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The mountains are calling

A road trip through the Pacific Northwest & Northern California

By Ellen

October 9^th, 2019

We had a very strong desire to travel the United States again. My husband Karl wanted to visit Seattle with its history in grunge music and the nearby Boeing factory and I didn't want to skip Yosemite National Park, one of the few major national parks we hadn't ticked off our list yet. We traveled 22 days, drove 2,554 miles (4.110 km) by car through 3 states, visiting 5 national parks. This was for sure the greenest road trip ever, we've had never seen so many trees before in our lives.

Space Needle

What an incredibly beautiful futuristic building and the floor spins! The Space Needle is a Seattle icon, built for the 1962 world’s fair. The futuristic design was inspired by the idea that the fair needed a structure to symbolize humanity’s space age aspirations. The saucer-shaped top offers a 360-degree panoramic view. The world’s first and only rotating glass floor gives a downward view of the structure and the surrounding area.

Pike Place Market

Pike Place Market opened in 1907 and is one of the oldest farmers' markets in the United States. The historic district was created in 1971 to protect and preserve the market and its buildings from commercial development. Today, Pike Place Market remains the center of fresh, locally produced and high quality foods, goods and handcrafted products.

First Starbucks Store

A definite must when in Seattle, coffee from the first Starbucks store. The Pike Place Starbucks store, commonly called the Original Starbucks, was founded in 1971 in Pike Place Market as a roaster, and only later became an espresso bar. Seattle is known for its prominent coffee culture and numerous coffeehouses.

Museum of Pop Culture

The museum is dedicated to the history and exploration of popular music and science fiction. Seattle is the birthplace of grunge, an alternative rock genre, successful in the early-1990s with bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots and the Foo Fighters. Most of which happen to be Karl's all time favorites.

Police Spinner from the 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner

Alien from the 1979 science fiction horror film

This puppet was used during the sequence when Gizmo drives the toy car over the snow shovel near the end of the film.

Buried City

The Seattle Underground is a network of underground passageways and basements, that were at ground level when the city was built in the mid-19th century, but were entombed when the city rebuilt on top of itself after the great fire of 1889. After the streets were elevated, these spaces fell into disuse.

Funko Flagship Store

As big fans of pop culture we had to take a little detour to the Funko flagship store in Everett, Washington. Funko is one of the leading creators of licensed pop culture collectibles, and is best known for its square headed vinyl figurines.

Olympic National Park

Such a pretty first impression, this panoramic view of Olympic National Park. Hurricane Ridge has an elevation of 5,242 feet (1.598 m) and is named for its intense gales and winds, which we luckily didn't experience.

Sea Stacks

Ruby Beach is notable for the number of sea stacks and rock formations in the Pacific Ocean.

Tree Graveyard

Rialto Beach has a tremendous amount of driftwood, a tree graveyard, with hundreds of tree trunks deposited by storms.

Hall of Mosses

Hoh Rainforest is one of the largest temperate rainforests in the US. The Hall of Mosses is a short trail with views of maples draped with large growths of moss.

Hoh River Valley

The Hoh River valley was formed thousands of years ago by glaciers. The source of the Hoh River is meltwater from the Hoh glacier on Mount Olympus.

The Mountain is Out

In these parts of the United States announcing that “the mountain is out” is another way of saying that the weather is clear enough to see Mount Rainier on the horizon. Mount Rainier is an active volcano with an elevation of 14,411 ft (4.392 m).

On the day we arrived it was raining and the mountain was covered in clouds. The following day the weather looked promising, but unfortunately the mountain was still not visible, what to do? The peaks on the opposite side were getting some sunshine, so the park ranger advised us to hike the Pinnacle Peak trail, hoping the skies around Mount Rainier would clear, and they did, the mountain came out! We had such breathtaking views.

The most luxuriant and the most extravagantly beautiful of all the alpine gardens I ever beheld in all my mountain-top wanderings.

Columbia River Gorge

On our way to Portland we drove along the Historic Columbia River Highway. We stopped at Multnomah Falls, the tallest waterfall in the state of Oregon at 620 ft (189 m) in height. We also visited Vista House, completed in 1918, the octagonal stone building was designed in the style of Art Nouveau.

Keep Portland Weird

We crossed the iconic St. Johns bridge with its gothic towers. Opened in 1931, it is the largest and most significant suspension bridge in Oregon. In Portland we did some shopping and enjoyed good food. The slogan "Keep Portland Weird" promotes individuality, expressionism, local art and atypical lifestyle choices.

The White Stag sign, also known as the "Portland Oregon" sign

Weird flavored soda's at Rocket Fizz Portland

Ground Kontrol

We had fun at Ground Kontrol with vintage video games and pinball machines. The arcade is known for preserving and celebrating video gaming’s golden age.

Oregon Coast

I love this view of the rugged Pacific Ocean shoreline. We drove down the Oregon Coast Highway from Newport to Reedsport, spending the night in Yachats (pronounced YAH-hots). Visiting Cape Perpetua and Heceta Head Lighthouse along the way.

Crater Lake

On the way to Crater Lake it started snowing, wait what?! The lady at the hotel advised us to keep an eye on the park's website for potential road closures. We planned on driving along the rim of the lake, but since 7 inches (18 cm) of snow had fallen that wasn't going to be an option. Luckily the entrance on our side of the lake, Rim Village, was made accessible. It was a short and icy cold visit, but oh so rewarding.

The crater was formed by a massive volcanic eruption 7,700 years ago which left a deep basin in the place where a mountain peak once stood. Centuries of rain and snow filled the basin, forming a deep blue lake. It's the deepest lake in the United States with a depth of 1,949 feet (594 m).

Little House on the Prairie

This abandoned red barn is located in Klamath County along the Crater Lake Highway with Pelican Butte in the background.

Gold Rush Town

Jacksonville got its start as a gold rush town, gold was first discovered in 1851. As the news spread the area was inundated by gold miners seeking their fortunes. As the gold deposits were worked out in the 1860s and the railway bypassed Jacksonville in 1884, the city's economy slowed. This had the unintended benefit of preserving a number of structures, which led to Jacksonville's being designated a National Historic District in 1966, covering over 100 buildings.

Old-growth Forest

We hiked amongst giant old-growth Coast Redwood trees in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Notable redwoods include Big Tree, Corkscrew Redwood and the Cathedral Trees. Many Redwoods in the park have reached 300 feet (91 m) tall. Not to be confused with Giant Sequoias which grow larger in diameter but do not grow as tall.

Avenue of the Giants

The Avenue of the Giants meanders 32 miles (51 km) through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. The Chandelier Drive-thru Tree is a 276 feet (84 m) tall Coast Redwood in Leggett, California. In 1937 a hole was cut through its base to allow a car to drive through. Its base measures 16 ft (5 m) in diameter.

Wednesday Night Drags

This Wednesday Night Drags program at Sonoma Raceway gives people a safe, legal, controlled environment in which to drag race their cars, away from city streets. Anyone with a driver's license can compete, providing their vehicle passes a simple technical inspection. Almost any type of street-legal vehicle is eligible to run on the drag strip.

Yosemite National Park

As for many arriving by road and upon exiting the long and dark tunnel, this was our awe-inspiring first view of Yosemite Valley with El Capitan on the left, one of the most popular rock climbing destinations. Artists and casual tourists have painted, drawn and photographed this dramatic scenery since the 19th century. Yosemite is renowned for its granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, giant sequoia groves, lakes, mountains, meadows, glaciers and biodiversity.

It is by far the grandest of all the special temples of nature I was ever permitted to enter.

Catching a glimpse of climbers on the wall of El Capitan

Vernal Falls

Unfortunately the waterfalls in Yosemite were quite dried up. Even so we decided to hike to the top of Vernal Falls, but it turned out we weren't the only ones! It was so crowded in the Valley, it felt like Disneyland. Luckily most people didn't continue up the steep granite stairway of over 600 steps to the top of the falls.

San Fransisco

We started our San Francisco city trip at Crissy Field, a former US Army airfield, with great views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Visited the Painted Ladies, a row of Victorian houses built in the 1890s, made famous in part by their appearance in the opening credits of the television series Full House. Did some "pole hanging" on the outside of a cable car, awesome! Watched cars coming down the crookedest street, part of Lombard Street in the Russian Hill neighborhood. And strolled through Macondray Lane, one of San Francisco's hidden alleyways.

San Fran Street Art

I wasn't on the search for street art, as I did a couple of years ago in Berlin, but I always love coming across some masterpieces, especially when one portrays a colorful Frenchie.

Musée Mécanique

Musée Mécanique has a collection of over 300 mechanical games including: music boxes, coin-operated fortune tellers, Mutoscopes, video games, love testers, player pianos, peep shows, photo booths, dioramas and pinball machines.

Laffing Sal is one of several automated characters that were built primarily to attract carnival and amusement park patrons to funhouses and dark rides throughout the United States. Its movements were accompanied by a raucous laugh that sometimes frightened small children and annoyed adults.

Escape from Alcatraz

The Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary on Alcatraz Island, 1.25 miles (2 km) off the coast of San Francisco, was considered the world's most fearsome prison, former prisoners reported brutality and inhumane conditions which severely tested their sanity.

Given the high security, the island's location in the cold waters and strong currents of San Francisco Bay, prison operators believed Alcatraz to be escape-proof and America's strongest prison. In 1962 however, Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin attempted to escape. The prisoners chiseled away the salt-damaged concrete from around an air vent leading to a corridor, the progress was concealed by false walls which fooled the guards. No conclusive evidence has ever surfaced favoring the success or failure of the attempt. The official report on the escape concludes that the prisoners drowned in the cold waters of the bay while trying to reach the mainland.

You break the rules, you go to prison. You break the prison rules, you go to Alcatraz Prison.

Sody Pop & Coffee Shacks

What better way to kick start our trip with a Root Beer Float, made with vanilla ice cream, and a Black Bean Burger from Lil Woody's. Supposedly root beer was first called root tea, but was renamed to make the beverage more appealing to the working class.

Notable in the Pacific Northwest are the numerous drive-thru coffee stands, they are everywhere! This just goes to show that Washingtonians love their coffee.

Root beer float and a black bean burger at Lil Woody's in Seattle

Drive-thru coffee stand in Forks, Washington, a common sight in these parts of the US

S'mores flavored soda and taffy (candy) at Rocket Fizz Portland

Violet Drink and Dragon (Fruit) Drink at Starbucks in San Francisco

The Sweet Stuff

I love me some sweets. We enjoyed vegan donuts at Blue Star in Portland. A warm cinnamon roll, Karl's favorite, at Cinnabon in Modesto. A seriously "Too Good to be True" milkshake with raw egg, butterscotch, malted cream and molasses at The Ice Cream Bar and Peanut Butter Strawberry Crumble ice cream at Salt and Straw in San Francisco.

Cinnamon roll at Cinnabon in the Vintage Faire Mall in Modesto

A seriously "Too Good to be True" milkshake with raw egg, butterscotch, malted cream and molasses at The Ice Cream Bar in San Francisco

Peanut Butter Strawberry Crumble ice cream at Salt and Straw in San Francisco

Pricey Brekkies

We have never spend so much money on breakfast as on this trip. We're used to having an American Breakfast included at the accommodation, but apparently not in these parts of the US. The upside was that we got to choose our own breakfast.

Breakfast at Macrina Bakery in Belltown, Seattle

Vegan biscuits and gravy at Petunia's in Portland's Pearl District

Eggs benedict at Home Plate in San Francisco

Breakfast Sandwich at Super Duper Burgers in San Francisco

Ham Sammies & Crab Rolls

With Karl being a fulltime vegetarian and me, at the time, trying to eat vegetarian as often as possible, we were expecting a real challenge in this meat loving country. But we were pleasantly surprised! Karl only had to set aside his believes for one ham sammy while hiking Pinnacle Peak at Mount Rainier National Park. I really wanted to try the Dungeness Crab Roll at Woodhouse Fish Company in San Francisco.