Eureka, I found another BMX track!

Another day of twisty, turny roads along Hwy 101 on the coast.

Finally, we made it to our next destination.... Eureka, California. We checked into the KOA nearby and went to the Fairgrounds for some Friday night local racing. We missed registration
by 15 minutes so we had to be spectators for the night.  Saturday morning was a Race for Life event at Redwood Empire BMX. The boys all did well placing 1st and 2nd in their mains. Sunday was a state race qualifier and they all finished with 2nd places in the main events. 

The KOA campground was really nice and had lots of fun activities for the kids. They had mini golf, a sock hop, hay ride, ice cream social, pancake breakfast, etc. It was nice to relax a bit after a long day of racing.

Just a bit of information for anyone interested in visiting Eureka. It is in Humboldt County in Northern California which is part of the Emerald Triangle. This is where cannabis has been grown for about five decades. Everyone that lives in these counties is affected directly or indirectly by the marijuana business. 

 

Hwy 101 scenic route on Oregon coast, AKA twisty, turny, up & down road

After leaving Astoria, we knew there was a lot of coastal driving to go down scenic 101. We had so many people tell us to make sure we drive this way because it is so beautiful. Yes, the Oregon coastline is beautiful but not so fun to drive in an RV towing a cargo trailer. We could have spent a week stopping at every scenic overlook to take pictures. After a while, the scenery starts to look the same and you just want to hurry up and get to the next destination to relax the grip on the steering wheel.


We had booked a night at Jessie Honeyman State Park which is about a little over half way down the state coastline. Arriving after dark, we were pleasantly surprised to have water and electric hookups which were few and far between. We squeezed into our spot once again and sat by the campfire for a bit before hitting our pillows for the night. I believe that we were only on our site for 12 hours before it was time to go again.

The cool thing about Jessie Honeyman State Park was that you had the Pacific Ocean and all of the glorious rock cliffs, drift wood, tide pools, etc. then  these huge sand dune areas emerge right next to it for ATVs, motorcycles and even sand boards (like a snowboard).
 We let the kids swim in the lake nearby which seemed to be a very popular spot for youth camps and day use. Just what they needed before a long ride in the RV

What a long day that was indeed! Another full day of driving to get to California...

Kalaloch- Olympic National Park, Washington & The Goonies- Astoria, Oregon

On the way to our campground, we stopped to race for Olympic Day at Port Angeles BMX track.

 The boys did great there all placing in the top 3 for mains. We purchased a few track t-shirts to add to  our collection. Jason and Nathan made friends with a new rider named Joe. He was on a stock bike and had some difficulty with his chain and had wrecked a few times. They sought Joe out and gave him encouragement. We were so proud! Before leaving the track, Jason Jr. gave him a Fortress jersey and Nathan gave him some Fortress shorts. Joe was so excited to receive them. Hopefully he would try again and race in the future.

 

After a long day of driving and racing, we ended up on the West coast of Washington in Kalaloch on the Pacific Ocean. It was late when we pulled in and a very tight squeeze into our spot.

In the morning, we went out to the beach and collected driftwood and rocks. It was low tide and there was plenty of flat, wet beach to run and play on. Too bad we didn't bring our skim boards. The view up the coast was amazing! It started to rain again so we all went back to the RV. Our plan was to go into Olympic National Park and hike that day but we didn't want to spend another day walking in the rain. We packed up early and headed towards Oregon.

The drive down the coast of Washington was very beautiful and slow but we were eager to get to Astoria. For all of you who were around in the 80's, this was where Goonies was filmed. One of my all-time favorite movies. There were many other great movies filmed here too. We drove to the jail which is now a museum and also to the beach where the rocks were shown by the old restaurant (no longer there) and even went to Mikey's house. It was really cool to see the actual movie props and scenery. 

 

 



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Bainbridge Island Ferry



leaving Seattle

The quickest way to get from Seattle to Olympic National Park was to take a Ferry boat. When we arrived to the port there was a medical team unloading someone. We waited in line for only about 30 minutes before boarding. Our RV was the largest vehicle on the ferry. It was really cool to go up to the deck and see the bay. There were lots of people lounging on the sofas listening to music during the 30 minute ride. I walked out to the stern to feel the wind. It made me feel like I was in the titanic movie standing out on the point.

When we were close to Bainbridge Island, an announcement was made to return to your vehicles. Once we made landfall, it was like Nascar drivers lining up for the "green, green, green, go, go, go" signal. The middle lane went first, then left side and finally right side. It was a really neat experience to drive the RV onto a boat.

Seattle, Washington

We were eager to see Seattle, especially Jason Jr. who had been waiting a year to go. First, we wanted to make a stop at the REI flagship store downtown for some climbing gear.  We circled the block several times unable to find parking that could accommodate our 45 foot length. There was another store, just outside of town at Redmond Town Center with plenty of parking and a Red Robin. Woo-Hoo! After some ropes, harnesses, D-rings, hiking shoes, pocket knife, climbing book, etc. our pocket book was a little sore. We were exhausted from the long day of driving and eager to get to the campground. King County Tolt MacDonald Park was on the Snoqualmie and Tolt Rivers. It looked like a very nice place to camp, fish, hike, etc. but we didn't intend on spending much time there. We came to see Seattle.













The next morning, we rented a minivan so it would be easier to get around town. Our first stop was the Space Needle. The elevator ride to the top was pretty quick. Then you could go out on the deck and walk around to see the  views of the city and Puget Sound.











Afterwards, we found a skate park around the corner for the boys to release some energy.
 

 

In Seattle Center there were many cool attractions like the glass museum, children's museum and lots of parks to sit and relax.  After skating for about an hour, we rode the monorail to the Pike Place Market downtown. We were hoping to see some fish being thrown around. We couldn't find the right spot but it was still a neat place to buy fresh produce, seafood and unique items from local vendors. We purchased some cod filets and shrimp to cook later and then wrapped up our visit with a view of a police pursuit on foot through the streets. There were many unusual sights downtown- like purple hair, a cat riding on a man's shoulder, street performers, pot smoking and that is just the tip of the iceburg....