Seattle - A Pair of Daytrips

I made it home from Seattle last night, but my bags are still on vacation. Hopefully they'll turn up soon. First, thank you to everyone who offered advice on my first Seattle post. You shared such wonderful advice that we could have been kept busy for months. It's a shame that I only had ten days to take it all in.

In the spirit of repaying your generosity, I'd like to share two more Seattle posts about places we loved and the things that we did. In the first of these, I'd like to show you Washington's gems that are reachable in day trips from Seattle.

Day Trip 1 - The Mountains and the Gorge

Our first day trip took us on a massive 400 mile loop around Washington's mountains. We hired a small rental car from Budget, but found ourselves manning a massive SUV as we navigated southwest from Seattle around Mount Rainier. The day started misty, and we thought we might miss this towering giant. Luckily for us as we passed through sasquatch country, the sky lifted and all we took in all 14,400 feet of Mt Rainier. 

We weren't equipped for hiking, so we decided to venture further down the road to Mount Saint Helens. Although I was only seven when she last erupted, I still remember that the ash traveled all the way to our small town in Illinois. We could have ended the trip there and spent time at the information center, but I urged Craig to keep on going. Frankly, I might have been the world's most annoying navigator urging him to go, go, go; but constantly interrupting the trip to see vistas and wildflowers. Luckily, he loves me and is used to my strange touring habits.

We decided to keep heading south. A friend had mentioned that the Columbia River Gorge is a hotspot for kiteboarding. If we lived in the area, we'd undoubtedly travel down often. In Stevenson, we found the kiters along with some guys trying out Flyboard hydro jets. I think Craig has a small pang of regret that he'd left his kite back in Sydney, but we had plenty more road ahead of us. If we make it back to Seattle or get to visit Portland, a return to Kite Beach will be a must.

If you find yourself near Stevenson, make the detour to The Big River Grill. Superlatives can be dangerous, but I'm going to risk it and tell you that I had the best ribs that I've ever eaten. I can't believe I had the good fortune of finding tender ribs, baked beans and jalapeno corn bread on the specials menu. You wouldn't expect it in a small town, but The Big River Grill delivers big city quality.  Since I wasn't the designated driver, I paired those ribs with a local IPA. Talk about heaven.

After visiting the Gorge, we looped back to Seattle via the major highways. We crashed into bed exhausted and happy.

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Day Trip 2 - Bainbridge Island

If a massive drive isn't your style and you still want to see the best of Washington's countryside, then you might like a day trip to Bainbridge Island via the Seattle-Bainbridge Ferry. I had repeatedly been told that I must take a ferry trip in Seattle. 'Take a trip anywhere, it doesn't matter', they said. From the moment that I stepped on the boat, I knew I'd made a good decision.

As we left dock near Seattle Great Wheel, I was all smiles. The Seattle-Bainbridge ferry accommodates both car and pedestrian traffic. As Craig was working, I opted for a solo adventure on foot. With little in the way of plans and not quite sure what I'd find when I got there, I was Bainbridge Island bound.

Although I kept my fabric habit in check for most of the trip, I'll admit that a visit to Pink Chalk Fabrics' shipping headquarters was the reason that I picked Bainbridge Island. I always look forward to blog posts and newsletters from Pink Chalk. They have such a huge range of modern fabrics, basics and patterns. I find their what goes with what and what we're sewing posts inspiring. Pink Chalk isn't a brick-and-mortar shop, but they let me pop in for a visit.

I pinched the photo from the Pink Chalk site because we had quite the giggles as we ran into place using the camera timer. I don't think we'd have managed a second run with my own camera. Hence the massive wrinkles in my shirt! Kathy and I were booking across the floor to make this happen.  Every single one of these gals were amazing, and I giggled at each sentence. I'm pretty sure at some point during the conversation, they all had decided to pack their suitcases and visit Australia. Come on over gals, we'd love to have you!

Needless to say, I bought some great fabrics including some linens for bag making and baskets. I picked up a pattern or two, and gathered up some notions for a friend. I'd love to show you, but it's all lost... in my luggage... which isn't in Sydney.  Hawaiian Airlines, please don't fail me now.

I'm sure most readers already send online orders their way, but after a visit I'm definitely inclined to push you to shop with Pink Chalk Fabrics. They have good stuff; but more importantly, they are good people.

If you are going to Bainbridge Island, there is another terrific fabric stop at Esthers Fabrics which is in the main town near the ferry terminal. Esthers also stocks modern fabrics for both craft and apparel sewing.  Of course, there's more to the island than fabric...

As I mentioned, I was traveling on foot. When the ferry landed, I opted for a bus to the woodland surrounds of Pink Chalk. It was such a beautiful day though, that I decided I really needed to explore more of Bainbridge. So I set off on a two and a half mile stroll back to downtown. I'm pleased as punch with that decision.

Woodlands, wildflowers and tree-lined remote suburbs offered me amazing views along the way. The locals of Bainbridge Island are truly blessed with their surrounds. After grabbing a bite to eat, I hopped back on the ferry and returned to downtown Seattle. 

As you can see, I had on my happiest face. It was a day trip well worth it.

Do you live somewhere that has amazing day trips like these?  I think I'd be chucking a sickie at least once a week. I'll pop back tomorrow to let you know what I got up to in the city itself. Seattle, folks. It's good stuff.