Well, here I am back in Seattle after a quite frustrating 3-day long trip along the Cascade Loop, near the Canadian frontier. Frustrating because the weather has been terrible (well, something I'm getting used to after my South America trip) and because I couldn't do the hikes I had planned. But let's start from the beginning.
I left monday morning (Halloween), rented a "compact car" (which in America translates into a huge Toyota Camry with enough room for 5 adults my size AND all their luggage) and headed North, to the little city Everett. For most people there is not interest whatsoever in going there, but being a absolute lover of airplanes it's a mandatory stop for me.
For those of you who don't know, Everett is where Boeing builds all its wide-body airplanes: 747, 767, 777 and the future 787. The building itself is supposed to be the largest one (in volume) in the world and whether or not that's true, I'll tell you its quite impressive. And seeing how the huge 747s are put together I must say it's been one of the highlights of this trip (yes, I don't expect you to understand). There were 5 747 being built at that time, all of them cargo and all of them for Asian companies, in case any of you would like to take any conclusions. On average, it takes from 6 to 8 months to build one of these monsters.
After Everett, I decided to start the Cascade Loop (a 400+ mile loop around and into one of Washington's most remarkable National Parks) clockwise, so me and my car jumped in a ferry heading for Clinton (not the ex-president, but a city in Whidbey Island. The terrible weather didn't help make things better, but I must confess I found this island completely dull and uninteresting, except for the quite dramatic Deception Pass State Park on the Northern end, which houses what is claimed to be Americas's first suspension bridge. Unfortunately, I spent too much time exploring the featureless spots on the rest of the island and when I arrived at Deception Pass it was almost night time (after the time change, there's no light up here after 5).
So, took a few tripod pictures and headed East looking for an unexpensive place to sleep, which was a typical motel just off Interstate 5 that claimed to be the Best Value Accomodation. I wouldn't go that far, but the place was quite decent.
The next day was supposed to be the star of the trip, covering the very acclaimed Route 20 across the Northern Cascades National Park. And as it could not be otherwise, it was raining as hell. As the news said that night, it had been one of the wettest days in Washington (and believe me, to bear that honor in this state, that means a looooot of water). I didn't see the sky or the sun until the scenic part of the route was over, it was almost night time and I was looking for a new place to spend the night.
It's been great to be back in the States to meet again all those things that I adore about this country and that I had almost forgotten after the continuous US bashing that I had to endure in Europe and else where: the extremely friendly and helpful people, how easy it is to do anything you want here, all the different types of food available, the fact that no matter where you go you will be served something delicious, unexpensive and, most importantly, in BIG PORTIONS (and not the ridiculouly pretencious minuscule ones we get in Europe). Unfortunately, just as sure as getting deliciuos food is the fact that it will be extremely unhealthy. Even when Americans try to prepare something "lite" and digestive, it looks heavy and fattening. Oh well, can't have it all!
Anyway, if you wondered why I listed all the things I loved about the States, it is because I'm gonna do a little bashing myself. I must say that the ranger service of the Washington National Park is certainly not the best I've seen. There are 2 ranger stations at the Northern Cascades Park (probably the most important in the State), but one of them is closed until the summer and the other one is only open on the weekends. And they don't even provide a map outside, where you could orientate yourself and find the hikes you want to do. Very deceiving!
Anyway, as you probably have guessed, that meant that I could not find the trek I had been recommended. As I found afterwards, the reason was that to go to the starting point you have to take a detour BEFORE entering the park. But of course, that information was listed nowhere!
I was very angry about missing the trek, since hiking had been my main goal in coming to Washington (I haven't done any since I returned from my RTW trip about 4 months ago). And the shitty weather, with non-stop rain, wind and temperatures as low as -1 Celcius at Rainy Pass (it was snowing so heavily that at one point I doubted that my car would make it to the top of the pass) didn't contribute to improve my humor.
So, after not doing the trek, enduring Alaskan winter conditions and missing all the nice views due to the weather, I decided to head for Wenatchee, the largest town East of the park, on the edge of the Columbia river, where I figured out accomodation would cheaper. And I was right: for little more than 2 nights in an 8-bed dorm in my hostel in Seattle I got my own room, with its own toilet, cable TV, Wi-Fi and an indoor swimming pool and hottub. Not bad, although I arrived too tired to enjoy most of the amenities.
As I am right now, so I think I'll go to sleep and perhaps tell you the rest tomorrow.
Just one thing: one more picture was selected by Image Station as Photo of the Day. And it's the SEVENTH!! Not bad, although it's an unusual one.
Check it out and let me know what you think.
