Sunset at the bottem of Bruce's street!


So we've made it to the west coast, just in time for a spectacular sunset. We left Spokane Washington early yesterday morning and had another scenic drive through some open range and then along the banks of the colombia river and into the cascade mountain ranges. It was an open arid desert like landscape on one side of the range turning into dense pines on the othen side down to the ocean. We skirted around Seattle and just a little north of it took a car ferry to Clinton on Whitby Island where we had to wait for another ferry to take us to Port Townsend. Dill and Pat had their first good cup of tea and some fish and chips and I went looking for sea lions that all the signes warned us not to touch. On the Ferry ride over we saw a pod of porpoise (is that the right word?) and though it was bit cool and rainy for the trip, the sun came out just as we pulled into the port.

Port Townsend is really spectacular and Bruce has a fantastic spot just short walk down to the ocean. Had I know about this place before I think Bruce would be sick of me as a house guest!


As it is we are discussing getting sqatter rights.


We off now to explore olympic national park and perhaps find some seafood for dinner.


There's a bit of eye rolling going on right now so I might be dropping the ladies of at winery while I go explore the olymic pennisula. We'll see!


Waiting for the ferry at Keystone on Whitby Island


Petrified wood, the colombia and rattlesnakes entering the cascade mountains.

Some random pictures

Petrified tree

Mammoth hot springs


Turkey!



Chinese well hot spring




More bison


and more...

Leaving Yellowstone

After a good breakfast - or my idea of one. Campfire cooked bacon, eggs toast and cowboy coffee we set out for a 500 mile drive to Spokane Washington. With most of our wildlife list checked off we felt realatively happy about moving on. We were a little dissapointed that we had not seen a bear but felt sure this would be rectified once we got to Bella Coola.

10 miles north of our campsite on the outskirts of the park we managed to check off the bear!!!

This was as close as Dilly would let us get, there was a small river between us and the bear but we had heard to many statistic over the last few days to venture and further away from the car.

Yay! We can continue on now.

Dad-Is this a mule deer or elk?

How bout this?

Yesterday we also saw a bald eagles nest with a bald eagle in it (this got the americans very excited)
and lots of little gophers-not the smartest animals we've encountered.
Really there is so much wildlife here it's getting a little silly. Dilly Is even napping and told us only to wake her up for something really exciting-like a wolf or bear.



We've had some really nice drives through the park, the landscape changes from dense pine forests with craggy outcroppings and waterfalls to strange plains that look like moon-scapes with smoking springs and geysers and noxious smells. Sometimes you can see the animals wandering amids the steam. Sometimes they fall through the thin crust of the land around the springs into the boiling water a ranger told us.

Here's a picture of blue star hot spring that has the remains of buffalo bones in it.

Dill also wants me to mention the Park lodges (If she thinks were upgrading from the campsite she going to be disappointed) They are very nice, huge log buildings the fireplaces as big as small houses. Pat is very pleased with the washrooms as well.

Dill and Pat whent in for a cup of tea in the lounge but as I've gone a little native I though I just better stay outside with real outdoors people. I heard Pat saying we should do some laundry as she's wore the same jeans 3 times in eight days which Dill said was disgusting-I'm afraid for them to find out I'm still wearning the same pants I've had on since we left guelph!

Pat and I have a long walk around the geysers in the vicinity of old faithful and snuck in with a tour group to get some explanations on the volcanic activity going on below the landscape of yellowstone.

Buffalo jam

Well we were going to camp in yellowstone but Pat and Delia were sneaky and managed to get a cabin even though I told them none were available. So we didnt' rough it as much as I wanted to but we have had a bit of success as Pat didn't put any make-up on today and neither of them put on purfume. Give me 1 more week and I'll have Pat peeing behind a tree!

So after getting settled in our cabin we headed south in the park to see old faithfull. It should have been a twenty minute drive but we got stuck behind a herd of bison who I guess decided the highway would be an easy route to some pasture. We followed behind them at about 10km/hr for 2 hours.

Old faithful was true to its name and whent of just a couple minutes before it was expected to. They say it errupst about every 70 minutes + or - 10 minutes.

The area was covered with hot springs and geysers. It turnes out there are many geyers in the park that errupt highter or more frequently but none are as predictable as old faithful.

Beryle Hot spring


North east yellowstone


Yesterday afternoon ( after the drive from hell) we had a leisurely drive through yellowstones north and west sides on route to our campsite which is in the town of yellowstone just outside the park.







We saw lots of bison, elk, deer and something that looks like a fox...







We did a tool around the mammoth hotsprings as well before heading on. Delia was a little repulsed by the gurgling, spewing sulfurous springs- I think she was expecting hot springs we could swim in!