Mountains, Lavendar and Land Spits

We left after lunch on Thursday and headed over to the coast and Olympic National Park.  Deborah had recommended we drive up to Hurricane Ridge and then do some hikes out from there.   The drive up was lovely.  There are beautiful views of the mountains on one side of the road and views of the Straight of Juan de Fuca and Canada on the other.  We drove to the top of Hurricane Ridge and took some pictures of Mt. Olympus and all the glaciers.  There was much wildlife hanging around the parking lot including several deer and even a pheasant.  After some souvenir shopping, we got ready to hike.  Bella unfortunately fell off the curb and scraped her knee open.  After some typical Bella drama and the application of some magical unicorn band aids were off.   We just did some short hikes around the ridge and saw more snow and spectacular views

Hurricane Ridge

Overlook in Olympic

Kellen Hiking

After that we headed down to the water to camp at Dungeness Spit.  It was amazing how as we neared the water, the weather turned cold as the fog rolled in of the Straight into the campground.  It was a chilly night but with some nice wood to burn and some wine to drink, we had a pleasant evening relaxing outside. 

The next day, we woke to more fog and though it wasn’t raining, the amount of water coming off the trees made it appear to be raining directly under them.   Simon and Andrea and a few of the kids were going to meet us there to explore the beach at National Wildlife Refuge adjacent to the campground we stayed in.  The spit goes out 5 miles to a lighthouse, but we decided with all of the littles ones in our party to just stick close.    They all showed up ready for the beach in tank tops and shorts.  Unfortunately with the wind it was freezing!  Again having the RV is a plus as we had plenty of extra jackets to share!

We hiked down to the beach, which is covered with rocks and really cool drift wood.  We picked a spot to hang out and the kids explored.  The boys had a blast playing in all the driftwood.  There were huge logs and lots of places to hide out and make forts. Kellen dabbled in real estate, gathering rock money to pay for his driftwood house.  

Kellen's beach house

Bella posing in the driftwood

After lunch and a bit more exploring, we had had enough of the cold and wind and headed into the next town of Sequim to visit the Purple Haze lavender farm.  The farm has a sweet little gift shop and delicious homemade ice cream.  We split the lavender and lemon custard, so yummy.  The farm also had bunnies, chickens and peacocks.   Bella bonded with the peacocks and hung out with them while eating her ice cream.  Another fun day, not too hectic and great to hang out with our friends!

Purple Haze Lavender Farm