We’ve been moving around a bit. We spent the month of December in the charming little Christmas ski town of Leavenworth. It’s very quaint – styled like a Bavarian village – and super festive this time of year. We took day trips and skied and celebrated Christmas super low-key, just the two of us.
After 125 days of nomadic traveling, we rolled back into Kirkland. We didn’t have any fixed plans when we left, but had intended to be on the road for only a month or so. Coronavirus had struck in Kirkland and it seemed like a smart thing to do. Why not? We already had our life and our home tidily packed into a small box on wheels, ready to turn the key, start the motor, and drive away.
Once on the road we fell in love with it too much. The freedom of having no rules, the promise of adventure around the next bend… Four months later, we had toured all through Eastern Washington, briefly dipped our toes into Idaho, revisited some old haunts in Oregon, and then wrapped up our tour in the little town of Tonasket, Washington.
So close to the border, my phone thinks we’re in Canada.
I’ve fallen into a deep state of ennui. After having so much freedom and fun over the past couple of weeks it has been difficult to re-acclimate to my work routine. It’s also been very hot, oppressively so, the kind of sweaty hot where your clothes stick to your skin and you just can’t escape it. The heat saps your energy, motivation is low…
With only one day left of our two-week adventure blitz, we opted for a day hike up to Monte Cristo peak. The first portion of the trail took us through a lush forest, dense with greenery and thick underbrush. It looks like no one has been here for a long time, and the trail hasn’t been maintained. There are fallen trees blocking our path, and we have to climb over or around.
Up, up up, then down, down down, then back up again! The trail opens out onto a beautiful wildflower ridge with views of Mt. Adams and distant Mt. Hood.
It was well worth the tough hike to get to those views. We found out later that there was a fire lookout cabin if we had gone further, but we had thought we were at the end of the trail. Oh well, maybe next time!
This little country diner’s specialty is huckleberry pie, but they make a killer burger too!
Also, every little country store should have a little country kitty asleep on a shelf. Just my humble opinion.