Olympic National Park: The First Stop on the Move to Silicon Valley
Day one of the relocation road trip started with a stop for Top Pot and an early morning ferry ride from Edmonds to the Olympic Peninsula. The cold, wet, and dreary Seattle early spring weather matched my sadness at saying goodbye to the beautiful place we’d called home for the last six years.
Following the ferry ride, I took a slow and damp drive into Olympic National Park. I stopped at the visitor center in Port Angeles where a very helpful volunteer gave me an incredibly detailed itinerary. It was clearly designed for someone with much more time than I actually had! 🤣
With rain still falling, I headed toward the Hoh Rain Forest by way of the beautiful Lake Crescent area in hopes of the promised afternoon clearing.
No trip through Olympic National Park is complete without a drive through Forks, so I pulled off to see Bella’s truck and took a quick shopping trip through Forks Outfitters. It is a surprisingly well stocked store. I considered doing a full Twilight tour, but I decided to stick to my route to the rain forest instead.
Mother Nature was on my side because the rain stopped the moment I pulled into the parking area at the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center. A meander through the Hall of Mosses was the perfect way to stretch my legs after hours spent in the car. I took more time than might be considered normal while I marveled at the kaleidoscope of greens and yellows through the forest.
After spending hours among trees that looked as though they were imagined by Dr. Seuss, I climbed back into the truck to continue toward my final destination for the night. I had been dreaming of staying at Aliya Preserve ever since stumbling across the listing online. The tiny home was completely immersed in nature and felt like the perfect place to spend my final night in Washington.
After settling in, I walked the path down to a secluded beach lined with driftwood as far as the eye could see. I was captivated by a shoreline so very different from the beaches back home. In perfect timing, the clouds began to break and blue sky appeared to offer the promise of a sunset. I made the difficult decision to return to the pod to make dinner and clean up for the night as I prepped for tomorrow’s adventure. Even from there, the sunset was no less beautiful as it shone through the trees of the preserve.
As I watched the sun set behind the trees of the preserve, I felt the first real spark of excitement for what lies ahead. Day one of this journey was a beautiful reminder of why we fell in love with this corner of the world, and it provided the perfect way to say goodbye to Washington. While I am leaving a piece of my heart behind among the evergreens, I know this is a place we will return to again.
