Seattle 11: Duck Tour

Another beautiful late summer day - not a cloud in the sky! Marc suggested that today we'd be marine tourists again, and go on a Duck Tour! The Seattle Ducks are WW II converted amphibious buses that take you on a 90 minute city tour - about 60 minutes on land, and 30 minutes on water.

At the base, just under the Space Needle

There were two Ducks leaving just ahead of us, and we already heard the crazy talk of those captains (yes, they are bus drivers, but also coast guard certified captains!). We had a 38 year old female captain, and man, she was a character! I have rarely seen a person with so much energy! The whole tour she was entertaining us, nicely mixed with informative information about Seattle, and - pretty unusual - lots of personal stories of her own life. She is married to a Hansen (have you ever seen watched the Discovery Channel series "Deadliest Catch"?)... Of course, she blasted music at every occasion - suitable to what she just said or showed us - and waved and talked to bypassers on the road. Interestingly, many people smiled and/or waved back!

In the Pioneer Square District

The Boss enjoying his ride on the Duck...

At Pike Place Market

Heading north across Lake Union

The tower in the middle is the University of Washington
Tower - I pass it every day when I walk to work..

An oncoming Duck

Just about to get wet (the Duck, not the passengers...;-)

A few of Seattle's 500 world famous houseboats (floating homes, to be correct)

Probably the world's most famous floating home:
It's the one of the movie Sleepless in Seattle

The End

Seattle 10: Argosy Harbor Cruise

Another beautiful sunny Sunday - perfect for a harbor cruise. I had my ticket again through the City Pass, and Candyce and Marc wanted to come along. So I picked them up at their home, and together we drove to the downtown waterfront.

Candyce & Marc


Candyce and me waiting for boarding


We were on the Spirit of Seattle (the boat in the back)

The Bainbridge Island ferry

back on shore...

Seattle 9: Olympic National Park

Today I got up very early, packed my stuff and left at 5:45am for the Olympic Peninsula. I knew it was a long drive, but I really wanted to go again. I was at a very special place which I have visited in 1993 (15 years ago!!!) with my dad. We went to the west end of the peninsula to Ozette, and did a wonderful hike there (part of the Olympic National Park). I had it in such good memory that I wanted to do it again. And I was keen to see the sea otters again, which we saw back in 1993. The trail was incredibly beautiful, and consisted of three parts: 3 miles, mostly on board walks, from the Ranger Station to the beach (Sand Point Trail), then 3.1 miles north along the beach, and another 3.1 miles, again mostly on board walks, back to the Ranger Station (Cape Alava Trail). So, all in all 9.2 miles (14.8km).

Some photos of the Sand Point Trail:

The work of woodpeckers
(My guess, since I heard some in the distance)

This is the point where the trail hits the beach. As you can see, it was quite foggy and misty, and visibility was poor. This is also the point where we saw the sea otters last time. But this time I got there at low tide, and this - combined with the poor visibility - resulted in me not seeing any. The hike along the beach was quite touch, since you had to either walk on (mostly) deep sand, or on rocks and pebbles, and puddles (tide pools). The light and fog made it an eerie atmosphere.

Selftimer photo - first attempt...

Selftimer photo - fifth attempt ;-)

The world famous hole in the rock.
Oh wait - wasn't that in the Bay of Islands? ;-)

A photo to appreciate the vastness and dimensions of this beach.
Click on it and look at the yellow circle - there are two humans in it!

These crabs were everywhere. Whenever you walked across rocks
you heard them rustle while quickly hiding under rocks.

This rock reminded me of.... oh, I just leave it to your imagination!

A dead seal (I assume a Northern Fur Seal) on the beach

And after 3.1 miles I was at the trail head of the Cape Alava Trail. It went steeply up the hill, and then again over board walks for miles...

I climbed literally hundreds of those steps!

Almost back at the Ranger Station: Ozette River (front), flowing into Lake Ozette (back)

After that I had to do the long drive back to Seattle. While on the way to Ozette I took the northern route via Port Angeles, this time I took the southern route via Aberdeen and Olympia. Back in Seattle, I went straight to Candyce and Marc's place, where they had saved me a bit of delicious grilled salmon, with potatoes and salad - yum! Carina and Carl, as well as Aaron were there again, and Carl's Swedish colleague Martin. A great way to end such a beautriful day!