Day 5

Today we took the ferry to Vancouver Island in Canada. We landed at Sydney and drove around there a little bit. Then we headed for Victoria. We found a parking place and got out the chair and headed for an underwater aquarium. We then walked around the harbor and bought a few cool souvenirs.

We ate the sandwiches we had made and headed to check into our motel. Not the best, but the cheapest, place to stay. We rested for a few minutes and headed for Butchart Gardens. It looked like rain so we took our jackets and an umbrella. We also took the chair, but were hoping they would have motorized wheel chairs to rent as there are lots of major hills. We didn’t see anywhere to rent them so we ventured out. It was gorgeous. It was originally a hole left from digging out limestone so you begin by looking down into a massive garden. We spent hours there and really enjoyed the beauty. It started raining lightly, but we had our rain jackets so we were fine. We ate some more chowder and a salmon salad and went back to view the gardens some more. We did some shopping. I was dead tired by the time we got out of there. We had been there four hours. We headed back to our room and immediately to bed.

Day 4

Today we packed up and headed to Mitchell Bay for our kayaking excursion. There were six of us in three kayaks. We saw eagles and seals as we headed out into the ocean. We had taken our rain gear, but it stayed dry while we were out on the water. It was a three hour excursion and quite the workout. When we returned, it was no easy task getting out of the kayaks.

We then headed for Roche Harbor. We walked around and found a place to have lunch overlooking the boats and harbor. We had a fresh shrimp and Northwest clam chowder. It was wonderful.

We returned to Friday Harbor and went to a whale museum. Patty got an ice-cream cone, but I was too tired to eat. We returned to our camp and had another wonderful night’s sleep in the cool air of our canvas cabin.

Day 3

Today we took the ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. We drove around the island and viewed various beaches. We went to Lime Kiln where there is a lighthouse. We got out the transport chair to go down to see the ocean. It was a dirt path with lots of rocks. We sat there and watched the water for awhile. Everyone was looking for orcas. After awhile we ventured back up --which was no easy task. When we got to the top the park ranger told us we needed to go back down as the whales had been spotted. She showed us an easier way down. I took Patty down and ran back up to get the camera. Then they started coming. We were all excited to see them. We made it back up with a little help. People are so nice and always offering to help with the transport chair.

We spent the night in our canvas cabin. We built a fire and roasted hotdogs for chili dogs and marshmallows. It rained all night, but we were cozy and warm in our tent.

Day 2

Today we drove across Washington in a northwesterly direction. We began in the desert, went through miles of cherry orchards and wine vineyards, and ended driving through part of the loop through the Cascades. The terrain today was very beautiful as we followed the Columbia River for many miles. We are spending the night in Anacortes where we just finished having a wonderful dinner with fresh shrimp and salmon.

Day 1 of 2011 Trip

This morning we left about 6:30. We drove through Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. None of them were green like the Utah we left. We are staying in the tri-city area in the city of Richland. There are also three rivers that meet here-the Columbia, Yakima, and Snake. For dinner we bought Subway sandwiches and took them to a park on the Columbia to eat. It was very pleasant as it was overcast. I then took Patty for a ride in her transport chair along the river. It was very nice and peaceful.