Dave and I booked a whale watching trip aboard the Puget Sound Express.
Our boat
We left from Port Angeles and sailed through the Juan de Fuca Straight. The water was calm and created a perfect day to view whales. First sighting was a bald eagle. He’s in the tree to the right of the trunk and above the brown branches. Look for a white spot. That’s his head.
We also saw one in flight but I wasn’t quick enough with my camera. Our second sighting was of a “bird pile.” A highly technical term to describe a group of birds sitting together in the ocean.
We continued cruising around the straight and eventually got close to Canada. We had to switch our phones into airplane mode so we didn’t get charged for international usage! As we were going along, we had sightings of orca fins in the distance. The captain steered us towards the pod. There were three total.
Orcas will surface to breathe for about 3-5 minutes and then dive to eat for about 5-8 minutes. The three we were watching continued this pattern for about 30 minutes. They were absolutely beautiful to watch. As much as I wanted the boat to get closer, regulations require boats to stay 250 yards away from whales. The Naturalist on board who was informing us about the whales had a golf ball range finder he used to track the distance. We never got closer than the 250 yds. Also, this pod of Orcas are known as Biggs Orca. They are all “business” and don’t do a lot of breaching or jumping. They are all about feeding and patrolling.
It was such a beautiful day. We enjoyed our boat ride and wildlife sightings. And of course we enjoyed being chilly!
So chilly!
After our tour, we packed up from the Thompson’s house and headed to our next destination. We are staying on Lake Crescent for the next few nights at the Log Cabin Inn.
View from our cabin
We have several hikes in this part of the park planned for the next couple of days. More adventures await!
Saturday we drove over to the ONP coast. It was also our first rainy day. The rain made the PNW coastal experience even more authentic. Our first stop was Kalaloch to see the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life is a large Sitka spruce that is thriving despite having its roots exposed. The combination of tidal flooding and a small stream have washed away the soil underneath the tree, making it appear to be suspended within the coastal cliff. The tree is a true sign of resilience as it defies biological odds by thriving without soil and nutrients.
Tree of Life All of us
Another tree that deserves an honorable mention is what we named as the Lovely Lady tree. Take a look. See if you see what we saw…
Lovely Lady
The next beach on our coastal drive was Beach Four. This beach was recommended by Alfred – our GuideAlong companion – because of its cool rock formations and tide pools. check out those layers.
The tide pools were a delight. We saw purple and orange sea stars and light green sea anemones.
Our third stop was Ruby Beach. The tide pools here were amazing. The large rocks created the perfect tide pool environment during low tide. So many sea stars, mussels, and sea anemones.
We finished our day with a homemade baked ziti dinner and watched the second movie in the Twilight series. Because we are staying in Forks, Washington… For the record, we haven’t seen any vampires or werewolves (that we are aware of that is…)
We had another early morning start because we wanted to get to Hoh Rainforest before the crowds. It was about an hour drive to the rainforest. We left Forks at 5:30 and were ready for our first hike through the Hall of Mosses by 6:45. The early bird gets into the park without lines!
So, what is the Hoh Rainforest besides a nerdy tree loving science teacher’s dream come true? It is a temperate rainforest located in ONP. The rainforest receives over 12 feet of rain a year. The rainforest is full of old growth (over a 1,000 years old) Sitka spruce, western hemlock and maple trees. The trees are draped in moss because of the excessively moist environment. The Hall of Mosses trail is a short loop (.8 mile) through a dense section of moss draped trees and giant ferns. It’s one of the most enchanting places I’ve explored. Visiting during the summer means less rain and dryer conditions. I can only imagine how beautiful and perhaps chilly it would be in a steady drizzle.
I took so many pictures!! Before I show you more trees, how about a few mushrooms. The decomposing vibe in the Hoh is strong thanks to these guys.
We thoroughly enjoyed and savored our walk through the Hall of Mosses. A few more photos because it truly is one of my new favorite places.
Now time for a little more science. Part of what has made this area so interesting and unique are nurse logs. Nurse logs are fallen trees that provide nutrients and a protected area for young spruce and hemlock seedlings to sprout. The competition is still tough and only a few trees will last. Eventually, they form a line of trees along the decaying trunk. The new trees grow long legs as they stretch towards the ground. Science is cool.
A few more before telling you about the rest of the rainforest.
Our second hike of the day was the Spruce Trail. It was a 1.2 mile loop through more rainforest and more cool mossy trees.
Besides the trees & mushrooms, we saw three different banana slugs! Did you know, banana slugs can be a variety of colors? Not just yellow. They can be green, white and even black – aka rotten banana slugs! We also saw a funky caterpillar and a snake!
Our final hike for the day was along the Hoh River trail to Mineral Creek Falls about 6 miles round trip. The Hoh River trail is 17.5 miles total ending in Glacial Meadows. We saw lots of over night hikers heading out to the meadows. We were content with our short hike. That being said, by the end of the day, we hiked over 10 miles in the Hoh Rainforest.
Before I wrap this up, a few more mushrooms… I might have been a little obsessed with these cute “fun-guys”.
I know this was an extra long post. If you made it this far, thank you for reading. Hoh Rainforest is truly a special place. Plan a visit – you won’t be disappointed.
After our trip was planned and booked and before we left, I realized one of my dear friends (and her family) from VA Beach was going to be in the Azores at the same time we were visiting! Our itineraries overlapped on Friday, we were both to be on the big island of São Miguel. Obviously, we planned to spend this day together! I found a lovely hike that started from a vista and went down to two lakes. The Blue Lake and the Green Lake in the town of Sete Cidades. From here we would enjoy lunch together and then take a guided kayak tour around the lakes. It sounded like a well planned day. I received a call from the Kayak company informing me the weather wasn’t going to be good to paddle. So, we canceled. The weather forecast predicted rain off and on all day. So, we decided not to hike. Instead we would just drive to visit the locations and enjoy our time together. Jeff, Sue’s husband, was our driver for the day. He did a fantastic job navigating the roads and climbing numerous mountains! Here is where we stopped at the vista for the view. This would have been where we started our hike. So many clouds!
What we should see…View of cloudsFriends! CloudsMore clouds & hydrangeas Start of hike…
Jeff drove us down the mountain to see the Blue Lake and the Green Lake. Again, the overcast skies prevented us from seeing the true colors of lakes. Also, the low clouds prevented us from seeing the mountains all around us.
Green Lake? Blue LakeCute flowers
We loaded back up in the car and drove around Sete Cidades. We stopped to see a church and walk around the town for a little bit.
Jeff, Sue & AllisonHappy Farmer & cowChurchGiant hydrangeaLittle gardenSwirly tree
The next spot on our tour was Ponta da Ferraria. Ponta da Ferraria is a place where the thermal heat from inside the earth is escaping and warming the Atlantic Ocean. It was beautiful and fun to walk around on the giant lava rocks. Plus, Jeff and Allison both put their feet into the pool. My mom, Sue and I all decided we didn’t need the hassle of putting on our suits and then having to wait in line to shower etc… maybe next time!
FriendsArchThermal poolAllison plunging her feet
After exploring Ponta da Ferraria, we found a lovely restaurant for lunch. Finally, I had a chance to try limpets. I had low expectations, and they far exceeded them! The limpets, cooked in garlic butter, were delicious. I also ordered shrimp and French fries. Plus, a bottle of wine that was recommended by our driver, Carlos, in Pico. Frei Gigante is made with the three white grapes that grow on the island of Pico. It was delicious!
After lunch, we stopped at a cute park in Ponta Delgado. I had marked this park on my list of places to visit. My mom and I were too tired the first day and so it worked well we could stop and walk around all together. It was so fun to have a chance to spend the day together. The highlight was being able to give hugs!
Jeff, Sue, and Allison dropped us back off at city center. My mom and I went back to our hotel to regroup and then went out to do a little more shopping and have one final dinner. Pizza & wine.
Our flight back to Boston left around 6pm on Saturday. We enjoyed a leisurely wake up, breakfast and a morning walk around town before checking out of our hotel. A few more fun street view pictures.
After checking out, we found a nice spot for lunch and enjoyed our last cheese board and beers from Azores Brewery.
This has been a wonderful trip. The Azores are a beautiful place. The people are kind and welcoming. Their service and hospitality deserve all the gold stars. If you haven’t added them to your list to visit, I encourage you to! You won’t regret it!! As always, thanks for following along and sharing the journey. Until next time!
Monday morning we caught the ferry from Madalena on Pico Island to Velas on São Jorge Island. The process of checking in, checking our luggage, and then boarding the ferry was incredibly smooth and efficient.
Boarding selfie. You might notice a theme in our selfies today… crazy hair!
The ferry took about and 1.5 hours. Although the seas appeared calm, the ferry was a bit rocky!
Leaving PicoPassing our rock islandsMt pico hidingMt Pico in full viewPortugal FlagFirst view of São Jorge
We arrived in Velas around 11:15. Collected our luggage and meet our taxi driver without issue. We were not supposed to begin our hike until 1:30pm. We asked Antonio, our driver, if we could start as soon as possible. He had another group going as well and arranged with them to go early. He was so kind and accommodating. He dropped us at the hotel and went to get the group while we checked in. Our accommodation is a Bed and Breakfast, Casa de Antonio. Our host, Antonio, had our room ready and helped us check in and then showed us to our room. The hospitality was top notch. Our driver, Antonio, returned and off we went on our 5.6 mile hike!
Overlook view of the town of VelasMt Pico in the distance
The Pilgram’s Path hike is known to be one of the most beautiful on the island. It begins at Topo, one of the island’s crests, and descends down to the north coast. It was used by pilgrims to reach the wild north coast which is still very isolated.
“The Walker” statue tributes all who hike trails in the AzoresLooking SouthOff we go! Starting out… before we see the view
We had been given many warnings the trail is very steep especially in the beginning. The warnings were validated as we descended! But, first – the view!
If only we were a few weeks later, we would see all the hydrangeas in bloom.
Hydrangeas More hydrangeas One early bloomerTrail blaze
The views were incredible. I’m not sure I’ve seen anything like it before. It was so quiet and peaceful.
The Atlantic OceanAnother crazy hair selfie
As we descended, the trail would change and close in and yet remained very rocky.
Trail friends – goats
About 2/3 of the way down we stopped to enjoy our picnic lunch. Perhaps our peanut butter and crackers and an apple weren’t gourmet… but, the view certainly was!
View from our picnic lunch
As we continued down, we caught up with a river and a little waterfall.
Plus, at lower the lower elevation we started to see blooming hydrangeas.
We saw this roof from above and it looked tiny. Obviously, human size once we were next to it. And our first view of the island’s north coastline.
Fajā Santo Cristo and the Lagoon
Fajā Santo Cristo is a one of a kind sight. Only accessible by foot (or now also 4 wheelers) it has a beautiful church and lagoon. This was my first time actually walking through a hamlet!
ChurchLagoonHousing Starting to climb againCliffs above usMore cliffs
The north coast is protected and now considered a surfer’s paradise. As we climbed back up it was easy to understand why. The wave train had perfectly timed crests.
We continued our “relatively” flat climb for the second half of our hike. The dirt/ rock trail had lots of ups and downs with more amazing views.
The water is so clear Flat ground felt good
One of my favorite pictures of the day. My mom celebrated her 77th birthday today and here she is at trail marker 77!
Happy 77th birthday!
We made it to the finish line a bit later than we hoped. We truly “savored” the experience. I called Antonio earlier and let him know we were running late. He was so kind and understanding. We also met up with the other hikers he was transferring. They had used the extra time to swim in the lagoon. On our way home, we ran into a cow jam. The farmers walk their cows to the milking building and then walk them back to their farm. Truly happy cows make the best cheese! São Jorge is known for their delicious cheese!
We returned to the hotel, showered, and went out to dinner!
MusselsPesto pasta with cheeseGarlic cheese bread (best I’ve ever had)Dessert – a creamy angel food cake
It was an amazing day. The hike was one of the most beautiful hikes I’ve ever done. I would also rate it as a moderate challenge with the amount of descent we did. As always, thanks for reading!
