Washington state, Oregon, and BC dopers, seeking travel opinions

In My Humble Opinion
1

At the end of July 2023 the family is driving from Denver to Sequim Bay State park in Washington. The spousal unit will then spend three nights at a yarn retreat, while the child unit and myself will camp in the park.

A few quick logistic questions.

Anybody familiar with Wildhorse Resort and Casino in Pendleton, Oregon? We don’t gamble, but it is a convenient place to stop. Entertaining for a 10 year old who’s been in the car all day, or just a way to separate Dad from his money?

Is it better to take the Edmonds to Kingston ferry, or go through Tacoma? Time wise it is the same, but I’m sure Seattle and Tacoma traffic probably make all the difference.

Now the interesting questions, what to do while there, and on the trip home? I know there are lots of choices of things to do, the trick is to narrow it down to just a few, balancing entertainment and cost.

What’s good on the east side of Olympic National Park? What’s the interesting stuff in the state parks all over the area? Anything in Sequim or Port Angeles that might entertain a 10 year old? She might be natured out by the third day.

On the way back we might visit Victoria. Do we do that as a walking day trip, or take the car and drive around outside the city? Do we come back through Port Angeles, or go up through Vancouver, spend a day or two, and then back down?

I know Victoria is a tourist place, but what is it people go there to do and see? Similar, I’ve been to Vancouver, but what would you do with just one day there?

Other options are Seattle or Mount Ranier. What should I do for a day or two in Seattle? I’d like to see Mount Ranier, but getting stuck in a traffic jam driving up to the Sunrise Visitor Center does not sound like a good time.

Positive and negative ideas about things to see or do are greatly appreciated. Really what I want are the “if you only do one thing while you’re there…” opinions.

2

The Underground Tour is a must, IMO. In case you don’t know the story, the area that is now Pioneer Square, the historic heart of Seattle, was originally built at sea level, meaning that indoor plumbing was prone to backing up at high tide. When a fire destroyed most of downtown in 1889, the city decided to take the opportunity to regrade the area - the new buildings that were built to replace the burned ones put their ground floor on the second story, and the street level was raised by forcing tens of thousands of tons of soil from the steep hill to the east into the channels they had built, creating a series of tunnels under the sidewalks at what used to be street level. The tour takes you through a few of the safer tunnels and includes some very interesting info about Seattle’s history. (PROTIP: Before or after the tour, make a stop at Tat’s Deli two blocks east of the square. Best Philly cheesesteak I’ve ever had.)

You might also enjoy MoPOP (the Museum of Pop Culture) at Seattle Center. It was started by the late Paul Allen as a music-focused museum and gradually became a showcase for his vast collection of pop culture memorabilia. They have a permanent exhibition of Nirvana memorabilia and a vast collection of props from various sci-fi and fantasy movies, a very interesting exhibit about the history of the guitar with instruments dating back to the 17th century, and an auditorium called “the Sky Church” in which music videos are projected onto a massive 60 foot screen.

People like to talk up Pike Place Market, but IMO it’s overrated - the fish market is mildly interesting, but most of the rest of the vendors are just selling overpriced crap. You can also skip the Space Needle - Columbia Center has a much higher observation deck with a better overall view of the area.

If you have time, a harbor cruise is also a pretty neat way to see Seattle and get some truly amazing views of Rainier and Mt. Baker. Argosy Cruises does a three-hour tour (a three-hour tour!) that takes you out into Elliott Bay, around West Point, through the canal lock in Ballard, and onto Lake Union.

3

Edmonds/Kingston v Tacoma depends almost entirely on the approach you’re taking: if you’re coming from the east (I-90), then Edmonds; if from the south (I-5), then take the SR16 exit in Tacoma and cross the bridge (it’ll probably still be there). Traffic can screw you up either way depending on the time of day and the idiocy level, but the odds will be in your favor.

Smartpi has pretty much covered what I would say about local attractions; I’ll just add that if you do end up in Victoria with a reasonably typical 10-year-old girl, I highly recommend Miniature World (in the Empress Hotel, but with a separate entrance on Humboldt Street). I was impressed with the craftsmanship that went into the displays, and my daughters — slightly younger than yours at the time — were enthralled.

4

I’m used to seeing my name misspelled as “Sampti”, “Smpati”, and occasionally “Spamti”, but that’s a new one. :grin:

5

:man_facepalming: :man_facepalming: :man_facepalming: :man_facepalming: :man_facepalming:

6

I always prefer the ferry, just for the experience. My daughters say they agree.

7

Another option is the Ice Cream Boat tour. I’ve been on it many times with many guests and it never grows old. Not as extensive as @Smapti’s option, but lots of fun on a smaller scale.

8

If you guys like bicycles, the Olympic Discovery Trail runs right thru Sequim Bay state park and goes to Port Angeles, where you can rent bikes. It’s a paved path and very scenic. When we visited the area we did not take a car to Victoria, just walked on the ferry, which did limit our options in Victoria but was much less cost. Most visitors to Olympic National Park take the drive up to Hurricane Ridge from P.A., which has great views and hiking trails.

9

That ferry is pure hell going west on a friday afternoon. (most afternoons are challenging) If you’re going to hit it other times, it’s a nice way to go.

The other ferries (Bremerton and Bainbridge) would work too, if you want to leave from Seattle. But, you have to hit the heart of downtown, so there are also times to avoid that.

Driving through Tacoma is only rough on the I-5 South portion, but that can be really rough most afternoon.

I’d take the ferry, and just try to hit it at a non-peak time.

10

Thanks, that is the kind of information I like. I can read all about the tour, and I guess trust reviews, but sometimes those things are bad “you can spend $30 each to wander around in a basement made up to look like an old west town”, and other times it is filled with history and surprising stuff.

I was very surprised at how much I liked the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so I’d probably enjoy it, but I don’t know if my kid will. Unless there’s a Weird Al exhibit.

We’ll be coming across I-90, because the night before we’ll have stayed someplace between Pendleton and Ellensburg. Yes, it will be a Friday afternoon. We need to be in Sequim Bay State park by 4, so if we’re on schedule, from Pendleton we’ll hit the ferry right around 1-1:30. If we stay in Ellensburg then we can get there around 10-10:30.

Tacoma adds about 40 miles, and 3 minutes, based on map estimates. Or maybe it saves an hour, depends on exactly what things I put into the map. What I really want to avoid is getting to the ferry at 1, and finding out that our boat will leave at 3:15. Even if traffic adds an hour to the trip through Tacoma, that shouldn’t be a problem.

I do agree though, that the ferry is much more of a novelty than looking at yet another clogged freeway.

We’ll be staying about 50 feet from the trail, and it would be fun to explore it starting from the park. Perhaps we’ll do it on foot.

The Hurricane Ridge road looks good. I bet the park will be jammed on a July weekend, but not much I can do about that.

The city cruises look fun, but we might be boated out, because earlier in the month we’ll be taking a cruise from Juneau to Sitka. (If we’d none about the Alaska trip, we wouldn’t have planned the Sequim Bay trip, but instead we get to enjoy the irony of flying through Seattle, then less than a week later getting in the car and driving back.)

11

You should be okay that time of day. Those ferries run pretty frequently. Currently there are 1:35 and 2:25 departures (they don’t change the schedule much, but there might be a “summer schedule.” Also 11:05, 11:55 and 12:40, if you get there early.

It could, conceivably, add more than that. There are car pool lanes most of the way, which should help reduce, but not eliminate, the problem.

I-90 drops you right into downtown Seattle, near the Bremerton and Bainbridge terminal. You might want to consider those ferries. Not after 3:00 on a Friday, however.

12

If you should decide on Tacoma — and I agree with the above that Edmonds/Kingston is probably a better bet if you’re using I-90, as well as giving you a ferry ride — I would strongly suggest getting off 90 at exit 25 and taking SR18 through Auburn. It joins I-5 south of Federal Way, allowing you to avoid Seattle traffic.

(The I-5/SR16 interchange can be a bit of a challenge: it’s a “zipper” with I-705 traffic trying to merge onto I-5 and I-5 traffic trying to exit to SR16, with the usual gang of idiots in both groups trying to muscle in as late as possible. Patience would be your friend.)

13

You can take a nice day trip on the ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria. Could see some orcas or other interesting sea life. The crossing takes a couple of hours, as I recall.

Victoria is a very walkable city and there is a natural history museum not far from the ferry landing that your 10 year old might like. There is a full scale model of a mastadon, part of an old sailing ship from an early explorer, many fine examples of native first people artifacts from the area. A ten year old might get bored or it could be a WOW experience.

Hidden Secrets in the Royal B.C. Museum (Victoria BC) - YouTube

And then you ride the ferry back to Port Angeles. I have done it twice and would do it again.

14

When I was growing up (70s/80s), we had a tea towel from Victoria that listed various tourist attractions. The ones I remember were Land of the Little People, Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, and Butchart Gardens. I think the gardens are the only one that exists nowadays (although Miniature World might be a spiritual successor to Land of the Little People). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88apUCFVHf4

15

Neither Google nor ABRP suggest that way, but I bet it is because they are much more biased to take 5 north through Seattle than 3/305 north. That route does look fine.

Yes, that is the way it routes us, 18 across and then 16 up.

Seems fine! Unless there are some dramatic improvements in self driving in the next few months, I’ll just get in whatever lane the car does not want me to be in, and I’ll get where I want to go.

That does sound good.

I think this is the what the itinerary is getting to look like.

  1. Stay in Tremonton, UT
  2. Stay in Yakima, WA
    1. Scenic drive past Mt. Ranier. I have to plan this by hand, because 410 through the park is closed right now, so maps insist on sending me other ways
    2. Or, go the normal way across 90, and then either the ferries or Tacoma
  3. Explore the area around Sequim Bay
  4. Hurricane Ridge road in Olympic National Park
  5. Day trip to Victoria, sleep in Seattle
  6. Day in Seattle probably at the aquarium or flight museum
  7. Depart Seattle, or second day in Seattle
  8. The SLC part of the trip that involves in-laws, so is not my problem

We’re investigating now whether day 5 is a wake-up-and-leave day from the yarn retreat, or if there are activities during the day, and we’d have to spend the night in Port Angeles, and do Victoria the next day. This will have a big influence on whether we spend one or two days in Seattle.

16

Can I ask, what is a ‘yarn retreat’?

17

Not impossible, but that’s a long day if you’re going all the way back to Seattle after a day trip to Victoria

18

I’m not sure.

I prefer to front load, so we stay up late, and then wake up in Seattle ready to go. Depending on when we plan to get back, we could stay in PA or Sequim and then go to Seattle in the morning. Frankly, it is probably going to depend on the price off a decent hotel in the two locations. Of course, we could also split the difference and stay anywhere along the route.

19

Port Townsend is close to Sequim Bay State Park, it’s a cool town to walk around and check out the shops. Just down the road is Fort Worden Historical State Park where you can wander around through the old gun emplacements that overlook Puget Sound.

20

Just get a hotel in Port Angeles, ride the ferry to Victoria, look around, visit the museum or whatever, and ride the ferry back. That is a full day. No car needed.

Don’t try to include Seattle, it is becoming a shithole. And one of the worst cities you will ever try drive in. If you insist on driving start about 4:30am.