The Peninsula

from Ben's mom

Sunday, our church was cancelled due to a youth convention and so we took the opportunity to enjoy the Northwest summer and see more of the peninsula. We headed west and drove up the western branch of 101 (there are two at this point) into a vast no-man's land. When you live in the very populated part of the state it is hard to fathom a land with no Starbucks, no flush toilets, and a dilapidated gas station every 40 miles.

It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm, until about 5 minutes before we reached our intended destination: Ruby Beach. My midwife had told me about this remote beach and mentioned starfish and anemones (never found any) and a beautiful beach. I pictured warm sun, sand, a beach blanket and a nap. We found a very rocky beach with lots of logs and large rocks. This made the men in my family very happy. One likes to throw rocks (in the water, at other rocks, anywhere) and the other likes to climb them. So even in the fog (and despite the 20 degree temperature drop), they were very content.

Unfortunately, the pregnant mom found the lack of "real" bathrooms a disturbance, no picnic tables, no sand, and no sun not to her liking. So we played for an hour or so and then ate our lunch on the back of the car, and altered our plan. We continued to drive north to the top of the Peninsula. It was again only 5 minutes before the sun popped out again and the temperature shot back up again.

The funny thing about the Peninsula is the extreme weather patterns. We passed within a few miles of the Hoh Rain Forest (Washington has the only rain forests in the continental US), and the town of Forks, Washington which gets more rain than any other town in Washington. And yet, within an hour we were in beautiful Pt. Angeles, which is in the Sunbelt of Washington, where it rains very little. (And thus, has attracted a burgeoning community of retirees.)

In Pt. Angeles, there was a very small sandy beach where Ben played and I soaked up the sun. We watched crabs off the pier and stretched our legs, before hopping in the car and heading south and back home.

Ben did very well in the car and gave us encouragement that he is ready for some further travel. He napped, read books, doodled, and listened to music. M and I love road trips; I usually read to him, and it gives us a chance to converse about things without being in a hurry.

10 hours and 350 miles later (and yes, you're right K, about $40 in gas later) we arrived home exhausted for a late dinner.