Rialto Beach

Our last stop in Washington was Rialto Beach. We were amazed by the huge pieces of driftwood and all the colorful stones.

We hiked along the beach for a mile and a half until we reached Hole in the Wall and the tide pools. Hole in the Wall is literally a hole in a rock that you can go through during low tide.

There were many tide pools and it was fun to look for creatures in them.

We enjoyed walking along the Pacific Ocean, some of us for the first time! :)

The Hoh Rainforest

We were curious to see what a temperate rainforest looks like. It's the dry season, so it wasn't as green as it is in the rainy season, but we saw huge trees delicately draped with moss.

We had the opportunity to go on a ranger-led hike where we learned about the rainforest and its trees and plants.

And then we also hiked along the Hoh River, which is so blue, because of glacial flour.

And we even saw another black bear!

The Dungeness Spit

The Dungeness Spit is a narrow strip of sand, stone, and driftwood that sticks out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It is also a wildlife refuge, and there is a lighthouse at the end of the spit, 5 miles out. We didn't have time to go the whole way out, but we still loved walking along the beach at golden hour, as the sun was setting.

Seattle

One of our days in Washington we went across a ferry into Seattle! On the way across we ate lunch and enjoyed seeing the Seattle skyline with the Space Needle and Mt. Ranier, which is over 14,000 feet.

Once we arrived in Seattle we walked to the Waterfall Garden, a nice rest from the city streets.

After walking around looking at the tall skyscrapers we stopped at Starbucks for a fun treat before heading back home.

Hurricane Ridge

After the Grand Tetons we headed to Olympic National Park! And we were so thankful to stay at Renita's great-aunt and uncle's house, after camping for a week.

On Saturday we rested and then went to Olympics's visitor center and Hurricane Ridge.

Our whole family happened to be wearing blue that day. :)

The 180 degree view of the snow-capped mountains was grand.

Beautiful lavender at the house we stayed at.

Animals in the Grand Tetons

On the hike around the lake we saw a cinnamon black bear and its two cubs! One of them climbed the tree with ease.

A woodpecker and a marmot 

A mother moose

And its adorable baby

The Grand Tetons

After our time in Cody and Yellowstone we headed toward the Grand Tetons.

The snow capped mountains were breathtaking.

While we were there we visited a Mormon settlement which had supposedly the most photographed barn in the U.S. We understood why, with those Tetons in the background!

We also hiked around Jenny Lake

To Hidden Falls and the Lower Inspiration Point. The weather was rainy off and on but we still had a great time hiking. One time during a ten minute hail storm we sheltered under a trail sign with a roof!