia! Everything is plush and green, and every mile of this trek is breathtaking.
Following highway 101 to Forks you will pass a little hiccup, Kinaloch, just outside of that going north is the most amazing beach. I just happened to see the water through the tree line, and pulled over into a pullout on the road. I wish I knew the exact location of this spot, because it was an absolute gem. It is worth it to stop, park the car, and hike this area for a while. Take it in. We did!
From this location, we drove 30-40 more minutes up to La Push Beach No. 1. Any one of the segmented La Push beaches will provide the most spectacular views, but we decided on this one for the hollow tree! Keep reading for more info. && check out the views for yourself. These photos were taken directly behind Quileute Oceanside Resort (this would be an excellent option for boarding, although I am not sure of the cost per night). We enjoyed a beverage and the views- watching the sunset on the water. I will never forget it… {Location: 330 Ocean Front Drive, La Push, WA.}
We stayed at Town Motel in Forks. I think the tourist location makes the prices a bit higher than they are actually worth, but all in all it was still fair enough. This is the area I wish we had sought out an Air BnB stay- I am sure they have some phenomenal spots!
*TIP- we purchased our killer Washington shirts/hoodies at the big grocery center in Forks! The prices were so much cheaper than inside the national parks & they had a better selection here*
Day 4: June 12th
After hitting the high points of Forks (i.e. the famous Twilight spots) which are easily found all over town, we headed for our next destination- Port Angeles. *I hate to disappoint everyone, but the Bella Swann house from the films is actually located in Oregon. BOOOO* The Hungry Bear Café will cheer you right up, though! Talk about a mountain sized breakfast. Lord have mercy! SO GOOD! Location: 205912 US 101, Beaver, WA.
Following Highway 101- we knew we wanted to make a few pit stops. The first being the Salmon Cascades *Google Maps will direct you there- just don’t close the app in low signal areas* Salmon Cascades is only about 20 miles from the café. We stopped here to drink some coffee down by the running river (which we had stored in our canteen back at the café to keep it nice & hot) *see ‘I’m Packin’ post for more details* You have never seen water as blue as this. We had the entire area to ourselves with nothing but the roar of the water. Take it in. It only gets better from here! {Location: Salmon Cascades off Sol Duc-Hot Springs Road}
We knew we wanted to throw in some hiking to stretch our legs, so we planned to make a quick stop at Marymere Falls just up the road. Take a peek at Lake Crescent on your drive in! The falls ended up taking up the majority of our time (it is beyond words beautiful)! It’s tourist friendly and provides safe hiking trails! People are wandering all about this area, so it’s nothing strenuous or serious in regards to hiking. We took the time to hike both trails on either side of the road! The better of the views is underneath the tunnel (the tunnel that crosses under the main road), so if you only had a small amount of time that would be your starting place! {Location: Marymere Falls off Bear Creek Road} *see the roadway tunnel directly below*
You cannot possibly prepare your minds for this next one (have I said that before in this post?!) THIS ONE IS FOR REAL! It is the epitomy of Heaven (or what my Heaven would look like at least)… God’s country… Nature in all of her grandeur. Hurricane Ridge, ladies & gents. I am so frustrated that pictures cannot even begin to capture it, but that is all the more reason to go see it for yourselves! Coming out of Marymere Falls on highway 101, we are setting our GPS for Port Angeles, WA. Being only about 40 miles to the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center- the drive still takes a little over an hour. That’s the mountain road time I talk about so often. Once you have arrived in the town of Port Angeles re-route that GPS to the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center. You will be traveling the twisty, curvy Hurricane Ridge Road to your destination.
WARNING: Hurricane Ridge Road is literally the sketchiest public roadway out there. The turns are sharp and you are driving blind the entire way up & down. Go slow and take your time. Utilize the turnout points if traffic is riding your rear (chances are there is probably a nice view anyway)
These photos are taken journeying up the road, at the visitors center, and then coming down as well. It’s impossible not to stop every few feet. TAKE A LOOK! *I captured more videos than I did photographs of this portion- sorry*
We were coming to the end of our short-trip, so we had to head back into the SeaTac area to return our beloved rental car. After wrapping up the drop off we had checked into our last hotel stay at the Knights Inn in SeaTac. This was conveniently close to the airport, so we could easily Uber around the next morning as we would have some time to kill. I have nothing negative to say about the Knights Inn- it was clean and comfortable & affordable at $67/ night!
Day 5: June 13th
OUR FINAL DAY *inserts crying hysterically* We took an Uber back into the city, having him drop us off just in front of the Public Market Place. We had a few more items on our agenda before our 3:00 p.m. flight! We walked the remainder of the market, stopping through to observe the amazingly disgusting “gum alley”. Yes. GUM. Chewed up pieces of gum counting into the millions E V E R Y W H E R E. (It actually makes for some cute pictures, just sayin’) [Location: 1428 Post Alley, Seattle, WA]
Just around the corner from this dandy spot, is a cute sign wall mural- which also makes for a great photo backdrop! Take some photos and head back inside to the little souvenir shop! This is where we purchased the last of our souvenirs! Prices were very cheap so we piled up on the long sleeve tees for friends & family! (JJ Sportswear was the name- I think!)
Are you starving yet? WE WERE! I had previously seen that there was a gourmet spot that specialized in made-to-order macaroni. I am a huge macaroni buff, so I have to try every single kind that I come across. Two words. Beecher’s Macaroni. They literally make it right in front of you, and the process is quite incredible! It was totally YUM!
We still had some time to kill yet & I was fighting the urge to just stay here forever. So, we took a stroll to find dessert. We probably could have found something there within the market, but I was up for seeing some more of the city anyway. Thank goodness we did, because we found the most adorable little bubble waffle café! This is not something that is just limited to Seattle (we have them everywhere), but this was definitely the most delicious that we have found to date! [Location: 2126 2nd Avenue, Seattle, WA]
As we headed back to the airport I felt so heartbroken. I think it is just mine and Kamron’s nature to fall in love with each place that we visit. I truly leave a piece of myself behind (you will see me mention this in multiple posts). This world is so vast and SO beautiful. Made for us to see & explore. A life spent with him… seeing these sites… is a life that is okay with me. What kind of life do you want to live?
BUDGET:
Grand Total: $1,900
Airfare- $335/ Rental Car- $355/ Food- $300/ Room&Board- $290/ Shopping- $200/ Additional Travel- $175/ Fuel- $200
*We utilized our Capitol One credit card to earn fuel points. With a maximum spending limit of $300 we utilize it for fuel costs for all of our trips!*
