Seattle on my Mind

Posted on July 18, 2012. Filed under: Uncategorized |

Hello! I landed back in reality on Monday and have since been playing catch up both at work and in life (aka I still have yet to make it to the grocery store). I managed to survive the past four weekends in a row traveling to four different weddings. They were all so different and all so much fun but man, I am exhausted. I actually kind of feel like I’m coming down with something and am trying to ward it off with rest and lots of liquids. Here’s hoping it doesn’t bloom into full blown sickness.

But, back to this past weekend in Washington!

I hopped an early flight out of Baltimore that flew direct to Seattle, WA. I met up with friends when we landed and we headed to the brand new rental car facility and picked up our elegant Chevy Impala. I love renting a car because you get the idea of owning a new car, even if just for a few days. It reminded me of my Chevy Malibu but was MUCH nicer. We started our journey out to Lake Crescent, WA which first included a ferry ride from Seattle to Bainbridge. The ferry was huge and I had to remind myself that some people use it every day to commute to work. So different from D.C.!

After our ferry ride we hit the road for a 2.5 hour drive that went through Seqium and Port Angeles. We unfortunately hit a really big storm and with all the one lane roads, our drive was slow and wet. When we arrived at NatureBridge (the campsite where we were staying) the sun was shining and the lake was absolutely stunning. I’ve never seen such a beautiful lake. The water was the perfect blue/green and it was surrounded by huge mountains covered in trees. It was so peaceful.

NatureBridge consisted of a main house and then smaller cabins. It was a simple set up and the perfect location for a small wedding because it was very easy to find everything.

Main house

Friday night kicked off with the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner – both of which I wasn’t a part of so I spent time meeting some of the West coast folks and enjoying some dinner outside. It was fantastic. Everyone from the rehearsal dinner came out to the lawn and we all mixed and mingled, enjoying beverages and sitting down by the lake. Later in the night a bonfire was lit and s’mores were made. It was such a great welcome to the state of Washington and such a wonderful start to the wedding weekend.

Saturday morning started nice and early with a very cold dip into the lake. All of my friends suited up and plunged into the 50 degree water for a brisk wake up (and hangover cure) to start the day. The water was very cold when we first jumped in but it was very invigorating and absolutely gorgeous. A group of us then headed up to Hurricane Ridge which was about a 1.5 hour drive from NatureBridge. Most of the drive was spent winding up a mountain. And here is what we saw when we reached the top….

Just taking in the view.

We did a mini hike around the top of the mountain reaching an even higher peak and it was truly amazing. I loved being outdoors and experiencing the beauty of another part of the country. After taking in all we could, we headed back down the mountain for bagel sandwiches in Port Angeloes and then started our trek back to NatureBridge.

When we had left that morning there was no running water at the camp and luckily when we arrived back, an hour before the wedding, the water was up and running once more. PHEW!

The rest of the night was filled with more fun from dancing, cake cutting, bonfires and more. It was such a wonderful wedding and I loved every minute of it.

On Sunday we started the trip back to Seattle to do some exploring there. I was staying the night in Seattle and taking an 11:15am flight back the next day so I was trying to get in as much sight-seeing as I could in that time frame. We hit the streets of Seattle and first went to the Pike Place Market.