When we moved to Seattle, we decided to prioritize traveling along the west coast or places more accessible from the west coast, including Alaska. While I had hoped to give a great deal of thought to planning a major trip to Brian’s 50th state, complete with boat, rail and air travel so we could discover …
The last time my parents visited I spent some time on the Washington Trails Association website looking up nearby hikes. If you have any interest at all in spending time on the trail anywhere in the state, you HAVE to reference this website during your planning. It’s so well-organized, has so much great information, and …
My brother-in-law came out to visit us from Ohio and the three of us spent a long weekend in the North Cascades. Among the highlights of his visit were summiting our second mountain—Dirtyface—and traveling the North Cascades loop to show him a few of our favorite stops along the way. We crashed at our friends’ …
Continue reading Places to Stay in the Cascades: Glacier Peak Resort and Winery
We have always enjoyed spending time outdoors and have really enjoyed tackling progressively more challenging hikes since moving to the Pacific Northwest. When we moved here from Ohio, we were excited to spend more time in the mountains, which we simply didn't have the opportunity to explore back at home. What I didn't anticipate is …
We met my parents in Long Beach, Washington for a weekend of hikes, history, sandcastles, and occasional sun, and concluded our visit with a half-day adventure across the Columbia River in Astoria, Oregon. I had never been to Astoria and didn’t know what to expect. My parents picked up some tourism brochures and on one …
When my mom mentioned that there was some sort of sandcastle building competition held in Washington each year, I had a couple of reactions. First, I had a hard time believing there was a beach somewhere in the state that offered enough viable sand for this activity. While I love the rugged Pacific Northwest coast, …
Continue reading Sandcastles and Sea Views in Long Beach, Washington
There are so many things to learn when you move somewhere new, and among them is the geography. I'm guessing many people have heard of Long Beach. I certainly had. I just assumed that when people here in Washington were referring to it, they meant the one in California. In my defense, a ton of people …
Continue reading Hikes and History of Long Beach, Washington
Finding direction and purpose on the road, in the outdoors, and on the page
Finding direction and purpose on the road, in the outdoors, and on the page
Finding direction and purpose on the road, in the outdoors, and on the page
Heather's Compass 