Day 4 July 5, 2024 Vancouver Washington to Renton Washington 183 miles
Coming down three flights of stairs this morning was no fun. Then the breakfast options were running low. Also the hot dishes require you to raise the lid very high letting all the heat out or you have to set the plate down either before or after the hot dishes. The hard boiled eggs in the refrigerator are also difficult to get. Whoever designed the breakfast room has not tried to use it. The whole thing is poorly designed. Our room didn’t have adequate electrical outlets either. The lamp on the desk only has two usb plugs. The table beside the bed has more plugs but the space is very small. We must have too many things to charge.
The fireworks didn’t slow down until about midnight. They didn’t stop until after 1 am. The parking lot was much fuller last night.
We stopped for gas on our way to Tim’s house. Then we met Ed on the road to Tim’s. He was headed back to Renton. Since he is driving his modern pickup truck and plans to take the freeway he will get there much before us.
After a very short visit we hooked up the trailer and headed out. We opted to stay off the freeway which shows a couple of hours at least longer. The scenery is beautiful but the section of the road to Kalama Washington was narrow windy with lots of hills. We were both glad to get off that section. In fact now that we have done it there is no need to do it again. The river at the end is quite beautiful. The majority of the trip was windy roads and hills until we got to Puyallup Washington. Then it became multiple lanes and lots of traffic. There are very few places to pull off to let cars pass. Cars build up quickly. I guess the speed limit is just a suggestion.
The sky is bright blue and eventually we were able to see Mount St Helen’s and Mount Rainier. Unfortunately picture taking was not easy because either trees or vehicles got in the way.
We saw a couple of large Christmas tree farms. Most of the trees were still small but they most likely grow quickly. Also saw a few wineries with fields of grape vines. Other farming was very limited.
A bicyclist was in front of us for a short distance. Nothing unusual except he had a small dog on the back. He didn’t have a basket or anything. The dog just sat there. He looked very comfortable.
Rob saw a deer with two fawns on one of the side roads. We pulled off in a wide spot and ate lunch in the car. We had a car pull up to check if we needed help. The nearby trees are covered in moss. We even got some shade. The wild flowers through one stretch were beautiful. Lots of tall foxglove in various shades of pink and purple. The spears were at least 12 inches tall. Then there were small white flowers that served as ground cover. Sometimes there were large patches and sometimes only a few.
Some of the roads and intersections are rather interesting. The traffic lights are not synchronized well either. So you drive, stop and wait. Then start over.
We arrived at Ed’s house about 5 pm. Longer day since we left about 10:30 am. Rob and Ed spent a little bit of time working on the car. Nothing serious, just a couple of loose screws. That doesn’t count Rob and Ed.
Spoffords Travel 