DoubleDAZ

Four of us are going to Seattle as part of a road-trip in September. Our itinerary looks something like this:

Day 1) Arrive Port Angeles WA from La Grande OR. Overnight 2 nights.

Day 2) Day-trip to Vancouver Island via ferry to visit Butchart Gardens/Victoria. Catch earliest ferry out of Port Angeles going and latest ferry returning.

Day 3) Drive around west side of Olympic National Park (Hwy 101) looping back to Space Needle and on to Whidbey Island NAS. Overnight 2 nights.

Day 4) Drive to Vancouver and visit Capilano Bridge returning to Whidbey Island. Might include other sites in Vancouver if time permits.

Day 5) Drive Cascade Loop (Hwy 20 to 97) to McChord AFB WA. Over night 1 night.

Day 6) Head toward Portland OR via coast (Hwy 101).

I am undecided about taking the car to the island or just using local transportation to get to/from Butchart Gardens. I have a GPS unit and I'm sure I could get around okay, but I don't know what parking and traffic are like. I assume their bus system would work out just fine. I also don't know yet what we want to do/see in Victoria, so I'm open to suggestions on both items.

Also, I'm not sure if Port Angeles is the best port for getting to/from Vancouver Island. It seems like the best for our purposes, but I'm open to suggestions here too. There seemed be a lot of motels near the ferry port there as opposed to Tsawwassen.

Thanks for any comments.

NWWanderer

Just want to make sure you're aware of mileage and drive times as you are planning some very long days of driving.

It seems to me that working east to west would be a better itinerary--for instance, rather than going out to the Olympic Peninsula and Rt. 101 first from eastern OR, why not do that last and stay out on the coast, heading down 101 to the OR coast then heading to Portland? Head up through eastern OR/WA to the North Cascades first, then to Vancouver, etc (turn the itinerary around).

I'm not sure I'm understanding your plans but if the plan on day 3 is to drive all the way around the Olympic Peninsula, then all the way to Whidbey to spend 2 nights on Whidbey, that's not a realistic itinerary. Neither is the drive on Day 5.

Yes, I think Port Angeles would be the best base for your day trip to Victoria.

SEW

Port Angeles is a good base for Victoria, and I have done this as a day trip a couple of times. I would not take the car but get one of the bus tours from the harbor to Buchart Gardens or even local busses go out there but they will be making every single stop. Depending how much time you want to spend, you can also enjoy the Natural History Museum that is near the harbor and a walk through of the Empress Hotel is interesting. Be mindful of the Ferry times. There is an express from Port Angeles and a car ferry. I have taken one over and the other back, so have not purchased a round trip because of the timing.

As for the drive, I would only drive west to Crescent Lake and then double back and take a Washington State Ferry from Port Townsend to Whidbey Island. This would enable you to head up to Olympic National Park and visit Hurricane Ridge.

As for the Cascade Loop, that is a lot of driving. You might want to loop down to 530 and drop down to Seattle and visit the Space Needle then head south to McChord AFB. If it's rainy, I would skip the Space Needle because you won't see much.

I am not sure where you are catching 101 on the way back to Portland, but that is also a long stretch so you might want an overnight on the coast somewhere if you can squeeze it in.

Hope this helps.

DoubleDAZ

NWWanderer. I see what you are saying and will give it some thought. I originally had it reversed and then got concerned about the schedule when my sister couldn't make up her make on what they wanted to see/do besides the Gardens. Our priority for the area is still the day-trip to Vancouver Island, so we kind of wanted to get that out of the way first. However, we have since settled on the locations I mentioned and I never really looked at how my original schedule might have worked after all.

At any rate, assuming we stick to this schedule, research tells me that Hwy 101/I5 from Port Angeles around Olympic Park past the Space Needle to Whidbey Island (Day 3) is a 7 hour drive. Assuming a 12-hour day, that would give us 5 hours for stops along the way and a ride up the Space Needle, weather permitting. We expect to be up and out of the hotel by 6:00 am and the goal is to get to Whidbey around 6:00 pm.

The Cascade Loop (Day 5) is just over 8 hours. Again, assuming a 12-hour day, that allows us 4 hours for stops. We are not ones to dawdle along the way by stopping at every scenic overlook, etc., nor do we spend any time in hotel rooms. We like to be outdoors doing something. However, when I rework the maps, that will change Day 3 altogether and we'll see what that does to Day 5.

BTW, Day 5 is a worst-case scenario. We have 3 alternative routes that day depending on what we see along the way. We may go a little ways on Hwy 20 and simply turn around. Or we may get to Hwy 97 and decide to cut the loop at Hwy 2. Or we may find we want to take more time and we'll stop for the night somewhere along the way, it's all very flexible. We have no specific stops planned, just a quiet drive through the area. Am I missing something that says 12 hours will not be enough time for that? Are there "must-see" stops or other things I should be considering?

Also, part of the goal was to use military lodging where we could, hence the reason for McChord. I originally wanted to stay at Whidbey NAS and do everything from there until I saw the ferry schedules and distance to Port Angeles. That made me realize we needed the 2 nights in Port Angeles to make catching the ferry easy. I see though that I might still be able to do that by reversing things back to the way I had them and cutting out McChord. We would then take 101 out of Port Angeles and head toward Portland. The plan was to head from McChord to Westport anyway to pick up 101 for the drive to Cape Disappointment and Astoria.

Thanks for your comments.

Bobmrg

Going down the west side of the Olympic Peninsula is b-o-o-o-ring in my opinion. Unless you have something specific in mind, like the Hoh Rain Forest, you can skip the west side with a clear conscience.

NWWanderer

Ok, if 12 hour touring/driving days are reasonable to you, then you can indeed do what you've planned. The thought of doing that even one day on a vacation let alone several days makes my head want to explode ;-) so that's where I was coming from.

However, as mentioned by bobmrg, unless you are heading down to the Oregon Coast, I wouldn't take the time to drive all the way around the Peninsula, the SW and southern portions are not worth the extra time. Better to go out just as far as the Hoh, say, and come back the same way.

DoubleDAZ

SEW. Thanks for the comments and also for validating my choice for Port Angeles and not taking the car. We would take a tour bus to the Gardens as you suggested. Also, thanks for the tips on some sites to see in Victoria. Black Ball has a ferry leaving at 8:20 am and returning at 7:30 pm, I assume I can make reservations for both. I don't see a distinction though between express and car ferry. Is there another ferry line I should consider? Black Ball looked like the cheapest with the largest schedule and it's a 90-minutes crossing.

Assuming I don't change the schedule, are you saying the drive on Hwy 101 around the park past Lake Crescent is not worth the time? One of the reasons for going that way was to get to the Space Needle without making a separate trip just for that. I considered taking Hwy 101 along the east side of the park, but thought there would be more scenery on the west side and it goes all the way to the coast.

What is there to see at Hurricane Ridge? We'll be right there at Port Angeles, so it might be worth a look. I did see the ferry at Port Townsend, though Google will not route me that way from Whidbey Island for some reason. Anyway, it looks like a 2 hour trip from Whidbey to Port Angeles via the ferry. However, part of the reason for the current schedule is to minimize dead time. I see now though that if we went straight to Whidbey Island from La Grande and did the Capilano Bridge/Cacasde Loop on Day's 2-3, then we could do the Space Needle and take the Edmunds-Kingston ferry to Port Angeles and perhaps see some of Olympic Park and Hurricane Ridge on Day 4 before doing Victoria on Day 5.

As for the Cascade Loop, I know that is a lot of driving, but we enjoy scenic drives. I once drove 4.5 hours in Colorado, had lunch at a park, and then drove back just for the drive. The only thing is I don't know how many stops we'll want to make along the way, but we'll just have to be flexible. Going as far as, say Diablo, on Hwy 20 and then doubling back to Hwy 530 is also an option. Like you said, we could see the Space Needle that way too.

McChord is not a necessity. It was just a way to avoid going all the way back to Whidbey and also to be further along when we leave for Portland. We had planned to go straight over to Westport to pick up Hwy 100 to Cape Disappointment/Astoria. Depending on time that day, we'd overnight in Astoria or go on into the Portland area. McChord to Portland is only 6.5 hours, but we didn't plan on going all the way to Portland and wanted about 3 hours in the Cape Disappointment area. Leaving from Port Angeles though would change the dynamics of that leg because it adds another hour or so and we'd definitely have to stop no further than Astoria.

I can see I need to give this some more thought. I think I do need to decide on a schedule though so we can make some lodging and ferry reservations. I have no idea how busy Seattle is that time of year, we'd be there during the week of Sep 13.

DoubleDAZ

Bobmrg/NWWanderer, I get the picture re the west side and will alter that part no matter what, so thanks for those comments. It would be a lot easier/quicker to use the Kingston ferry to get to the Space Needle side of Seattle anyway. But, I have a feeling I'm going to go back to my original plan and reverse things. This all gives me more to consider though as I rework my maps.

And, yes, we are a different breed when it comes to road-trips. I know most people could not spend the amount of time we do driving scenic roads and seeing the countryside. But, to us, that is a real vacation. We are not the types to sit around a pool at a resort.

I suppose I should make your head spin even more because we are coming from Phoenix through Utah and returning along the Oregon and California coasts, all which will be 10-12 hour days, though not all will have as much driving as the Cascade Loop.

And that brings up the question. If you were doing the Cascade Loop, how would you do it? Would you go Hwy 20 to 97 to I-5 or would you shorten it some other way? I am not familiar with the area, so I don't know what's wroth seeing and what isn't. If part of the Loop is boring like Olympic Park, what would you suggest as an alternate for that day while still including the best part of the Loop?

Also, if I change the schedule and end up with more time, what would you suggest we see either in Seattle or Vancouver ? Bear in mind that we are outdoors types and do not relish walking around downtown streets, etc.

grahambell

You might find this page helpful:

http://www.butchartgardens.com/plann...ashington.html

Bobmrg

Regarding the west side of the Olympic Peninsula, let's take a look at the little old map. Note that 101 west of Lake Crescent is inland...basically a two-lane road with trees on each side; not particularly notable trees, either. It stays inland until the southbound turn through Forks is completed, then zips out to the coast for about 15 miles of driving along the top of a high bluff overlooking the ocean; at Queets you turn inland again. Sure doesn't offer me anything...your mileage may vary.

NWWanderer

Not a sit by the pool type either...for me, what you'll be missing by driving so much is time to be out on the hiking trails and really experiencing the two beautiful national parks you'll be visiting, as opposed to doing drive bys.

Hurricane Ridge has gorgeous views into the interior of the park, along with a great hike up to Hurricane Hill, where you can see over to Victoria. You should also make time to include Lake Crescent and at least go out as far as Sol Duc, to get a glimpse of the rainforest, if you can't spend an extra night here and make time to see the Hoh Rainforest.

Re the Cascade Loop, I'd spend at least 2 days doing Rt. 20 to Rt. 97 to Rt. 2 back to the Seattle area, with an overnight in the Winthrop/Mazama area. There are so many great hikes and vistas along that route (particularly Rt. 20, the North Cascades Highway), including the amazing drive up Hart's Pass (though that's not for the faint of heart).

So, long story short, any extra time you find yourself with can and should be spent in the national parks, IMO.

DoubleDAZ

Ok, NWWanderer, I see where you are coming from now. Maybe it will help if I tell you that most hiking is out of the question for my wife and that's part of why we drive as much as we do. Oh, she can do easy trails that are around a mile or so one-way, but any climbing at all is a no-no for her knee. We just spent a day at the Grand Canyon and the walking we had to do from shuttle stops to some of the lookouts was too much for her. She will get a knee replacement one of these days, but she is too young yet (58) and the doctors want her to wait as long as possible. So, it's a lot of drive-through or not at all.

FWIW, I met 2 couples at the Grand Canyon just this week; one from Bellingham and the other from Sequim. I mentioned my plans to see some of Olympic Park and they both echoed many of your comments. Since they knew about my wife's knee, they also said we could do the Cascade Loop the way I planned, but agreed it would be a long day with a lot of driving. They also approved of the rest of the plans with the changes I am considering. I also told them we might just go so far and turn around, but I didn't think to ask them where to stop. I'ts all flexible. If we like wnat we see and want more time, I'll have Winthrop/Mazama as a backup. I am intrigued by your comment about Hart's Pass and will research that. We may just go that far and turn back, but that's a 4-hr drive by itself, so we'll see. I take it that has some great views?

I have already decided to look for another approach to the ferry and Olympic Park with your recommendations in mind. I haven't worked out the details just yet, but you've helped a lot. Now that we know what our priorities are and how much time we have to adjust, I can reverse the order. It does add a little to the day we leave for Astoria, but I think I can manage that okay.

I should also mention that these extensive road-trips double as scouting trips to find locations for future vacations. If we like what we see in a given area, the plan is to return to that area in the future for a more extended stay. This is the 2nd of 3 such road-trips. Next year is the Dakotas, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. We've already done Canada (Montreal) to Key West, a full 90 days. Starting in 2012, each location will get 2 weeks or more of our undivided attention.

DoubleDAZ

grahambell, I already have that link, but thanks for reminding me to pick a Butchart tour. Once I settle on reversing the itinerary, I can concentrate on gathering data for motel/tour reservations. Who knows? I might even find that I can get a pacage deal and that might alter where we decide to stay. I would actually like to stay in Vancouver to do the Capilano Bridge, but I have no idea where to stay for a reasonable price. I hate spending a lot on rooms when we are rarely in them. All we need is a clean bed and bathroom and I know what to expect at Whidbey NAS.