G&T's Excellent Adventure

SUN., AUG. 4th, thru THUR., AUG. 29th, 2024

We left Mount Rainier, catching our final glimpse of that iconic landmark, to arrive at the small town of Sultan located about 50 minutes northeast of Seattle. It was a 115-mile ride that took about 3.5 hours. Oy. There was heavy traffic at various points on practically every road we traveled on. The craziest was a 20+ minute back-up at one traffic light in the town of Sultan. Weekenders traveling home! We passed by Wayside Chapel – a tiny chapel along the side of the road near Sultan. It can fit 8 people. So cute. 

The town was named after the local Native American Chief Tseul-ted, but settlers mispronounced the name as “Sultan.” The town was deeply rooted in gold discovery, logging and railroad development. During the railroad construction, Sultan was a supply station employing over 800 men at various times. This boom brought many new businesses to the area, and in 1905 Sultan incorporated.

.In any event we’re here for almost a month at Cascades RV Resort, which is surrounded by the Cascade Mountains in the distance. The sites are actually quite spacious with a cement pad, gravel, and artificial turf. In the campgrounds rules and regs it says “Please do not allow pets to urinate on the turf pads.” Good luck with that! Lol

The Hannafords are 2 sites over from us, but are currently on an Alaska Cruise. I am taking care of Miss Gigi while they’re gone. They’ll be coming back to one spoiled kitty!

Gary & I are looking forward to exploring this area and seeing friends from Nottingham who now live in Seattle. Always fun to connect with friends and family on the road!

Gary & I headed into Seattle on Thurs., Aug. 8th (2024). We drove closer to Seattle then took the light rail into the city, then the monorail. The monorail was originally built for the 1962 World’s Fair. Since we don’t do public transit often, it’s a novelty for us and rather fun… except maybe for the crazy guy sitting in the corner of the train yelling and talking to himself. Everybody gave him a wide berth! lol

We’ve been fortunate to visit Seattle a few times but we’ve never been to the Space Needle. That was our first stop! It’s 605 ft tall and was built as a cultural centerpiece for the 1962 World’s Fair, whose theme was “The Age of Space.” What the Eiffel Tower is to Paris, the Space Needle is to Seattle. The 502 ft. saucer-shaped “top house” allows 360-degree views of downtown and the mountains. Unfortunately no mountain views for us during our visit. A little too hazy for that, but we still enjoyed good views of downtown. We also enjoyed being one floor down from the saucer top and seeing the Loupe Lounge and Loupe rotating glass floor. It is the world’s first (and only!) rotating glass floor, revealing previously hidden views of the Needle’s structure and the surrounding area. Freaky to be standing on a clear floor as it’s moving and look down!

Then we visited MoPop (Museum of Pop Culture). It’s ranked as one of the top museums in the U.S. We don’t think it was quite worthy of that distinction but still a cool place to visit. Founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2000, the museum has gone thru various name changes, latest being the Museum of Pop Culture. As for the building’s unusual shape (see photo below), Mr. Allen was looking for a “swoopy” design to express the spirit of popular music. I think he achieved that! 

There were great graphics throughout the museum and lots of interesting pop culture iconic symbols:

• FBI credentials for Scully and Mulder of X-Files fame
• Jimi Hendrix butterfly costume 
• Judy Garland’s actual dress from The Wizard of Oz
• Light sticks used at K-POP concerts. It’s a thing. Who knew?!
• And Gary’s favorite, a full-scale reproduction of the robot Gort from “The Day the Earth Stood Still.”

Other cool items in the collection included:

• The largest “stop-motion” puppet ever built. He stands 16 ft tall with a 20 ft wingspan. Wow. 
• A sculpture entitled “Roots & Branches” that displayed 700 instruments… 40 of which were custom-made self-playing guitars. 
• A Buddy Holly guitar cover made out of tooled leather that he crafted himself. Tooling leather was a hobby of his. 

Lastly we headed to Pike Place Market (est. 1907), one of the oldest continuously operated public farmers’ markets in the U.S. We’ve visited before, but every time we’re blown away. It has an amazing abundance of fresh flowers, fruits, fish, veggies, and crafts. I bought “Oh My God Peaches” which were fabulous! The market is truly a one-of-a-kind place! Nearby is the original Starbucks with the original sign. The line was out the door and down the street.

We had a “linner” at The Athenian (est. 1909) and located in historic Pike Place Market. The restaurant was made famous in the Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan movie Sleepless in Seattle. We were there during Happy Hour so enjoyed half-price on apps with a view of Puget Sound. 

A very full day in Seattle, and we were not alone. Lots of tourists!

On Sat., Aug. 21st, (2024) we had a fabulous couple of days with the Tise family coming to visit us from Austin! We celebrated two birthdays, Cheryl and Olivia. Gary made a birthday “crown” that the girls shared. Cheryl wore it on the first day, then Olivia the next day! Gummy bears were part of the design! We played a marathon game of Mexican Train (Cesare won), played corn hole (Tise family did themselves proud) and did lots of talking, eating, and enjoyed a libation or two. So much fun! Big thank you to Olivia, Cesare and Celia for planning their trip to the San Juan Islands while we were in the area so we could see y’all and celebrate Olivia’s 45th!! We had a blast.

Gary & I headed into Seattle to visit friends, Steve & Rhoda on Sunday, Aug. 25th (2024). They lived in Nottingham, NH for decades, just like us. So much fun to see their charming home with its beautiful, very private, garden just minutes from downtown Seattle. It’s so them and absolutely perfect! After touring their home, enjoying their sunny garden and eating delicious pastries from a local bakery, they toured us around some unique sites in Seattle not too far from their home. 

We visited Gas Works Park with its fabulous skyline views of the city as well as remnants of the sole remaining “coal gasification” plant in the U.S. The plant was operating from 1906 to 1956. Historically, coal was gasified to produce coal gas, also known as “town gas.” Coal gas is combustible and was used for heating and municipal lighting, before the “advent of large-scale extraction of natural gas from oil wells.” Quite interesting. We also saw house boats docked across the lake and a seaplane coming in and taking off. 

Then it was on to see the Fremont Troll (photo below). The Fremont Troll was built out of cement as a town beautification project in the 1990s under the Aurora Bridge (George Washington Memorial Bridge) in Seattle. It’s huge (18 ft tall), weighs approximately 13,000 lbs. and is depicted clutching, or should I say squishing, an actual Volkswagen Beetle in its left hand!

After that it was on to lunch at Lockport Cafe. Then a visit to Hiram M. Chittendam Locks, one of the busiest lock systems in the nation. Lots of boat activity at the locks on a Sunday afternoon with lots of inexperienced boaters making their way thru the locks… particularly on the smaller boats. Highly entertaining! One woman took a bow after a particularly difficult time. Not unlike trying to back our RV into a site. Some days are better than others! We were also entertained with lots of harbor seals and sea lions going after all the salmon! A busy and fun place on a Sunday afternoon. 

A delightful day with Nottingham friends we’ve known for over 30 years. We were fortunate to live in the best small town in NH… sooo many great people! Big thanks to Rhoda and Steve for a wonderful day. They traded one beautiful part of the country for another! 

On Tues., Aug. 27th, (2024), the pod headed out for a day of exploration on Highway 2, also known as Stevens Pass Greenway. First stop was a cafe called the “Espresso Chalet” to see a 14-foot-tall Bigfoot statue standing guard over this cute cafe in the town of Index. The 1987 movie “Harry & the Hendersons” was filmed here about a family befriending Bigfoot. The cafe also has great views of the Cascade Mountains, and my Chai Tea was delicious!

Then it was onward to the town of Leavenworth, Washington, which is modeled after a German-bavarian village and surrounded by the Cascade Mountains. 

The backstory on Leavenworth is the town had fallen into hard times after a lumber company and the railroad left town in the 1920s followed by the Great Depression in the 1930s. The town was in the process of dying. In 1960 a local restaurant, the Squirrel Tree, adopted an Alpine-themed Bavarian decor, inspired by the Cascade mountains that surround the area. The restaurant soon became a very popular attraction. The owners realized the Bavarian theme might just be the answer to Leavenworth’s economic woes. Project LIFE – Leavenworth Improvement for Everyone – was formed. The Chamber Of Commerce got involved along with the University of Washington. By 1965, the first building was remodeled to the Bavarian style. Over the next couple of years 10 more buildings had been remodeled or updated to the Bavarian theme. Others followed suit and a town was reborn!

The town is very well done, and this time of year there were flowers everywhere. There was a 96-ft Maibaum or May Pole on display painted in blue and white stripes (traditional Bavarian colors) with attached placards depicting Leavenworth’s history of logging, railroading, skiing, mining etc.

Front Street, their main shopping area, is closed to traffic and made into a pedestrian walkway for several blocks making it easy to shop and spend money. lol. The town has lots of German restaurants, shops, an amazing art gallery, and a lovely Christmas shop called Kris Kringl.

The town also has a Nutcracker Museum, the largest in the world with over 9,000 nutcrackers. They were originally called Nut Biters. There were Nutcrackers on display for every holiday… Easter, President’s Day, July 4th, Valentine’s Day etc. Who knew?! We learned linden wood is often used as the wood of choice for creating nutcrackers. It’s lightweight and easy to carve. And, we learned some nutcrackers don’t have teeth showing which allows for more facial expression.

The Wenatchee River runs adjacent to the town so there were also nearby parks and hiking trails to enjoy. 

We had a “linner” in town at Andreas Keller Restaurant, plus a giant pretzel was calling my name in another shop. We admired the various gingerbread houses on display at the Gingerbread Factory. And the pod visited the Oil & Vinegar Cellar and bought some interesting aged vinegars. 

Leavenworth reminded us of Helen, Georgia which we visited last year, only this seemed more authentic! We thoroughly enjoyed our day in Leavenworth. 

In just a few days we’ll be leaving Sultan. We’ve been surrounded by the Cascade Mountains and were hoping to have a chance to visit North Cascades NP but wildfires kept us from doing that. We’ve enjoyed comfortable temps, and no humidity and no bugs!

Next up we’re moving to the Olympic Peninsula.