Farewell to the West Coast

Reluctantly leaving the Seattle area, we headed north and east toward Whidbey Island. The ferry to cross over to the island departs from Port Townsend, a charming town situated on a bluff overlooking the water. We just had time to walk down the main street, which is lined with historic buildings and has a delightfully quaint atmosphere.

The highlight of the town was a used book shop -- of course. We didn't have the time to tour the historic neighborhood, but that just gives me a reason to go back...

The ferry left us on Whidbey Island, which reminded me a great deal of Nova Scotia, Canada. Verdant evergreens overspreading rocky coastline and meadows covered in waving grasses are the principle features of the island, from what I could see! We even caught a glimpse of a historic schoolhouse. The bridge over Deception Pass:

As we drove east through Washington, we drove past Wild Horses National Monument. It was so unexpected and dramatic that we had to pause on our journey.

 

This area of Washington reminded me of Nevada. The land is incredibly brown and barren, but the water is vividly blue -- whether of itself, or because everything else seems so drab, I don't know!

 

We drove for seemingly endless hours, across the states of Washington, Idaho, and part of Montana. The thin strip of Idaho that we traversed was mountainous and densely forested. It was quite beautiful, and not at all what I expected! We stopped for the night at Livingston, Montana, and in the morning we headed to Yellowstone National Park -- which I think deserves a post to itself!