Vacationing in PNW mid August, ideas?

Hi all,
I'm dropping in to ask what "must sees" I must see when we are visiting the PNW.
We are planning to visit the National Parks, and mostly visiting WA and OR, maybe northern CA.
My husband enjoys trains, so we will look into excursion trains, actually a nice way to see the countryside.
I'd love to hear any ideas for seeing the sights of the PNW.
Thanks!

Do you want to stay on the coast or travel some inland. We love Lake Chelan if you can travel over the Mts. Stehekin is at the end of the 50 mile lake and is only accessed by plane or boat.

I know we talked about seeing Mt Rainier, Crater Lake and maybe Glacier NP's if we can manage all that. The coast is probably a must see. I'll have to check out Lake Chelan, thanks.

Maybe a trip on the ferry to the San Juans . . .

http://www.visitsanjuans.com/visitors/request-visitors-guide/

It takes a little time, but it is worth at least seeing the terrain on the east side of the Cascades because it varies so much from the west side. Just driving highway I-90 from Bellevue to Enumclaw (3 hours) takes you from rainforest to desert.

Forks, which is out on the peninsula (probably with ferry and drive about 6 hours west from Seattle, maybe a little less), is where the story of the Eclipse saga is set. It doesn't really have much to do with the book or movie, but they do cater to fans of the book and some people find that to be fun.

There are tours in Seattle (the underground, historical tours). Here's a link with what to see in Seattle: http://www.seattle.gov/html/visitor/

And here's a link with what to see in Washington State: http://www.experiencewa.com/

Hope you have a fun time!

I've looked up North Casades and San Juans, both gorgeous. Thanks springcolor and Katie. I have a feeling there will be too much to see!

Whoops, Kathy, you didn't mean to Enumclaw from Bellevue.

How much time do you have debilu? Recommendations could go on and on and on. It is such a wonderful world here, particularly in July through September.

ROFL. Yes, you're right. I was thinking Cle Ellum. .

Well, there's an M and an E and a C and a U in both of them. Silly brain. Thanks for setting me straight, Sharon. :-p

Not long enough, 10 days. We are willing to drive for a bit every couple days. We both love scenery and my husband likes trains, so anything involving either of those is great.
When we were in CA we didn't have enough time to see both Sequoia and Yosemite due to car problems, someone said to choose Yosemite over Sequoia. I'm glad we got to see Yosemite, we might try to get to Redwood NP on this trip.

I've never been to the PNW and hope to make the best out of it, and appreciate the suggestions.

If you are going to be in the northern Willamette Valley, the old highway through the Columbia Gorge and Silver Falls state park are worth the side trips.
http://picasaweb.google.com/janelj54/OregonCoastVacation#5336262841187606658 The trail down into the canyon at Silver Falls goes behind the largest waterfall.

Many of the Oregon state parks have yurts and cabins that are quite inexpensive. We spent a week driving along the coast and staying in yurts and cabins the whole time.

Gorgeous! Thanks Katlian, I think I read something about the Columbia Gorge, will look that one up too.

Multnomah Falls, in the Gorge, is the most popular but there are a dozen or so smaller falls along the old road that are less crowded. If you go to Crown Point, imagine the gorge filled that high with water from the Missoula floods. Basically a lake the size of Lakes Erie and Ontario combined was held back by an ice dam that collapsed periodically sending the whole lake flooding across eastern Washington and through the gorge.

Mt. St. Helens is also fascinating if you like geology, and this year is the 30th anniversary of the big eruption.

In August, a visit to the visitor's center at Mt. Rainier is an absolute must. The views and the wildflowers are spectacular and there are plenty of wonderful, easy, short hikes. If you go, be sure to go on a weekday and plan to arrive fairly early in the morning, (9ish) as it is such a popluar thing this time of year and parking can be a problem later in the day.

I love wildflowers, and that one can be a definite as we are planning on Mt Rainier, thanks Sharon. I'm getting very excited!

If you are planning to go through the redwoods in N. Cal, be sure to go on the skunk train.
www.skunktrain.com/ Your husband will love it. It's an all dayer---well, you can read about it.
Hope you have a Wonderful vacation. You have picked the best time for your trip. Aug and Sept are our best months. Be sure to bring a camera.

Thanks bee! That does look cool, and I'm sure he will like it. Good to hear we picked a good time to come.

I went through your part of the countryin '94. Very beautiful. We went from Niagra to Boston and we took Hwy 20. Loved it.

Actually there is a lot right in our own backyard with the lakes, rivers and gorges and New England.

That's for sure. I was amazed at how beautiful everything was and so clean looking. We drove back there in October and I just fell in love. But weather wise I would much rather be here.

October would be a nice month for a long drive across the country. We talk about doing that or maybe taking the train across southern Canada. We just can't ever decide which time of the year to go. Spring or Fall. We can't take the heat anymore. Just wimps about that.

We did a train from Vancouver to Banff that was gorgeous, that was in August. The train stopped each night, so we didn't miss any sights. One of my favorite vacations for sure.

Oh, that would be a great one. Must check into it here on the good old internet. Thank you.

It was called the Rocky Mountaineer.

Don't forget Mt. St. Helens. It's pretty amazing. And the Hoh Rain Forest. That is very wonderful and is always a relief from the heat in July and August. Plus, it's very close to the amazing beaches such as La Push with their huge rock formations.

thanks pixy

if you decide to do the Redwoods in N.Calif
after you ride the skunk train in wine country head north on Hwy 101
you will drive thru Redwoods several times up the coast
another amazing sight is Fern Canyon, half way up the coast
http://redwoods.info/showrecord.asp?id=476
then on north
when you get to Crescent City just south of the Oregon border
take 199 to Grants Pass
stop at Jedediah state park and walk across the summer bridge to Stout Grove
http://www.redwoodhikes.com/Jed%20Smith/Stout%20Grove.html
or drive up river a little and across to the gravel road and drive thru the trees to Stout grove
then back north heading up 199 to Oregon and out of the Redwoods
there are multiple places to see
enjoy your trip what ever route you take

Dick


This message was edited Aug 9, 2010 4:08 PM

I'm getting the feeling that where ever I go it will be a sight to see!
We are going to take it as it comes, and plan as we go, hopefully won't end up sleeping in the car. We've done that before, planned our first and last night hotels, then drove and found places to stay when we got tired of driving.
Thanks for those tips Dick, and you're right, I'm sure whatever route we take will be gorgeous, and I do want to see some redwoods.

another thought
if you do the north coast ?
the Oregon coast line is an amazing sight to see
http://visittheoregoncoast.com/
http://www.traveloregon.com/Explore%20Oregon/Oregon%20Coast.aspx

Dick


This message was edited Jul 28, 2010 6:17 PM

We are flying in and out of Seattle, and looking at car rentals. They seem really expensive, more than double what we usually pay. Is there a cheap car rental place anyone knows of?

I always go through hotwire.com, or travelocity.com, or one of those sites. It does save $$ on rentals and hotel rooms.

If you rent from an airport location there are usually huge fees on top of the regular rental price. If you rent from a place nearby you can save a bundle. I learned the hard way by paying an extra $11 a day for a rental from the Portland airport. If you're staying in Seattle the first night maybe there is a car rental place near the hotel. You could take the hotel shuttle and pick up the car the next morning to save part of a day's rental.

thanks to you both, will check it out

Hi, Debilu. I just found your thread here. Glad you asked all these great people in the PNW. I love it here. they are my second home after the NE. heehee. Have fun on your trip

I had a fantastic trip, got home at midnight last night, will post pics and details soon. What a gorgeous area!

Welcome home. Glad you had a good time.

Springcolor, where do you stay in Chelan? I'm looking to rent a place there next summer. I'd love a cabin on the water! Near a town to drive in for visits would be good too. We'll have lots of teens and early 20's with us.

Gwen
I sent you a D-mail

Gwen, if you have a boat there are lovely lovely camping spots along the lake that are only boat-accessible. Very nice.

Sadly, we do not have a boat. I also am looking for a cabin with kitchen, bathrooms, bbq, etc., and not camping for this particular trip. Altho I do love to camp.

Gwen,
have you tried vrbo.com or homeaway.com? I have booked several vacation rentals through those sites and have always been quite happy with the places we rent.

This message was edited Aug 27, 2010 9:09 AM

I second that. We've found wonderful houses to rent in Mexico (on the beach) through vrbo, at very reasonable prices. It was a bit scary the first time (as in: does this place exist, who am I sending my $$ off to, etc.) but after that one went well, we've become regulars. Different places each time.