Day 5

This day we decided to take some time and go through Stanley Park. Up to this point I wasn't really sure what I thought of Vancouver. The traffic was horrible and really nothing had been too special about it. But, Stanley Park changed this perception. We drove through the park from place to place. We stopped to look at gardens, hike trails in the forest, and hike trails by the ocean and along beaches. We saw a pair of Bald Eagles fly into some tall pine trees and we sat and waited for almost an hour for them to move again, but they refused to put on a show for us. We saw an otter on a rock munching on something crunchy. Raccoons, swans, and black squirrels were some of the other wildlife we saw along the way. This park is truly an amazing place in Vancouver.

Day 4

Finally crossed into another country for the first time in my life! We drove into Canada and went right through the heart of Vancouver and over Lions Gate Bridge. Traffic was a lot like driving in San Francisco during rush hour. It took a long time to get through the city and half of the streets are straight or right only, no left turns. Oh, the green lights flash! That made it hard to drive because the whole time we were trying to figure out why they were blinking. After the Lions Gate Bridge, we ended up in a middle lane that changes direction with the flow of rush hour. Green lights above the lane let us know if we were allowed to travel in it or not. I know we have those in the US also, but I had never actually seen one until going into Canada.

Our first event for this day was going to the Capilano Suspension Bridge. We spent a few hours hanging out there. The bridge was okay. I doubt I'd go through the trouble of going there again. Although, it was interesting and kept us busy for the day. The bridge itself is over a gorge and is 450 feet long and 230 feet high. We tried to cross with bridge without using our hands to hold the rail, but because there were so many people walking across it as the same time, the whole bridge swayed and trying to keep our balance was nearly impossible without holding on. The height of the bridge didn't really bother me much. Maybe I'll have to try skydiving to get my heart racing.

The next adventure was to again cross the Lions Gate Bridge into Vancouver and make our way to Stanley Park for the 2008 HSBC Celebration of Lights. Basically, this was a 30 minute firework competition. That night was Canada's night. We found our way into Stanley Park and found a great place off to the side of the crowds to watch the show. We arrived fairly early and had a few hours to kill. We walked around very briefly just to get an idea of where we were. We ended up just North of the English Bay (which is where the firework show was being performed out in the ocean). The beach directly in the English Bay was crowded. Since we were off to the side, we were not in the mist of the crowd. The spot where we sat was perfect. We were able to hear the music the fireworks were set to and we still had a great view of the show right in front of us (the barge was the base for the fireworks). It was probably the most amazing firework show I've ever seen.

That night, it took us a long while to get back over the boarder to stay in Bellingham again. We stayed there for practical reasons. Number one being that it was a lot cheaper to stay there. Between the firework show and the Pemberton festival, most of the hotels were sold out or very expensive. Driving back to Bellingham saved us some money, but the drive through the heart of Vancouver, especially after the fireworks, took a long time.

Day 3

Day three was just crazy. Way too much to see. We first went along the Columbia River Gorge. We saw waterfalls there and visited the Vista House. We hiked to a few of the waterfalls, which ended up being way too much walking. If I ever go back I want to spend a whole day hiking there.

Next was Mount St. Helens. We went up the less traveled East side of the mountain. We saw a few Elk on the way up. I didn't get any pictures, they moved behind the bushes too quick. We made our way up to St. Helens and stopped everywhere we could. The road wasn't open all the way into the East side. It stopped at that first viewing point. It was still a neat experience. The pine trees seem never ending and cover every space as they go up the mountain and into the valleys below.

The last place to see this day was Mount Rainier National Park. The drive into the park is beautiful. Cliffs on the side drop deep with a river at the bottom. The road weaves through the mountains (reminds me of home). There was one place where the trees were snapped off and all around this river. We believe this much be a place where an avalanche occurred. There was also a river near the end of the park that can only be described as massive during the winter months. I can hardly imagine the small river we saw flooding those river banks. And, it was at this point that I became extremely happy that I had decided to get a National Parks Pass. The whole time we were driving today it was overcast. It rained very little and it kept the temperatures down during our hikes. But, it was foggy at Mount Rainier. We went through the whole park and never caught a glimpse of the top of the mountain. So, next week we are going back to another portion of the park and hopefully we will actually see it next time.

That night we decided to drive to Bellingham, which is about 60 miles away from the US/Canada border.

Day 2

Day two we spent exploring Crater Lake National Park. We spent most of the day there and went around the entire lake. The blue of the lake is amazing. I've never seen blues this color. And, the reflections off the top of the lake are something I've never seen. It's like a mirror reflection off the top of the water. The lake even takes on the different colors that it's reflecting. It's so beautiful all the way around. After that we went to Watson Falls and then we spent the night with some family in Corvallis.

Day 1

We drove about 765 miles from home to Klamath Falls, OR. There wasn't a whole lot to see most of the way. Mostly farms. oranges, lemons, corn, hay, strawberries, grapes, citrus, and few others that I couldn't tell for sure what they were. The scenery changed once we got by Shasta. It's really pretty there.

Testing out pictures...

Okay, so I was just testing out the pictures button and making sure I knew how to add pictures to my blog. I plan to add them as I go on my trip so that you all can see what I've been up to :) So, this is me, taking pictures with my webcam. 6 days until I leave and I'm soooooo excited!

8 More Days!!!

Eight more days until I leave for Canada. Here's an outline of my trip so far.

Day #1: The plan is to leave Sunday, July 20th, and make it all the way to Oregon that first day.

Day #2: This day will be spent seeing Crater Lake National Park and finding some waterfalls along highway 138. Hopefully we will spend that night with some family in Corvallis, OR.

Day #3 The plan is to first be spent along the Columbia River Gorge (where there are a ton of waterfalls). Here's a link of one of the waterfalls I want to see most: http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/columbia/millennium2/welcome.htm After that is Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier National Park. That night will be spent in the Seattle area.

Day #4 The first thing on the list for this day is another waterfall. It's awesome enough that it deserves to be mentioned and here's a link: http://www.waterfallsnorthwest.com/nws/waterfall.php?st=&num=185 I will be spending the day in Vancouver. That night there is a firework show call the HSBC Celebration of Lights. Here's a link: http://www.celebration-of-light.com/Event-Information/ I will also probably be going to Capilano Suspension Bridge; which is a foot bridge 450 feet long and 230 feet high. Here's a link to that: http://www.capbridge.com/explore_vancouver_park/capilano_suspension_bridge.html

Day #5 is still up in the air.

Day #6 This day will be spent traveling up to Pemberton. There are a couple waterfalls to see along the way. The music festival also starts in the afternoon this day. The next few days will be spent between Whistler and Pemberton.

While I know everything else I want to do, it isn't all planned out by days after that. I'll give you all an update when I finally figure it all out. I'm so excited to get going. There has been so many hours of planning put into this trip and now I can't wait to go!