Oregon/Washington Road Trip: Days 4 & 5

Day 4 we were heading from Albany, OR to Port Townsend, WA.  But we couldn't pass up Portland without trying some hole-some {see what I did there?} goodness from Voodoo Doughnut!

Doughnuts & that is it!

Box of yumminess!

Gary got the Old Dirty Bastard {it had Oreo on top and was drizzled with peanut butter}

And my taste buds enjoyed a Portland Cream.  We bought the rest for my family to enjoy.  I am NOT a doughnut person....I can walk by a box of them without trying to inhale that special doughnut smell.  So let me tell you, these doughnuts were VERY good!

We then spent some time in Powell's City of Books.  To be honest, I didn't have as much fun as I thought I would.  This place is huge and a bit too overwhelming for me.  Maybe because I knew we didn't have too much time, I felt anxious, but at least I can say I've been there!

We walked through Portland for about an hour then had to get back in the car and drive for a few more hours.

Oh, Washington, how we have missed you!  Gary & I have a 5-10 year plan that includes moving to Washington State.  Each time we have been, our souls feel at peace.  This trip reinforced that WA is where we want to call home by the time we hit our mid 40's.  

We stayed with my Aunt Vickie & her husband Michael in Port Townsend.  What a great community!

Our first few hours there and we were impressed by their automobiles. ;-)

It was a bit too chilly that first night, but still gorgeous.

SHORTY!! This dog cracked me up the whole time we were in Port Townsend.

The next day was the 4th of July and MUCH sunnier, so Michael took Gary downtown while Vickie and I went grocery shopping and got ready for a BBQ later that day.

When the guys got back, we headed over to my cousin Lisa's home for a festive BBQ.

I thought he was going to bite my arm.

If you are going to read ONE portion of this blog post, let this be it.

See this house below???  Well, my cousin and her husband designed it themselves.

Oh, and THEY BUILT IT!  Not like "we hired someone to build it for us" built it, but actually built it all themselves.  I am 153% serious when I say that you can feel their love in every beam, window, door, etc. that is a part of that house.

I am in awe of how awesome they are for being able to do this!

They also have the biggest dog I've ever met, Argus.  

Yup, I'm drinking out of a mason jar.  That's how I roll!

We were spoiled with a tasty BBQ and met a bunch of their family who were so kind to include us in their lives for a day.

After that we headed to Fort Worden for a hike and {later} a fireworks show.  Fort Worden was where "An Officer and a Gentleman" was filmed.

Me & my cousin, Lisa

Lisa's daughter, Rosie, Lisa, and my Aunt Vickie.

Stars and Stripes Forever

Gorgeous view

The moon was extra amazing on the 4th.

We didn't get to bed until almost midnight on the 4th and had to wake up at 6am the next morning to meet Gary's family, but we had the best 4th of July in a long time!

Oregon/Washington Road Trip: Days 2 & 3

We woke up early on Day 2 and said goodbye to Medford and hit the road to Albany.

On the way, we did took a scenic road to see where it would lead.

I am in love with covered bridges!

We were getting hungry and wanted to eat by the water, so we entered a State Park and when Gary told the guy we just wanted to eat lunch and leave, he was VERY nice and let us go through.  Gary - always connecting with people through the love of food.  ;-)

Our last stop was the WAAAAAY other side of where we ate lunch!  When no one is there to take your picture, take your own!  #MoLaw

About 4pm, we made it to our hotel, Phoenix Inn.  Once again, not the Hilton, but VERY nice.  King size bed with a living area separated by a half wall.  Gary's favorite part?  Seattle's Best coffee served ALL day long!  My husband as been on a caffeine kick since the minute we checked in.

Day 3 was the day we got to sleep in {is it sad that 7:30 is sleeping in to me?}!!

After a filling breakfast, we got ready and headed out for another day of adventure.

Our first stop was Mount Angel, a cute town with Bavarian flair!

How cute is their City Hall???

Next stop was Silverton, where we wanted to check out another covered bridge.  No thanks to a horrible map we had on us, we got lost, so we stopped in the museum/help center, where the nicest lady helped us out.

I am glad we got lost, because as we were leaving the office, we heard water running, so we went to check it out.

I am so jealous that these people have a river right behind them!

AND they have this gorgeous park within walking distance.

We finally got to the bridge, which is the oldest covered bridge in Oregon and the only one you can still drive through.

One thing we saw a TON of today was CHRISTMAS TREES!!!  No joke, we couldn't go 5 minutes without seeing a christmas tree farm...am I the only one who imagined them being grown on a snowy hill??  lol

We finally made it to Silver Falls, but because of Gary's back we could only do the 

 quarter mile walk to the first waterfall.

The minute I saw these Gary told me "don't eat them!"

How amazing s this tree shot?

Hello beautiful!

Thanks to the couple from Michigan who took this picture of us!

You could tell this guy was familiar with this place.  He was running around, drinking water.  We kept thinking he was going to jump in and swim.

Our last stop, and a bit out of the way, was Oregon State University.

Makes me wish I could go back and go to college here!  

Sadly the store was closed, so I had to take a picture for one of my former students who is coming here in the fall!

After our long day, we stopped at Red Robin for some burgers and fries before heading back to the hotel.

Tomorrow we get up early so we can walk around Portland a few hours before heading to Washington to visit our families.

Voodoo Doughnut - here I come!!