After seeing bear prints on the ground near where we slept, we woke up peacefully, with no bears or other big creatures in sight! After dusting ourselves off and having breakfast, we continued to explore the beauty of the Olympic Peninsula. And it is stunning, with the snow-capped mountains reflecting along the crystal clear water with forest all around, making it look exactly like a scene from a postcard. There were a few people on the piers we could see, all ready to have the most tranquil day ever.
Hiking Marymere Falls
There are a few waterfall hikes in Olympic National Park, and since we couldn't take Sheila along with us, we chose the quickest one to Marymere Falls, a 2.9 kilometer (1.8 mile) round trip. From the parking lot (which was already packed!) we walked through a cool aluminum tunnel, going through ancient, gigantic trees and an old-growth forest. We loved seeing the mossy growth on these trees that often struggled to see the sun--today, we were lucky to get a beautiful sunny day as we walked up towards Marymere Falls, which splashed water from a height of about 27 meters (90 feet).
While we'd already been in Olympic National Park since yesterday, it was only after this hike that we went to the Visitor Center near Port Angeles. It's an awesome and very educational Visitor Center, detailing the whole area, including learning about all the different animals in the area, all the varieties of mushrooms that grow here, and information about the history and Native American people that lived on this land.
In Canada... Almost!
While we've decided not to go to Canada on this trip, we probably got to the closest point to it at Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge, one of the world's longest sand pits located at the northern edge of the Olympic Peninsula. The tide was out when we arrived, so there were people coming back from being out on the water, either fishing or rowing their canoe out. We didn't walk all the way to the end of the Dungeness Spit, but figured it would be fun to ride our eBikes around the neighborhood, checking out all the pretty cottages and barns.
With the quaint homes, relaxed atmosphere, blue skies, warm sun and fresh alpine air, it did feel like we were in another country! It seems that this could be a very peaceful existence for retirees or people who want a simple life, tending to their gardens and enjoying being out in nature. As if to prove our theory, we saw a couple of elderly gentlemen pedaling on a side-by-side tandem bike, and they looked like (and said they were) having an absolute blast!
A Troll-tastic Party Venue
If you're ever looking for a unique venue for a wedding, yoga retreat or business conference, Troll Haven could be for you! Further along the Olympic Peninsula in a town called Sequim is Troll Haven, which has sculptures of trolls, elves, witches, dragons, and other mythological creatures across multiple properties. One of the grandest buildings is accented in bright purple and yellow, shaped like a castle, with a driveway guarded by two bright blue fierce-looking dragons welcoming you with their intimidating scowls. Across from this, there's the Troll Haven headquarters with a dragon perched from the roof, and further down the road, there are different mythological creatures--all with very different characteristics--paving the street. We loved the randomness of it in the middle of this residential area!
While we refer to Atlas Obscura quite a bit for these unexpected and quirky stops, since the entries are crowdsourced we realize it shouldn't be our only source of information--for example, we sped past the Totem Poles of the Jamestown S'Kallam Tribe, which we would have loved to have stopped at and learned more about. If you're reading this and end up going there, you'll have to tell us about your experience! On Google Maps, we also ended up stopping at Cove RV Park, home to several funny sculptures including a Sasquatch made of random pieces, and what's apparently the world's largest pile of giant clams. We haven't been able to verify otherwise!
The Closest Place to Norway
As there wasn't much more to see on the road we were on, we went slightly back on ourselves, driving until we left the Olympic Peninsula and arrived in Norway. Yes, the town of Poulsbo felt as authentic to Norway as we would imagine (although neither of us have been there). Sure, there were Norwegian flags everywhere (which probably wouldn't be as authentic), but the stores and restaurants were all very Scandinavian!
We had parked next to American Legion Park for the evening, but it was still very hot, so Lisette and Sheila went for a walk along the park, which led to a boardwalk, which then ended up leading to the center of Poulsbo! Lisette was in awe of the waterfront marina, the viking statue, the Scandinavian restaurants and cafes overlooking the water, and the stores selling baked goods to Scandinavian candy. We'll be exploring it more tomorrow!
Route Map
