01 May, 2006 (Monday)

We left Seattle behind early in the morning. Getting briefly lost in industrial Tacoma we eventually found our way toward Mount Rainier. (Picture: Mt Rainier views)


Mount Rainier
A popular Washington national park Mt Rainier has breathaking forest views, lush meadows and beautiful snowcapped mountains. Nestled in a semi-volcanic area it's lush landscape hides a harsh environment. Explorers have been lost on it's jagged wintery peaks. Even on a warm sunny day like we were enjoying it was near to freezing up top. We lingered a while to take in the refreshing mountain air, snowmelt waterfalls and inspiring peaks before heading along our way. (Picture: Mt Rainier Paradise station)

We'd hoped to see Mount St Helens, the not-so-dormant volcano, but the area was still closed off due to snow on the roads.


Newport Beach
We stopped briefly in Portland (Oregon), stretching our legs and taking in the city for an hour. A clean but quiet city, it sits on the river mouth at the border of Washington and Oregon. But we wanted to push on, so we got back in our Jeep and left the city behind us. (Picture: Portland from a passenger window)

At 9pm we hit the coast after hours of driving through Oregon's interior, through mild hills and long flat meadows. Newport was beautiful in the setting sun, although the wind chill was up. As darkness finally set in we looked about for a place to stay, but we decided it wasn't worth the effort and chose to sleep in the car. Even unloading the Jeep seemed like too much trouble, so we ended up laying out in the front seats, wrapped in our jackets and sleeping bags. (Picture: Newport beach sunset)