2014 Big Truck across the NW, Day 10

Waking up in Mt. Ranier NP has been the best morning so far. Great sleeping weather (52deg), the rushing river within earshot, and the feeling of being somewhere expansive & remote.

As we started packing up, we became a bit more self aware - not only were we the only motorhome in loop D, but we had also only see one other travel trailer/motorhome in the entire campground. We would notice this more throughout the day. This park is what I would have loved back in the motorcycle trip days - rustic and undeveloped enough to keep the giant uber-tourists away, and yet here we are.

There was no room to hook up the jeep in the campground, so we headed out separately until I could find a spot to pull off. This is quite possibly the most scenic location I've ever hooked up a tow vehicle.

We drove what felt like 100 miles through 15mph switchbacks to get up to the Sunrise visitors center for a 6400' view of the mountain.

When we walked over to the visitors center, we of course found it closed. Then we saw Walter White and Jesse Pinkman come walking out, which couldn't be good. If you don't know who that is, quit your job and binge-watch Breaking Bad right now.

On the way down from Sunrise (which would be more aptly named Late Morning Several Hours After Sunrise When We Feel Like Opening), we got this view...

...followed by a drive that felt like the Tilt-a-Whirl run by a carnie with a bad OxyContin habit (again, are there any other kind?). At one point one of the dips actually lifted the driver's side front tire off the ground, prompting this internal reaction.

Coming through another small town on the way out of the park, we encountered these guys

Followed by 4-5 stragglers from the same group. The license plates said Pebble Beach Motoring Classic, so I assume we just rolled by $10 million worth of old cars. I like to think they were all saying 'Did you see that sweet RV just go past? Badass...'

The route from Ranier to Seattle is basically the equivalent of driving down 44th street in Grandville for 3 hours. On the way we decided to check out a brewery in Tacoma. Big mistake. Tacoma's city planners have made it such that if you are driving a Prius, you are welcome there. Anything larger and you will not be parking. We got a whirlwind tour while cursing their downtown infrastructure, but did see some Lombard-esque hills, some cable cars, 

and this guy. If the length of your braided tassel is some sort of status symbol, this dude's going places.

Sweet helmet stickers - check. Useless vest - check. Highway pegs for maximum poser stance - check. Watching him get the tassel caught between his foot and the peg, thus jerking the handlebars and almost causing him to go down brought me an unreasonable amount of joy.

Once we aborted mission on the Tacoma plan, we set our sights on 7 Seas brewing in Gig Harbor, WA. This place had an odd vibe at first - sharing a strip mall with a grocery store. Once we got close, the rest of the place was cool.

We asked a bunch of questions, learned a lot about their business, and happily discovered that they brew something other than mega-IPAs, which the west coast has become infatuated with. Our sampler...

Back on our way, we made it up to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and started to see freighters larger than anything we had ever seen. No great photo ops, but I got this later after the fog subsided. You can see a couple way out on the horizon. You can also see the mountains in Vancouver on the left, which may or may not be just giant piles of loonies.

This park's playground game is strong, but right next to it are these guys

completely unfazed by screaming kids or their impending doom hidden in the creepy fog.

Also in this park are a set of WWII era bunkers that used to house artillery meant to defend the Strait. Jordan and I went exploring and found some cool hideouts.

We also got a great view of the bay beyond,

as well as some crashing waves down by the tide pools

and another great sunset.

Our phones and internet are convinced we are in Canada, so we are fully anticipating having to spend 45 hours on the phone with Verizon to dispute an $800 bill soon. Great scam they have going.

Off to Seattle tomorrow, more to follow.