We left Vancouver and crossed back into the continental US two and a half months after departing Helena, Montana. The border crossing was uneventful and the drive to Seattle relatively short compared to the six thousand seven hundred miles we had traveled in the RV since leaving the US (and that doesn’t include travel in the Jeep).
Jane’s cousin Donna lives in Tacoma so we met up with Donna and her husband Marty for lunch and a train ride a few days later on the Mt. Ranier Railroad.
Jane and her cousin Donna WortiskaJane and Dave with Jane’s cousin-in-law (?) Marty WortiskaJane, Donna, Marty and Dave on the trainJane and Donna ready to roll.Mt. Rainier
Geocaching Headquarters, Seattle, Washington
Seattle is Washington State’s largest city. It is located on Puget Sound and is home to a large tech industry (Microsoft and Amazon are two companies headquartered there) and a 1962 World’s Fair legacy, the futuristic Space Needle. The attraction that Dave most wanted to see was Geocaching Headquarters in the Fremont neighborhood. We were cordially greeted and invited to explore the exhibits, given a trackable Headquarters Geocoin, and encouraged to take pictures. We left trackables that we had collected on our travels and completed a geotour of the surrounding neighborhood. Lots of fun!
Yes, Dave is a Travel Bug.A piece of the Berlin WallThe troll under the bridge.
Olympia, Washington – The State Capital
Olympia became the capital city of the Washington Territory in 1853, and the city’s founder Edmund Sylvester donated 12 acres of land to the legislature for the building of a capitol. Construction began but poor economic conditions halted construction with only the foundation completed. The legislature met in a variety of buildings and locations until planning, funding, and construction of a new capitol was completed in 1928, 75 years later. The capitol has a campus of buildings including the legislative building for legislative and executive offices, the Temple of Justice for the Washington Supreme Court, buildings for several state agencies, and the Governor’s Mansion. Doric and Corinthian columns decorate the interior and exterior and the lamps and decorative fixtures were designed and built by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The 10,000-pound chandelier above the rotunda is 25 feet tall and could fit a Volkswagen in it. The State Seal featured throughout the building and on the state flag was designed by an Olympia jeweler by making two circles and putting a U.S. two-cent stamp of George Washington in the middle.
The dome of the legislative building is 275 feet tall. The exterior is faced with Washington limestone.The Insurance Building next door houses offices for financial management, auditing and insurance.The State Supreme Court meets in the Temple of Justice.Under the RotundaLooking up 175 feet to the top of the interior dome in the rotundaTiffany firepot. The Capitol has the largest collection of Tiffany bronze in the world.The state reception area. The interior of the Capitol is faced with marble from Alaska and Europe.Doric and Corinthian columns are used inside and outside the building.The State Seal under the rotunda.The State SealTiffany designed the lighting fixtures including this 25-foot chandelier. The House chamber Senate ChamberSenate Gallery
Mt. Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier National Park, established in 1899, is a 369 square mile state reserve surrounding glacier-capped 14,410 foot Mount Rainier. The mountain is a large active stratovolcano 60 miles south east of Seattle. We had a beautiful clear day of driving, hiking, and sightseeing.
More snow falls on Mount Rainier than anyplace else in the lower 48.Twenty-five glaciers, approximately 36 square miles of ice, make Mount Rainier’s glacial system the largest in the lower 48.Narada Falls on the Paradise River
Active glaciers grind rock into fine powder called glacial flour that gives the milky appearance to the streams.
I love the blog and all of the great pictures and history. You and Dave are looking great. I miss seeing you two. Jane someday please show me how to do a blog, although it looks like a lot of work. I sure miss you two.
Thank you, Susan. We very much appreciate your comments. The blog host we use makes it pretty simple to do an entry. Organizing what we’re going to post takes us a while–sorting pictures, figuring out what we did when, and identifying subject matter in the pictures. We miss you, too. Maybe we can meet up on the road before too long?
August 4, 2022 Vermont’s oldest geocache was closer to our campground near Albany, New York than our campground near Montpelier, Vermont so we treated it separately from other Vermont geocaches. Besides, it was harder to Read more…
2 Comments
Susan · May 4, 2019 at 3:38 pm
I love the blog and all of the great pictures and history. You and Dave are looking great. I miss seeing you two. Jane someday please show me how to do a blog, although it looks like a lot of work. I sure miss you two.
Jane Appel · May 5, 2019 at 7:41 pm
Thank you, Susan. We very much appreciate your comments. The blog host we use makes it pretty simple to do an entry. Organizing what we’re going to post takes us a while–sorting pictures, figuring out what we did when, and identifying subject matter in the pictures. We miss you, too. Maybe we can meet up on the road before too long?