Around the Horn...

Okay, not South America - maybe someday, but we did take two days to drive around the Olympic Peninsula this weekend. Hazel was excited that our quaint little motel room had two rooms. We were more excited - we could actually stay up and read a bit after she went to bed - yaay! Measuring Hazel against the rain gauge at Lake Quinault Lodge - this year it's already rained about 15 inches higher than her head, fortunately not all at once.
If you can see the white line two segments from the top, that's the record rainfall... just over 175 inches in one year!

After a short stroll to see the world's tallest spruce tree of some species (there were lots of record breaking trees nearby), we headed up 101. Along the way we found another giant tree big enough to walk into. So here we are in the entry way.

Then we walked into the back room and peered out a window in the tree. Hazel had no trouble imagining it as a house.

Then we drove up to Forks. While I enjoyed the Twilight books, I am not an obsessed fan, but maybe someday Hazel will look at this picture and think I was cool once. (That's the truck from the book, not the one from the movie that was right next to it. This truck was much niftier.)

Out to the beach for a cold, windy picnic and some wave watching. It was high tide, and there wasn't much beach to speak of for walking on, so we just sat and thrilled at the size and noise of the waves and watched the foam splash in and amongst the logs just a bit in front of us.

They were very loud!

I was disappointed that the road to Sol Duc Falls was closed. I wanted to take Hazel for a walk in my favorite magical woods. We managed to find a trail at Lake Crescent to Marymere Falls that filled the bill. Hazel decided that fairies would probably prefer to live in the ferns, as would she.

Why walk, when she can ride? I'm sure I won't be able to do this much longer, but it's sure a lot quicker this way!

Nice narrow log bridge to...

a waterfall. Don't tell Hazel, but the trail actually went up the hill to a better viewpoint. I wasn't going to carry her up the hill - fortunately she was satisfied with the view from here, as were we.

Can you see us on the newer bridge? Catch up Daddy!

Since Hazel still hadn't gotten to play at a beach, we stopped along Hood Canal on the way home. I stayed in the car, since I had a nasty cold and was tired, but apparently I missed out on some great puddle jumping on the trail to the beach. And if you ask her, she'd probably say that was the highlight of the weekend for her. I'm sticking with the walk to the falls.