Vashon Island/Seattle

slobberdog68

Ok, so we are heading out West for 3 weeks in August.
We have just booked our first stop, the cutest little waterfront cottage on Vashon Island.
Anyone ever been there or know anything about it?
We are totally winging it, I have never been out West and I am just looking up cool
little places to stay. We will be traveling 4 days from NJ to get there so a nice little island
retreat will be a nice first stop. Head over to Seattle to sight see and then back on the Ferry (only way to Vashon) to peace and quiet

Anyhow, if anyone is local or has ever been, we were only able to book 3 nights, so tell me the best things to do on Vashon and Seattle, then we are heading to Oregon & California...then home

RKCNDY

On Vashon Island: go see the bicycle eaten by a tree: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/1412



Not sure what exactly you like to do, Vashon is like other small towns here like Anacortes, La Conner, Winthrop...they are small kitchy towns. Explore the place on your own-it won't take long.

Best thing to do in Seattle food wise: if you're into scenery, go to Lowell's (in Pike Place Market) for breakfast, of if you are planning a trip to West Seattle, go to Salty's on Alki: http://saltys.com/

if you like history: http://www.undergroundtour.com/

If you tell me what specific week you will be here, I can tell you what cool fair/festivals will be going on.

In Oregon, GO TO CANNON BEACH, Seaside (IMHO) is kinda dumpy. It's just older and a bit run down, very very very family oriented. Cannon Beach/Ecola State Park are very scenic and romantic. (the beach is about an hour from Portland)

chadwick

california avenue of the giants & anything redwood forests is a must. the olympics national (rain)forest in washington is a must. i lived in westport, washington about 10 years or so. the olympics peninsula kicks ass. oregon coast is beautiful too as is oregon's forests. portland is cool.

Wma31394

chadwick wrote:

california avenue of the giants & anything redwood forests is a must. the olympics national (rain)forest in washington is a must. i lived in westport, washington about 10 years or so. the olympics peninsula kicks ass. oregon coast is beautiful too as is oregon's forests. portland is cool.

Got engaged at marrymere falls at olympic nf..place kicked ass..

Go Beavers

I think the southern Oregon coast is nicer than the northern. It's not as built up and there's fewer people. Also, don't miss the redwoods in Northern California, it'll be the highlight of your trip. Prairie Creek State Park is really nice.

slobberdog68

Thanks guys!!
Right now the must sees on the trip are Seattle, Redwoods, Big Sur, I'm open to anything and everything along the way. We do have 2 kids 15 & 11 and 2 dogs coming with

I know nothing about Oregon but I sure wish PJ would play the Gorge while I'm there, my life would be complete
Seriously though, I guess in Oregon we will be hiking around some of those beautiful waterfalls but does anyone know if you can kayak on the gorge or is it a big boating area ?

Thanks for all the suggestions so far! I know I won't want to come back to the East Coast!

Jason P

If you have a nice sunny day, head to Mt. Rainier. It is less then 2 hours away.

Hopefully this will be your view from your cottage on Vashon ...

chadwick

humboldt county & the emerald triangle
http://co.humboldt.ca.us/


































don't mention it


kidding. you may not wanna go nosing around. they grow really nice green plant up there in those forests.

Go Beavers

slobberdog68 wrote:

Thanks guys!!
Right now the must sees on the trip are Seattle, Redwoods, Big Sur, I'm open to anything and everything along the way. We do have 2 kids 15 & 11 and 2 dogs coming with

I know nothing about Oregon but I sure wish PJ would play the Gorge while I'm there, my life would be complete
Seriously though, I guess in Oregon we will be hiking around some of those beautiful waterfalls but does anyone know if you can kayak on the gorge or is it a big boating area ?

Thanks for all the suggestions so far! I know I won't want to come back to the East Coast!

It took me a bit to sort out the gorge confusion when I first moved out here. There's the Pearl Jam related Gorge which is the amphitheater along the Columbia river, but in Washington, kinda central-eastern. When people say 'the gorge' in Portland, they mean the Columbia River Gorge an hour straight east of Portland. It's a beautiful area with nice accessible hiking trails and waterfalls. Hood River's a cool little town, too. There's usually a lot of wind ripping through there, so people do a lot of windsurfing and kite-boarding. There's a ton of places to kayak in Oregon, especially along a lot of the coastal rivers. You can go mellow or class 2.

slobberdog68

ok, I knew the amphitheatre was on the Gorge somewhere

So, in your opinion, out of all the places in Oregon to see, where would you say is a "must" place to stay and put down roots for a few days before heading onto Ca. It needs to be on the water. Doesn't matter if it's Ocean, Lake, Creek or Stream

Go Beavers

slobberdog68 wrote:

ok, I knew the amphitheatre was on the Gorge somewhere

So, in your opinion, out of all the places in Oregon to see, where would you say is a "must" place to stay and put down roots for a few days before heading onto Ca. It needs to be on the water. Doesn't matter if it's Ocean, Lake, Creek or Stream

I'm biased because I live here, but a must to stay at would be Bend. It's kind of out of the way of you're route (in Central Oregon), but it would really add a total of about 3 1/2 hours road time to your north to south route. The water involves the river and mountain lakes. There's tons of outdoor activities here (hiking, biking, mountain biking, rock climbing, fishing, kayak, paddleboarding, white water rafting, etc...), great people, and checking out the town is always fun.

Here's a video from Visit Bend. It's kinda corny but maybe that's intentional:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5XkIi_peNA

Even if you only like Michael Franti a little bit, he'll be here August 11th at the outdoor amphitheater, if you go to that, I guarantee you'll have a good time. Also, the beer drinking here is awesome.

slobberdog68

Jason
Here is our place. It's at Quartermaster Harbor. Not sure if we will see Mt.Rainier from there.

slobberdog68

@Beaver
Ok, I will def look into that area.
Thank you!

RKCNDY

if you are going all the way out to Bend, then you might as well go see Crater Lake:



it's the deepest lake in the US, formed when the volcano collapsed. It's 100 miles southwest of Bend, so if you are driving to Cali, it's on the way.

I would also recommend the Sea Lion caves near Florence, which is actually directly west of Bend. It's the largest sea cave in America.

Coos Bay is also a nice place to see. (I have done the 101 trip from LA to Seattle)

slobberdog68

RkCNDY-(is that name short for Rock Candy?)
Cool...I was looking @ Crater Lake. I am so confused! I need to figure it out by weeks end, places are being booked right before my very eyes! I know the things that I def want to see in Seattle and in Ca but OR I don't have a clue.

Also, since you live in Seattle, do I need to reserve bringing my Jeep onto the Ferry? I'm not even sure what time we are going to arrive in Seattle to get on the Ferry, does it run 24/7? I def need to look into that.
We will be in Seattle from 8/4-8/8

guitar59

Take your kids to the Tillamook Cheese Factory in Oregon. They have the best ice cream. We loved Face Rock in Bandon, Oregon. If you are there at low tide there are some caves to explore, and we always find a lot of sea stars. The Aquarium in Newport is fun and Rogue has a taproom kids are welcome in. A dune buggy ride through the dunes in Florence is fun.

In Seattle, go to the Aquarium, lots of touch tables for the kids to experience. Another Seattle must that the kids enjoy is the International Fountain in Seattle Center. Bring swimsuits, as the kids will get wet. We like to park at Seattle Center and then take the monorail into downtown and go to Pike Place and the Aquarium. Mariners games are a lot of fun for the kids and if it is their first one they get a certificate and some baseball cards. The Vashon ferry is right by Lincoln Park. There is a great outdoor pool there. You have to walk through Lincoln park to it, but it is fun to swim in a pool and be by the ocean. If you have a hefty budget and like seafood, go to the Crab Pot. Our kids loved it.

We are going back for our 3rd Seattle vacation in July. Can't wait!

slobberdog68

Cool ideas, dune buggy & caves would be more my kids thing, they are 11 & 15.
Keep em coming
I am so excited to get out West!

guitar59

If you have time to spend around the Dunes in Oregon I have heard of boarding on them...like snowboards, but in sand. We saw some shops that rented the boards, but never tried it.

My son (who is almost 15) just reminded me that the Boeing aero/space museum is in Seattle. He didn't like the gum wall, but liked Pike's Taproom, which was just down the alley from it.

Go Beavers

guitar59 wrote:

If you have time to spend around the Dunes in Oregon I have heard of boarding on them...like snowboards, but in sand. We saw some shops that rented the boards, but never tried it.

My son (who is almost 15) just reminded me that the Boeing aero/space museum is in Seattle. He didn't like the gum wall, but liked Pike's Taproom, which was just down the alley from it.

Here's a link to the place in Florence where you can rent sandboards:
http://www.sandmasterpark.com/

There's also an airplane museum in Mcminnville:
http://www.evergreenmuseum.org/

chadwick

im pretty sure the ferries do not run 24 hrs a day but i could be wrong as i only road the ferries to & from vancouver island. this means i slept in my car waiting in line with hundreds of others doing the same as i.

slobberdog68

chadwick wrote:

im pretty sure the ferries do not run 24 hrs a day but i could be wrong as i only road the ferries to & from vancouver island. this means i slept in my car waiting in line with hundreds of others doing the same as i.

ok, thank you.
I will def be checking on that

chadwick

slobberdog68 wrote:

chadwick wrote:

im pretty sure the ferries do not run 24 hrs a day but i could be wrong as i only road the ferries to & from vancouver island. this means i slept in my car waiting in line with hundreds of others doing the same as i.

ok, thank you.
I will def be checking on that

i showed up at the ferry place @ something like 2am or something. once on the ferry some people who are around you may not be very bright & they will park their vehicles directly on your car doors making it almost impossible for you to open your car doors to exit your car. a heads up... give yourself room, do not let someone pin you folks in, because they will & they are not very bright and they normally do not care about anyone but themselves.

it's happened to my g/f & i more than once. they cram cars into those ferries fast & many

RKCNDY

slobberdog68 wrote:

RkCNDY-(is that name short for Rock Candy?)
Cool...I was looking @ Crater Lake. I am so confused! I need to figure it out by weeks end, places are being booked right before my very eyes! I know the things that I def want to see in Seattle and in Ca but OR I don't have a clue.

Also, since you live in Seattle, do I need to reserve bringing my Jeep onto the Ferry? I'm not even sure what time we are going to arrive in Seattle to get on the Ferry, does it run 24/7? I def need to look into that.
We will be in Seattle from 8/4-8/8

yes, Rock Candy

You don't need a reservation for the Vashon ferry, here is the website:
Starting point-Fauntleroy: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/vesselw ... rminalid=9
Destination-Vashon Island: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/vesselw ... minalid=22

It only runs a few times a day, and lines can be long-especially in summer.

Looks like you will be in town on the last day of Seafair. There are going to be hydroplane races on Lake Washington all day. Since the blue Angels cancelled all of their air shows, I'm not sure if they will close I-90 for the air show or not. If you arrive early enough, it is a cool sight to see.

Airshow: http://www.seafair.com/AnEvent.aspx?ID=13&SecID=917
(the hydroplane race info is on that same website)

Just be ready for lots of traffic!