Tuesday, August 27
Today’s photos were taken in and around North Fork Campground in Olympic National Park, Washington.
After a good night’s sleep the crew and I are up early. I’m happy that the campground is quiet . . . only the soothing sound of the creek.
I use my camp toaster on the propane stove to make rye toast. I love rye toast with coffee in the morning! Bridget and Spike eat kibble and a few bites of my toast.
I sit outside in my camp chair and finish a second cup of coffee, while the crew hangs out in their pen. I put the cup in the BLT, close the door, and open up the crew’s pen.
“C’mon, guys. Let’s see what we can find.”
There’s a trail loop off the campground. On the way down the campground road, we encounter a senior gentleman returning to his campsite from the trash receptacles. He’s a slim gent wearing a fisherman’s hat and using a cane.
I don’t know how it happens, but soon we’re deep in conversation.
His name is Les and he’s a native of Washington.
I glance at his campsite and see his camp chair, a few items on the picnic table, and his car.
“Are you leaving? I don’t see a tent,” I inquire.
With a wry smile, Les explains.
“I borrowed a tent from a friend of mine. I throw the satchel in the trunk. When I get here and open it up, all that’s in the bag are tent stakes, rope, and other stuff. No tent.”
“Oh, no!” I exclaim.
“It’s all right,” Les continues calmly. “The passenger seat in the car goes all the way back. It’s comfortable enough. I have pillows.”
Les is from Port Angeles.
That’s where the crew and I are going, so, of course, I have lots of questions.
Les may have an unsteady gait, but his face is youthful and animated as he tells me about camping the Olympic National Forest. He gets a map out of his car to show me some of his favorites. Although his report of the forest is glowing, he adds a warning.
“Don’t leave your camper and go off somewhere. If you do, make sure everything is locked up tight. There are a lot of druggies around and they’ll steal you blind.”
“Oh, really?”
Hmm . . . I wonder if this is a prevalent problem or he heard of one theft and is blowing it out of proportion, the way people tend to do.
“Yeah, the past few years it’s gotten worse. I’ve only lived in that area for eight years, but my brother . . . He’s lived there forty years and he’s says it’s getting bad.”
“Well, thanks for the warning, Les. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Les lived in a “retirement community” for two years.
“I hated it!” he says with intensity. “Now I travel around for six months and in the winter I house-sit a condo in Port Angeles for some snowbirds. By the time they come back I’m going crazy to hit the road.”
“You’re a man of the road,” I comment. He smiles.
“And you’re a woman of the road,” he adds.
I ask him how long he plans on staying at North Fork.
“Oh, I’m leaving in the morning. I’ve been here three days. I get restless.”
“Well, I’ll talk to you later, Les. We’re going on a little hike.”
A trail sign says 1.6 miles.
That’s just right for me and the crew.
What the sign doesn’t say is the trail is vertical, zig-zagging up the side of a mountain!
We’re almost to the top.
I feel light-headed and I do believe I can hear the beating of my heart. I don’t want to hear the beating of my heart.
The trail is about 18 inches wide, cliff straight up on the left, cliff straight down on the right.
Bridget hikes the trail like a mountain goat.
Spike follows her lead and I take up the rear.
Gee, all I need to do is get dizzy and fall off this cliff. Maybe we should do this on another day, right after a good breakfast.
“Okay. Enough of this. Let’s go home.”
Bridget hears the word “home,” spins around, and scoots by Spike and me on the downward cliff side, stopping my heart momentarily.
“Sheesh, Bridget. Take it easy!” Spike and I follow her downhill.
Later, after a lunch of sauteed chicken (shared with the crew) and corn on the cob, I make a campfire. A campfire is a major accomplishment when you’re using damp wood and damp matches. Ah, the joys of camping in a rainforest. . .
Bridget and Spike watch the flames of the campfire from their pen, but only for a little while. Their eyelids droop.
That uphill hike, although aborted after less than a mile, wore out these hikers!
The crew and I will stay at North Fork through Labor Day Weekend.
We went up to Blue Lake Campground, further along Forest Road 23, and every site is reserved. Between Labor Day Weekend and the big flea market in Packwood, I suspect all the area campgrounds are booked for the weekend.
So we’re keeping this site.
I’m posting this entry while sitting in the PTV with the crew, using the Randle library’s WiFi signal. From here we’ll go seventeen miles west to the Morton Post Office to see if the vehicle registrations arrived.
I hope to God they have.
Will RVSue become an outlaw? Will Spike ride shotgun? Will Bridget refuse to ride in a vehicle with expired tags?
Stay tuned!
rvsue
THANK YOU FOR SHOPPING AMAZON FROM MY BLOG!
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Used your link for the camp toaster and finally used last week…we put on our Weber Q grill…worked like a charm! Was nice to have toast and jam again!
Yay! Another happy camp toaster customer! Glad you like it, cozygirl. Thanks for using my link.
You’ll find that some bread toasts faster than others.
Peeps . . . If you’re a toast lover and camp, Coghlan’s 504D Camp Stove Toaster
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Hey Sue, I really enjoy your blog. If you wait till Oregon to get you items you need, such as your tires, you save on sales tax as we dont have any in the state.
enjoy your stay in Washington. watch out for those slugs, have heard on occasion they have walked away with 40 ft motorhome which was found months later covered with slime!!! LOL
Excellent idea, Doug! I hadn’t given any thought to taxes.
I’m happy to know you enjoy my blog. I’m glad you’re with us!
Did the lovely man of the road tell you about the Salt Creek Recreation area day use area? It’s near, but not in, the campground. Where the creek goes out into the strait, it’s a doggy haven. Its sandy, nice for barefoot walking, and The water is shallow and warmish. Access is easiest at low tide. Also you can wander quite a ways out when the tide is out.
Salt Creek Campground is a bit pricey and not too private. Lyre River DNR campground isn’t too far away and I think you’d like it. Very quiet. But no sun so charge up when you can!
To clarify, Salt Creek is about 15 miles from Port Angeles. Don’t think you’ll find boondocking on the Peninsula. If you think Gifford Pinchot is rainforest, just wait!
Great information, Alison! I’m making note of it.
Aw, c’mon! More rainforest-y than here? What? The slugs are longer and slimier, the trees bigger, and the moss grabs you by the neck as you walk by?
Yup!
Sue,
It’s better to hear your heartbeat than the other option…
So true… 🙂
Don’t skip Port Townsend on the way to Port Angeles. god you’re where I was last year .. I absolutely loved the entire State of Washington.
Marijuana became legal in Washington State yesterday… so hopefully that’ll ease up the druggies robbing people to get money…. Well? wonder what the legal prices are as opposed to the not legal prices. ?
the HOH Rain Forest on the western side is a knockout … so much to see in that State. The little islands and … so forth. I’m enjoying seeing the parts I didn’t go to. I’m not much of a boondocking kind of kid.
I have Port Townsend, as well as Port Angeles, in my sights. I’ve also been looking at the HOH river valley on my Washington Benchmark. Oh, there’s so much to see and do . . . and Old Man Winter will send me back to Arizona!
I’m sorry to say that Les is not exaggerating about break-ins and drugs. BIG problem here in western WA, especially when the economy declined. Marijuana has nothing to do with it. Mostly meth and heroin. Some hikers have even started leaving their vehicles unlocked at trailheads so that thieves won’t break windows to get inside. Of course, they don’t leave any valuables behind. 🙁
Sue, some of the best photography yet, The forest scene with with the light beaming down is perfect. I am definitely going to have to spend 4-6 months there. Problem is I do mostly B&W photography, I can develop my own film. But I do like color when it calls for it. I get dizzy myself on hikes, so since I am never in a hurry, I take it slow, at my own pace going uphill. Just remember going back is all downhill and gravity rules.
If it snows in that part of the country you might want to get some new tires sooner that that. Wranglers are a good semi aggressive tires for snow, sand and mud, and they don’t make that much road noise.
As always, Enjoy.
Downhill is harder on the knees than uphill, though…
Thank you, Alan, for the compliment on my photography. You will have a great time out here. The light is challenging for an amateur such as myself… lots of shadows. But it’s all fun! I bet you could get some moody, spooky, B&W shots here.
I’ve been planning to ask readers their suggestions for good tires to replace the ones on the PTV. I’ll put Wranglers on my list! Thanks.
The light in such places has so many levels and intricacies that it is impossible for film and even more so for digital sensors to capture them. They just don’t have the sensitivity to capture the extreme highs and lows in all their levels. You have to decide which is important, what the image you are trying to capture is all about. The highs in the image are a little over exposed, image software like Photoshop or Lightroom could bring them down. but it isn’t that important here. What is, is the ethereal feeling of the light as it permeates the foliage, it just glows. It gives one the feeling of being there and that is the essence of landscape photography. You captured it well.
Here’s another vote for Wranglers. The original tires on our truck had no grip at all and we did some scary sliding down on a leaf-covered hill once. The Wranglers have just enough grip without having enough to impact gas mileage (or so the salesman said). We’ve been happy with them.
Your photos are stunning. Those orange mushrooms are chicken of the woods (Laetiporus sulphureus). When young and fresh, they are good edibles. When they get older, you can still eat the tender tips. Cooked, of course.
Taste like chicken. 😀
Oops, sorry. The West Coast version of the chicken of the woods is probably Laetiporus gilbertsonii.
Aren’t you glad I clarified that? 😀
You coulda’ fooled me!
Mockturtle . . . I probably will stick to campgrounds with camphosts. Les says the really desperate ones would think nothing about ripping the door right off a trailer. I avoid “running scared,” but I will be extra cautious. Meth heads and heroin addicts are insane.
Your portraits of the rainforest is just as I have imagined them! Thank you for sharing! Guess the only way I will see that part of the country is through your eyes!
Too bad about the thieves in that area, but seems like where you have cocaine in any form as well as heroin, you will see theft and violence. Lost souls. However, you are NOT a lost soul! Just please be extra cautious, stay safe and know we love you!
I always am thrilled to receive a compliment on my photos from you, Geri, because you know what you’re talking about! I wish you were here to see the rainforest in person, slugs and all . . . 🙂
uhhhhhhhhh, rather do it without the slugs, thanks! LOL!
You need to put a balloon over Spike’s head in the trail picture that says ‘Mama wants me to walk up THIS?!?!?’.
Spike’s gung ho for a hike the first 200 yards or so, then it’s “You want to keep going?”
Sounds like Spike & I would get along just fine.
Sue,
What resistors do you need for the AC, they can’t be that costly
!!
Hi Steve,
No, they aren’t. It’s just something on my wish list. I would’ve taken care of that already, but we haven’t been camped in one place long enough, other than out in the forest. It’s been so cool that it’s dropped lower on my “to do” list.
Darrell, the resistors for the A/C are called a “Hard Start”, stupid name as they ‘slow’ down the electricity to the A/C motor when it cycles increasing the longevity of the motor and also with the Casitas A/C enabling it to be used with normal houshold current and not damage the motor. All other elec has to be turned off to do this though.
I wasn’t going to comment on this, but the memory of my mother won’t let me.
I must take exception to the idea that everyone who may brake into a car for food or whatever as Drug Addicts. Our country is riddled with people who are down on their luck and in desperate needs. “But for the grace of God go I” comes to mind. These people, many with families, are living in such places, not because they want to, but because they have no choice. Yes there may be drug addicts involved, but it cost money to get to these areas to rob cars and quite frankly people, the value of a hot stereo isn’t all that much to make it worth their while.
Instead of condemning them why don’t we place a bag of groceries on the hood of our cars with a sign, “Take What You Need”. This is our world and society, it is what we make it to be.
I am sorry if I bruised some feeling, Ii wasn’t my intention.
Economy’s been struggling on the Olympic Peninsula for quite some time, but seems to be improving lately. Logging industry is way down and a whole way of life has been lost. Native Americans, well we know their way of life has been damaged. It’s also been an area where psychically damaged vietnam veterans have gone to avoid main stream society.
Dear Alan,
Cranksters or meth heads will steal from their own family. It doesn’t matter if the item is worth something or not…they will take it…as hoarding is part of the drug addiction. It can be bolted down…they’ll try and find a way.
I’ve seen people fried by high voltage wires trying to steal the copper wires so they can sell it to get their next fix. Taking other people’s property is against the law no matter how down and out you may be. They certainly don’t want food…………..crankters meth heads don’t eat and they don’t sleep when they are high.
There is no excuse period for their actions.
I agree with you completely. Stealing from other people is never an option.
I have to agree. No amount of “excusing” will let these thieves off the hook. These people have no moral compass at all. They go to the places they do because law enforcement is limited and the opportunity to knock off the innocent is abundant. If you were to leave groceries on your car for them they would sell them to buy crack.
You all are missing the point entirely. Of course criminal activities are wrong. But so is lumping everyone who fits some slanted description of a drug addict as a drug addict. I seem to remember that a certain friend of this site used to reside in the area we are talking about. By all accounts he fits your description to a T. Disheveled clothes, scruffy beard, maybe not so perfect teeth, maybe even a little smelly. I’d bet if you saw him coming down the street towards you, you’d cross the street to get out of his way.
But enough of this, I’ve learned my lesson.
Lumping everyone into a “slanted description” of a drug addict? I must have missed that one.
There is a HUGE difference between a meth head/crankster and the description that YOU gave as an example.
You are totally wrong about me crossing the street to avoid crossing paths. I always make eye contact with people and say hello. If they reply great..if not that’s okay too. With that small interaction, I can generally figure out their status. It also tells that person..I am aware of my surroundings.
If I see someone who looks hungry..I’ll offer them food. As for the cranksters/ meth heads..I’ll offer them a ride……….to jail!
All this was a heads up for Sue ..suggesting that she not to leave the BLT in the woods. If you’re not from around the area….how are you to know that illicit activities are happening? It’s far better to be proactive than reactive.
Have a wonderful day.
Alan… I appreciate the point you are trying to make. One should always do their best to discern desperate poverty as opposed to desperate addiction.
I must correct your description of “a certain friend of this site.” You’re lumping him in with the desperately poor (dirty, smelly, unkempt) which is way off=base. The description is insulting, although I know you didn’t intend it to be, so no offense taken.
Take Les’ warning to heart.
Cranksters meth heads are the worse. Heroin using folks just go on the nod. A coworker had her entire trailer taken…..they finally found it months later….trashed and was converted into a mobile meth lab.
As a rule: folks who use meth normally have messed up teeth.. they will try to befriend you. LOOK at their teeth! And if they don’t have a full set (of teeth) collectively….that’s a clue.
The crew appears to be out of gas! How funny! Bridget the mountain goat is better than a badger!
Light headed? From the elevation? Not enough breakfast or…………..?
Take it easy……….enjoy the rest of the weekend.
I will take Les’ s warning and be careful. . . Always great to hear from you. . . You are such loyal readers and I love your comments!
Sue, I hate to add to the info on the druggies, but it is true. You do need to be VERY careful… Good the pups will alert you… best alarm system out there!
SO! Inquiring minds need to know! Did the tabs come, did the tabs come!!!???
Sure hope so!
Enjoy the weekend. Not traveling here either… I may just spend the night in the driveway in my Moosee… 🙂
Your photos are GORGEOUS! Doesn’t it remind you of North GA?
I have lived all over, but was born here in WA and sure am glad I was able to come back…
Hugs from Hoquiam!
Barb
Hi Barb… Nope, this is nothing like North Georgia. The mountains, trees, etc… much more dramatic. I’m parked at the library for internet and I forgot to bring my reading glasses. Barely can see what I’m typing and have the print enlarged.
I think car break-ins at trail heads are a problem everywhere. Rental car agents warned me of the problem when I visited Hawaii and Alaska. It’s a problem is other countries as well. A sad sign of the times I suppose.
On a happier note …. great photos! So lush and green. Enjoy your visit to the Olympic Peninsula. Hopefully you’ll have good weather; as we get into Sept you encounter more and more fog in the mornings, and the dreaded rain. Port Angeles and Port Townsend are lovely communities. Be sure to get up to Hurricane Ridge … on a clear day you get wonderful views across the strait to Victoria BC on Vancouver Island. Usually lots of deer up there so keep the doggies leashed. Ruby Beach near Hoh is a wonderful wilderness beach … large rocks jutting out of the ocean, enormous trees washed up along the shore, usually seals/sealions and lots of bald eagles.
Hopefully you’ll be driving down the coast of WA and Oregon …. gorgeous scenery all the way. I think we’re in for some wonderful photos over the next few months.
Hope your tabs arrived today!
Thanks for the suggestions, Caroline! I see you qualify as a local so you know what you’re talking about.
You’re not in the rain forest yet Sue. Sorry to say it but the Olympic Peninsula is where the real rain forest is located. It’s beautiful but very damp there. You’ll love the scenery and we’ll love your photos. Be careful not to step on the slugs… they pop and stick to the bottom of your shoes! Yuck!
Juley
Exploding slugs? Oh my!
Be careful not to step on the slugs… they pop and stick to the bottom of your shoes! Yuck!
Only if they’re having sex. 😉
Exploding slugs have sex? Oh my, oh my!
Your images make me plenty homesick for the lush drippy NW forests. And all those delicious Chicken-in-the-Woods, some would be sizzling in my fry pan with a little butter and garlic.
The Packwood market is crazy. Sold there a couple times. Town is packed from one end to the other.
I’m debating whether to try the Packwood flea market and I think “don’t go near the place” is winning!
Sue, I’m lovin’ your blog!
My Dinah Dog and I spent over 3 weeks on the west side of the Olympic Peninsula in April of this year. I’ve lived in Southwest Washington for over 15 years and even though I thought it was wet and rainy here, it had nothing on the rainforest on the Peninsula! The Hoh Rainforest is awesome – hike the Hall of Mosses trail. It’s moss like you’ve never seen it! Just know that dogs are not allowed on most of the trails in the national park – the rangers are very friendly and knowledgeable (if you can find one or the stations/centers are open) and will let you know where they can go (very few places). The Elwha River area is cool – it’s where they’re removing dams to let the salmon return and guess what! The salmon have already started to come back and the restoration isn’t even complete yet! I took one whole day and drove out to Cape Flattery on the Indian Reservation – it was well worth the drive. (Saw a huge herd of Roosevelt elk on the way there and back.) The 3/4 mile walk to the farthest western point of land in the continental US was amazing and the views at the end spectacular – the local Makah tribe did a great job on the walkway. Oh and you probably have to stop at the Sol Duc hot springs! There’s nothing like sitting in a pool of amazingly hot mineral water… Oh and drive up to Hurricane Ridge! The views are fantastic!
The Olympic Peninsula/National Park is one of my favorite places – where else can you go and see the ocean, the mountains, the hot springs, and the rain forest within a few miles of each other? In all the time we spent there, granted it was off-season and there were very few ranger types anywhere and the ranger stations were closed and visitor centers were only open weekends, but I left my little trailer all day long while I went off in my vehicle sight-seeing. I never saw or heard any problems with druggies (and as already mentioned, marijuana is not the problem). There were times when I was the only “camper” in the campground we were staying in. I never felt unsafe and it was never scary (and I’m an older single woman who was traveling with a 16-year-old deaf dog who couldn’t have heard anyone to bark at if she wanted to). I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!
Enjoy your time on the Peninsula – I know you will!
If I’m still in Portland when and if you come this way, I’d love to meet up for a cup of coffee (or whatever) – I’m heading south in a couple of weeks but will be taking my time – no schedule and no hurry to be anywhere in particular.
Wow! You sure have whet my appetite for the sights of the peninsula! I hate that the crew are once again shut out of the park trails. I am noting your suggestions … I’d write more but I’m having a hard time without my glasses with me… and I have a blog entry to post.
There is a short very beautiful “nature discovery loop” near Lake Quinalt, on the National Forest side. The Quinalt river is the boundary of Nat Park and Nat forest. I walked a dog there a while back. Its spectacularly gorgeous and the loop has been chosen because its the most beautiful part. The lake, the river, the trees are amazing. I stayed in a NF campsites around there but can’t remember how RV accessible it was (I was in a car and tenting).
Also, Klahanie and Klahowya Campgrounds are in Nat Forest and also there is Bogachiel State Park (req Discovery Pass). Haven’t been to any, but I’ve heard they are decent if not nice. But perhaps a bit large for your taste. That’s why in an earlier post I recommended Lyre, it is pretty small and out of the way.
Caveat: Other than Salt Creek area (earlier post), I haven’t been over there in quite some time. Can’t imagine its changed much though!
Hi Sue,
I hope if you’re going to Port Angeles, you take the time to really explore the Olympic National Forest area and the Sol Duc Falls. The old growth forest is mystical and magical. I don’t recall any slugs, but I was so mesmerized by my surroundings that I may have missed them. 🙂 A hike in that area makes you feel like you’re lost in a magnificent fairy tale. Breathtakingly beautiful! Hurricane Ridge offers views that are incredible. I am lucky enough to have a close friend that lived in Port Townsend and allowed me to hang out during the summer as a nice retreat from the Texas heat! I went for 3 or 4 summers in a row exploring the Olympic Peninsula. We were always getting stuck on some backroad/ logging trail and having to back out—but the adventures were awesome. The fresh coho salmon—YUM. Port Townsend and Port Angeles are both quaint towns that make for interesting browsing, sidewalk shopping and sampling of local nostalgia, but the real gem of the area is nature! I liked the Sequim- Dungenous Spit area too. The beach with all the water worn logs was worth the hike! Whatever you decide, enjoy!
Thanks, Rose. It sounds wonderful!
oh yes, RoseM …. the Dungeness Spit is a great place for a walk.
I have never seen moss like that! These are amazing pictures, but my favorite one is the sleeping dogs. The poor things look exhausted. The area is so much different from anywhere I have been. Please take lots of pictures.
Pat in KS
I’ll be sure to take lots of photos. I miss the slideshow feature. I can’t imagine a place that’s more rainforest than where we are now. It must be incredible.
Dear Sue,
I live in Sequim in a little cottage on 2/3 acre in full sunshine. You could park in my yard for as long as you want and take day trips. My neighborhood is so safe I leave my doors unlocked when I go to the store or to work. Max my golden boy would love to meet the crew.
Ilse
I’ll have to look up where Sequim is when I get back to camp and back to my glasses. Thanks for the invitation, Ilse.
Beautiful pics as always Sue. The ones of the crew passed out in their beds made me chuckle though. what a life! I’m SO jealous. 🙂
I love to see the crew so completely exhausted, deep in sleep… They do have a great life!
So green! Really amazing place…somewhere new all the time. Very nice to get to see these places through your blog!
And I’m glad you’re here so I can share it with you, Dawn.
Although I have traveled a lot in the USA, I have not been to this part of our country. It’s amazing to see your pictures of this beautiful, exotic place. Sure different from Texas! Just got my new cookbooks and spices from Amazon. Glad you are reaping the rewards from folks shopping as you surely deserve it from all the joy you bring us.
Please come on up! The joy that is Washington is a hidden pleasure. Yes, we have rain (or Washington ‘spit’ as some of us call it) but we are also blessed with clean and comfortable air, and warm people.
Hugs from Hoquiam!
Barb
You’re right about the air, Barb! So fresh. . . It’s a delight.
Thanks, Susan, for ordering Amazon through my blog. Enjoy your cookbooks!
Love the photos, they make me soooooo homesick for the PNW. Your bit about the hike and Bridget the mountain goat (who knew) blasting along when it’s time to go “home” cracked me up, I can see it in my minds eye your descriptions are so well versed.
Enjoy your time in WA and the PNW!
Hi, Mindy . . . Bridget is a great hiker. She scampers along and, oh, how thrilled she is to show us stragglers the way back home!
I love that first picture of the lush green and the bridge going over the water.
You meet the most interesting people along the way!!
Looks like you could walk into the photo and go over the bridge… I enjoy taking pics of places like that. Thanks for stopping by, Ginger.
Kalaloch campground [Olympic National Park] is usually pretty busy but it’s so darned beautiful that I go there, anyway. Usually in early October. Last October it was cool but sunny with some smoke in the air.
Kalaloch is on my list! I can’t see if I spelled it correctly. Darn! I’ll never forget my glasses ever again!
The Dungeness Valley / Sequim (“skwim”) area is quite nice because its in a rain shadow of the Olympic mountains. AND you might actually see an elk there, they are frequently near the road. (i know what youre thinking!)
Also, there are other valleys on the western side that may be a little quieter than the Hoh (which has a visitors center and major campground). The Queets and Quinalt come to mind.
Gee, I’m getting great suggestions here. I haven’t seen BigFoot yet, but I haven’t stopped looking for him and his pet elk and his leprechaun pals.
Gosh! I’m not even on the road and I was starting to hyperventilate from all the stories of drug addicts being posted here. (joke) But seriously, how many meth heads are going to be hanging around the types of places RVSue goes? Don’t get me wrong, I understand about giving cautions and taking precautions. In fact, Bob at Cheap RV Living posted something about safety for single women RVers: http://cheaprvlivingblog.com/2013/08/guest-post-safety-for-the-single-female-traveler/
I do understand that everyone is just trying to look out for Sue. We all enjoy Sue’s
“company” and want to keep her safe. It just reminded me of when some women find out another woman is pregnant and launching into all the horror birth stories they know.
With respect to the writer of the article which is helpful and well-written… I absolutely hate it when women are told to do things like put a pair of men’s boots outside their door. I find that condescending, if not downright insulting. I mean, really… Me, my entire person, with all my capabilities and intelligence, not to mention my firearm… all that is less intimidating than a pair of boots and the possibility of a man being around. Sometimes I’m embarrassed by the dependent attitudes of some women. It’s that kind of thinking that keeps women shackled by fear. We’re more powerful than a pair of boots!
Thanks, Donna, for posting the link!
I agree with your thought, but truth is the shade of the forest is a hotbed here in the pacific northwest. That and budget cuts have our area complicated, at best.
I don’t think we would admit our treasured home could be dangerous unless we were truly concerned.
Interesting point…
Donna, from your CT perspective it would seem like overkill but here in WA we have a very bad and very widespread drug [especially meth] problem and the users are desperate people. Small communities seem to have even more problems with drugs than do the cities. As I am a female who camps solo here in the PNW, I believe I’m in a position to offer realistic caveats. I’m definitely not trying to discourage her from camping in remote places. I do it myself. Just saying that Sue is not in Kansas any more, so to speak [or GA or CT].
I think mockturtle and cinandjules are in agreement.
Your last line is funny. 🙂
She really needs to keep an eye out for Bigfoots.
Bigfoot; the meth and marijuana guys; no haircuts, no baths, smelling them from a distance? We have met some of these guys, who can be pretty agressive out on the trails in the Southern Oregon Coast. The can be scary. One ran out of the woods and asked what we were doing there. Excuse me? The PNW is a beautiful area. We still camp, hike, kayak. We always aware of our surroundings and what is going on in the area. A relatively safe place to be. PS: the teeth are a dead give away.
Ah, yes… that I am doing.. Bigfoot and the elusive elk…
WOW… can you believe we are now on the road too! Rowdy has been so busy sniffing, I can relate to your waiting on Spike!
Smoking down here in the Reno area. Sure would be nice to see a few days of non stop rain to put out the fires.
Beautiful camp you have yourself, Sue. The crew sure works hard, they earned those naps.
Have fun… stay safe.
I’m so glad you are on the road, Kay! You need to drive out of the smoke and into some fresh air… Enjoy the road!
If you were to continue approx. 17 miles further along the road that got you to N. Fork cg., you would find Takhlakh Lake cg which is one of our favorites. Last 8 mi are gravel but worth it. Beautiful cg at the lake (only open until mid Sept). Walking trail around the lake; good fishing. Best of all, the most beautiful vista of Mt. Adams.
Another beautiful cg 5 mi this side of Morton is Taidnepam. Operated by Tacoma City; has sr. rates, a wonderful fishing bridge which crosses the Cowlitz River.
The Olympic Peninsula is a treasure. A little tedious to go around it but well worth the visit. I grew up in Forks; now “Twilighted” but once a thriving logging town—very interesting is the Logger’s Museum at the south edge of town. Bogachiel State Park on the Bogachiel River in nice. I grew up right acoss the river; my family owned a general store, gas station and motel on the right side after the bridge—all gone now. To get the real Rain Forest experience, visit the Hoh River Rainforest; a bit of a drive off Hwy 101 but well worth it. On the ocean try to get into Kalalock cg—beautiful! (but a little crowded). Btw–I’m a new viewer in Wapato, just retired for 2nd time on 8/29/13; heading south in 17′ Spirit Deluxe mid Oct. Love your site!
Ooh, another Casita person! Thanks for all the suggestions… so helpful!
About Mt. Adams… stay tuned! 😉
Taidnepam was closed when we were in that area, due to fire in the Goat Rocks Wilderness.
Glad you love my site…
BTW, your pictures are great! 🙂
Thanks!
AGH!!! Where is she??? Not only am I having an RV Sue withdrawal, I wanna know if she got her MAIL! Dang internet connections any-whoooo! 🙂
Hi Barb… I didn’t post yesterday because the crew and I went on a big adventure! I wrote a new post this morning and I’ll put it up as soon as I reply to comments, check my email, and see if I made any money from Amazon.
Nice to hear I’m missed . . . 🙂
Beautiful pictures, Sue.
Thanks. Glad you like the pics. I’ve been thinking of you two. Maybe we can get together when the crew and I head southward.
We will be in Port Orford for the months of October and November.
PS: the teeth are a dead give away.
Meth-heads, not Bigfoot. 😀
Hope my comments a moment ago about dog friendly places doesn’t get lost because I made it as a comment under your comment.
Anywhooo, one more suggestion, an alternative to Hurricane Ridge (which is part of the Nat Park and doesn’t allow dogs):
Deer Park. This is just east of Hurricane Ridge, but its in the Nat Forest. Heads up into the mountains from Port Angeles. Same as H.Ridge, it has amazing views of the Sound and Strait, and Mt Olympus (which can’t be seen from many places unless you’ve hiked a long way). And even if its foggy, you’d get to experience being IN the mountains instead of looking AT them.
However, you’d need to find a safe place to leave the BLT down below. Deer Park Rd is gravel a lot of the way. I loved it, but I do remember that you don’t like those kind of roads so – full disclosure – it is steep and windy, sharp turns and some times might be a teeny bit scary for some people. But hey, you can bring the dogs and see alpine wild flowers at their peak!
National Park campgrounds like Kalaloch do allow dogs, just not on the trails. I always have Bucky with me. You can walk the roads–the views are still lovely.