Day one
Landed at the airport and rented our car from Alamo. They gave us a map with all of the pot shops around town! We drive to Mukilteo (translated as “long neck of a goose” and interpreted to mean “good place to meet or camp”) to eat and sightsee. It is amazing how tall the evergreen trees are here! The area just has a very calming effect. We eat at Ivar’s on the deck overlooking Puget Sound and watch the Ferry make it’s trips back and forth to Whidbey Island. We have oysters on the half shell and fried calamari. I have the seafood cobb salad with smoked salmon, smoked scallops, and baby shrimp; it was awesome! John has fish and chips. This restaurant has a walk-up window where you can order most of their dishes, and there is always a line. The locals park in front of the restaurant to wait to get on the ferry and go to Whidbey Island after their workday. We tour the lighthouse and stop at the Diamond Knot Brewery where John enjoys their Porter and IPA.
It is time to check into our VRBO (vacation rental by owner) that is in someone’s three-story home overlooking Puget Sound. We are on the bottom level of their home with almost complete privacy except they can access us by the deck. It is a very well decorated, comfortable studio that looks out over the Sound and you feel like you are on a cruise ship! It is very peaceful and quiet, except for the occasional commuter train passing. We watch large cargo, and fuel tankers move slowly across the sound to their ports. Gorgeous, colorful sunsets every evening from the deck.
Day two
We wake up to a rainy day, so we drive to Vancouver for the day. Pass the Cascades along the way; they are giant green mountains. We find an authentic Mexican restaurant on Pacific Street called Salsa Agave run by a beautiful family. We have taquitos, the carne asada burrito, and chicken mole burrito. John liked the mole burrito the best. I have a bloody Mary they call Cesear and John has Clamato with beer. We go to the seawall to walk around and take the aqua bus to Granville Island which is a busy marketplace filled with different kinds of food and craft merchants. The aqua bus driver is a neat lady. We walk around a lot, take pictures and head back to the condo, the sun finally comes out.
Hint: The beautiful thing about staying at a VRBO is that you can cook for yourself and save so much money. We usually have breakfast and a light dinner at the rental and then eat an excellent quality lunch out somewhere. Rentals typically have a stocked kitchen, and it is just like being at home. If you aren’t into cooking on vacation, just grab a rotisserie chicken and a few sides from the grocery store, and you can eat off of those for a couple of days.
Day three
We purchased a City Pass before the trip from Costco for $79 (save 50% off regular admission to attractions). Check out City Pass’ website, if Costco no longer carries them at https://www.citypass.com/seattle. We visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum underneath the Space Needle. It is a mind-blowing collection of Chihuly’s glass works. You can’t believe your eyes: https://www.chihulygardenandglass.com/. Download the complimentary audio tour for more detailed information about the collection. Pick up some unique gifts in the gift shop; I bought a book with a DVD about his work and a book of postcards. We walk about a mile to the pier to ride the Argosy harbor cruise, a one-hour live narration along the shoreline of Elliott Bay and the Seattle waterfront. It was a beautiful warm day to be out on the water. The tour guide was entertaining and informative. We have a couple of drinks in actual glasses; they have a full bar on board. I would highly recommend the harbor cruise, we had a lot of fun, and it was so relaxing to be out on the water. Make reservations ahead of time.
We purchased a ticket for the Space Needle for a return trip in two days. I wasn’t digging the condo with all of the stairs and the commuter train going by at regular intervals, so we make a reservation for two nights in Astoria, Oregon, on the Columbia River for the last two nights of our trip. We can walk and bar hop and are staying at a brand new Hampton Inn. We have also heard beautiful things about Cannon Beach, Oregon, so we will make a day trip down the coast.
Day four
Took the ferry over to Whidbey Island today, and that was a first for both of us. We drive the car on and get out and stand on the deck for the short hop over to the island. The island is pretty rural with art shops, wineries, and restaurants. We had the best breakfast before the trip at Patty’s Eggsnest (Mukilteo) where the portions were huge, and the service was fast. I had the Irish Coddle breakfast, which was three eggs over a potato, sausage and onion hash. John had the chicken fried chicken breakfast.
Once we are on Whidbey, we do some sightseeing and eat at Christopher’s in Coopville, and the food is excellent. I have the warm seafood salad, which is a bowl of cioppino with greens, cucumbers, and carrots thrown in. Lots of mussels and salmon. John has a turkey and Havarti sandwich on sourdough; it is enormous! We buy some candy at a store called the Bay Leaf next to the restaurant. They sell wine, cheese, and pates. We stop in downtown Langley and check out the Orca Network’s Langley Whale Center, which celebrates the lives of gray whales, orcas and other marine mammals of the Salish Sea. They have a full whale skeleton suspended from the ceiling that is awesome! There are little gift shops here, too. If you have the time and patience to just do a visit to the quaint small island, it is worth it. We visited on a day when the wineries were closed, so that would add some more adventure to the trip. We stop at Ivar’s for happy hour and a snack.
Day five
We drive back to Seattle to do the Space Needle tour. Most days everything runs efficiently, especially if you have a CityPASS or pre-purchased ticket. When you get off the elevators at the top of the Needle, they have a photo shoot waiting for you. They will email the pictures to you, so no need to purchase there. As soon as you step out on the deck, gorgeous views are everywhere! It is a bright, clear day and you can see forever. There is a rotating restaurant at the top, SkyCity at the Needle. You rotate in a 360-degree circle over 47 minutes. If you just come to the restaurant, you get a free trip to the observation deck. Afterward, we visit the zoo, which is the worst zoo ever! Most of the exhibits are closed, tons of crows, we are only there for an hour and leave (see my Tripadvisor review under the pseudonym Janiefromop). Drive back to Mukilteo and revisit the Diamond Knot Brewery for pizza and beer at happy hour.
Enjoy the last evening on the deck of the rental and pack up to head to Astoria in the next morning.
Day six
We drive down to Astoria, which takes longer than expected due to traffic on Hwy 5 is a nightmare. The infrastructure in Seattle needs a lot of work. There is some seriously gorgeous country out here. The Columbia River is enormous and has tides just like the ocean. We stay at the Hampton Inn right on the river overlooking the pier and large cargo ships parked in the middle of it. There is a walking path that runs along the river and leads to a grocery store and bars and restaurants. We hit the Wet Dog Brewery for happy hour and have halibut burgers that are so good! John has Astoria Brewing Company’s Bitter Bitch IPA and likes it! The staff is super friendly and complain about the weather being too sunny and warm! They like it cloudy!
Day seven
We have breakfast at the hotel and head down the Oregon coast today. The drive down to Cannon Beach you don’t see the ocean on the way. Once there it is magnificent! We walk the beach for about an hour, and take all kinds of pictures of the Haystack and coastline, and visit several shops in town. We eat lunch at the Ecola Seafood Market, which is so good. They have all types of freshly caught fish on display. I have crab cakes, and a salad topped with bay shrimp. John has the cod burrito. We drive south along the coast to Wheeler and turn around. There are dramatic cliffs and lots of green mountains, some of the most beautiful country we have seen. We are booking a trip for October to come back and stay for a week because a day just doesn’t do it justice. We are in Astoria, and check out the Fort George Brewery which isn’t our cup of tea. On to The Buoy Brewery on the river, which is good. We have their deviled eggs and drinks. Onto the Wet Dog Brewery for happy hour and we split a couple of appetizers. We like this place.
Day eight
Leave Astoria and drive back to the Seattle airport. My goal is to find some fried clams, and we get them at the Ivar’s at the airport. They are everywhere! We had a great time, and there is so much to do in this area, we can’t wait to get back.
Janie Koehler 