Seattle and south

[chris2008]

We are travelling again.
On Monday we will fly from Germany to Seattle (thanks to our miles in Business Class) and then drive down the coast.
The plan is to meet family and friends on the way south, then see Yosemite, Kings Canyon and some other places. 24 days in total.
Retirement is great.

 

[Ronstar]

Now that's an excursion. Have a safe and fun trip!

 

[NW-Bound]

You mean Kings Canyon and Sequoia NPs with General Sherman Tree (world's largest tree by volume)?

Lodging in the summer is difficult to get in these NPs, and requires very early reservation, like a year in advance. Hopefully, your stay is still early enough in the season. Or one can always do a day trip from Fresno or Visalia. When I last visited this NP in 2012 when the above photo was taken, it was in late summer, and I was able to secure a camping slot with my motohome in September with no reservation (I checked on line first before driving into the park with my MH).

With 3 weeks, you should be able to do a lot. Have fun.

 

[Chuckanut]

Take a side trip to Redwoods National Park on the coast. Very nice.

 

[Philliefan33]

Take a side trip to Redwoods National Park on the coast. Very nice.

+1.

I found the redwood forest to be more impressive than the Sequoias.

 

[Philliefan33]

Also, while at Yosemite, the view from the top of Sentinel Dome is worth the hike. I think it's a little over two miles RT.

 

[Brat]

If you overnight in Seattle a RT on the Bremerton Ferry is fun, http://www.empmuseum.org/ is well worth a visit. My favorite salmon house is http://www.ivars.com/locations/salmon-house .

Hgy 101 along the Washington coast is a waste of time. Drive I-5 through WA and stop here: Visitor Centers - Mount St. Helens Information Resource Center.

Once into OR you could visit http://www.timberlinelodge.com/, an hour's drive east of Portland. Bare road all the way. http://www.timberlinelodge.com/webcams/

From Portland take Hgy 26 (the Sunset Highway) west. Seaside is a funky town, great for kids but not particularly picturesque. Assuming you aren't bothering with Seaside and environs turn south at the Y and enjoy the Oregon Coast. Oregon beaches are all public property unlike WA and CA. You could just continue south to Brookings and hence to Crescent City CA - the Redwoods etc.

 

[HFWR]

Hgy 101 along the Washington coast is a waste of time. Drive I-5 through WA and stop here: Visitor Centers - Mount St. Helens Information Resource Center.

Once into OR you could visit http://www.timberlinelodge.com/, an hour's drive east of Portland. Bare road all the way. Webcams | Mt Hood Road Conditions | Timberline Lodge Cams

From Portland take Hgy 26 (the Sunset Highway) west. Seaside is a funky town, great for kids but not particularly picturesque. Assuming you aren't bothering with Seaside and environs turn south at the Y and enjoy the Oregon Coast. You could just continue south to Brookings and hence to Crescent City CA - the Redwoods etc.

Another option is to take hwy 26 to hwy 6, and drive through Tillamook State Forest on the way to, where else, Tillamook.

 

[Brat]

Either route works.

 

[mh]

If you overnight in Seattle a RT on the Bremerton Ferry is fun, http://www.empmuseum.org/ is well worth a visit. My favorite salmon house is http://www.ivars.com/locations/salmon-house .

Hgy 101 along the Washington coast is a waste of time. Drive I-5 through WA and stop here: Visitor Centers - Mount St. Helens Information Resource Center.

Once into OR you could visit http://www.timberlinelodge.com/, an hour's drive east of Portland. Bare road all the way. http://www.timberlinelodge.com/webcams/

From Portland take Hgy 26 (the Sunset Highway) west. Seaside is a funky town, great for kids but not particularly picturesque. Assuming you aren't bothering with Seaside and environs turn south at the Y and enjoy the Oregon Coast. Oregon beaches are all public property unlike WA and CA. You could just continue south to Brookings and hence to Crescent City CA - the Redwoods etc.

All the beaches in CA are public property also except for perhaps
Where there are military bases like camp pendeleton


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Brat]

Ah, I see that CA passed such a law in 1972. Good work!!! In my youth CA beach front property owners could fence off the beach.

OR declared our beaches to be public property in 1913. A developer tried fencing off part of the beach in 1966 resulting in a huge brewha and the passage of a Beach Bill. The Beach Bill declares that all "wet sand" within sixteen vertical feet of the low tide line belongs to the state of Oregon. In addition, it recognizes public easements of all beach areas up to the line of vegetation, regardless of underlying property rights. The public has "free and uninterrupted use of the beaches," and property owners are required to seek state permits for building and other uses of the ocean shore. While some parts of the beach remain privately owned, state and federal courts have upheld Oregon’s right to regulate development of those lands and preserve public access.

WA has no such law.

 

[NW-Bound]

WA has no such law.

Indeed, along the Puget Sound there are waterfront lots where the property right extends to the water to the lowest tide line. That is one of the reasons my long-time dream has been to acquire such a property to tie my boat to go crabbing.

I do not know if the above is true throughout the Puget Sound or Washington State.

 

[chris2008]

Thank you so much.
I have made a reservation at Ivars.
Redwoods and Oregon Coast are already part of the plan.
Can't wait....

 

[HFWR]

Another option is to take hwy 26 to hwy 6, and drive through Tillamook State Forest on the way to, where else, Tillamook.

Either route works.

I had never been to the PNW, except for a stopover in Seattle on the way to Tokyo, so in 2012, on a whim, I flew to Portland (cheap airfare!). I spent day one doing the old Columbia River/Mt. Hood loop, then day two was to drive to the coast for a leisurely trip up 101. My original plan was to drive to Tillamook via the above route, then head back to Portland on 26.

I changed my mind, though, and went north to Astoria, thinking the route along the Columbia would be nice. I took one look at the bridge in Astoria, and thought "nope", so I stayed on the Oregon side. Unfortunately, the highway (30) was too far inland to see much, and I still had to cross on a fairly high bridge at Longview, having determined the river route was a bust, to get to I-5 for the trip back.

The route through Tillamook State Forest would be great for a small sporty car, say a Miata, or a motorcycle.

I don't recommend going on a holiday. I went Labor Day weekend, and all the restaurants along 101 were packed...

 

[Brat]

FWIW, the first picture appears to be from Crown Point looking down on the Columbia River. The boat is likely a Tidewater vessel transporting grain barges to grain elevators upstream of the John Day dam. More than a quarter of all U.S. grain exports and nearly half of U.S. wheat exports move through the Columbia River and Puget Sound grain terminals.

The steam plume in the background is the Georgia Pacific Paper Mill in Camas, WA.