OK, I always heard Mt Rainier was spectacular…..it is. Having a weekend trip with beautiful clear weather with my Daughter and her Husband was a wonderful way to get initiated with this large National Park. We were able to complete two hikes in the Park; Reflection Lake and Pinnacle Peak. Neither of these hikes were difficult even though Pinnacle Peak did climb about 1,000 feet. If you visit, watch the weather closely and time your entry to the Park to avoid traffic: which can line up for miles.

After a few days with the kids we were off again exploring the road between Tacoma and Salt Lake City going through the Washington Wine Country, Eastern Oregon, Southern Idaho and Northern Utah. This was a more direct route of about 900 Miles (with one detour) and offers some very interesting and unique places to visit.

If you have not traveled through Washington Wine Country, you will be in for a few surprises. First it is largely desert-like and can be very hot in the summer. Also, the Columbia River is spectacular. You have a massive amount of water flowing through this wasteland. You can understand why the a large agriculture industry sprung up along the rivers. This is also home to the Department of Energy Hanford Facility with lots of history and radioactive waste ….. which brought me to the region many times before. Prosser would be a great place to explore along the way. It has most of the famous Washington wineries and numerous tasting rooms. We made a quick stop in the visitor center, but it was early in the day, so wine was out.

As you progress into Oregon and Idaho, you pass many cities and towns which are worth exploring. Pendleton became an immediate favorite and worth exploring further as well as La Grange. These small western train towns have a great history and lots of interesting things to check out.

Boise Idaho is an oversized tech-hub, and university town. Worth a visit but a better option a little further along the route is Twin Falls. Twin Falls lies just northwest of Utah has falls taller than Niagara. This is a very clean and modern small city with multiple outdoor activities.

Lastly, one of the highlights of this trip was making a detour to see the Spiral Jetty in Utah. The Spiral Jetty is an earthwork sculpture on the banks of the northern Great Salt Lake next to…relatively (if you don’t mind a 16 mile gravel road) …. the Golden Spike National Historic Park…didn’t know that one existed previously. I had never heard of the Spiral Jetty until it was mentioned to us by our son……so why not venture into the desert along a gravel road to see a pile of arranged rocks?

This is also America’s rocket country, so you will be passing several rocket complexes on your drive …. unfortunately, on this trip, access was restricted due to the pandemic so we had to pass them by until next time!

Another good trip across America’s roadways. Back home for a few days, and then, like any good duck; its time to fly south for the winter.