Washington | Where are the Rogers?

From the very beginning of our trip, we knew that the last two places we really wanted to go to was Anacortes and Portland, OR. So, arriving in Anacortes, WA, on Thursday afternoon meant there was only one more planned stop. Hard to believe….. Anacortes is in the San Juan Islands- Fidalgo Island to be exact. Rick’s brother, Hal and his wife, Cheryl along with both of their kids, and several grandchildren live here. We have seen all of them over the past few days, and it just hit me that I have taken one picture of the family. It is of Hal’s daughter, Amy and Rick playing a game.

We have had a very relaxing time here. The first evening here we went to Hal and Cheryl’s tavern, The Brown Lantern Ale House. This is THE place to be in Anacortes! On Friday we settled in and had a little family dinner while watching sports on TV-lots of fans here-anything Seattle and of course U of A. After brunch and an early morning condo association meeting we had to attend, Saturday found us on Guemes Island with Amy’s husband, Howard and children, Maddie and Thatcher and friend Lonna. I had ample opportunity to take photos of the great house we were at and the incredible views or some nice photos of everyone, but did I? Just one. My children will be very disappointed in me for that! As am I.

In my defense, we have been here many times over the years, although not much in recent years. Plus, this is as relaxed as I’ve been in awhile. After Minnesota, every single stop has been for one night only, and there is nothing relaxing about checking in and out of hotels every single day. Staying put in a house for a few days is a nice break, but after 3 nights I was starting to get that feeling, like it’s time to get moving…On Sunday morning we went out for a nice brunch and played 9 of the worst holes of golf ever(and I’m not talking about the golf course). Wow, we sucked, but it was a beautiful day and the golf course was near Deception Pass, which is truly one of the most beautiful places in the area!

After a wonderful breakfast and some quick photos, on Monday morning we were back on the road again-destination Portland, Oregon…….It’s so nice to see such spectacular scenery! Once we hit Leavenworth, it’s been all good! Tomorrow marks 10 weeks on the road and we have 4 or 5 nights in hotels left and then….our own bed again!

: The view from Hal & Cheryl’s balcony

: Amy and Rick playing a game on Guemes Island.

: The view from the front porch.

: Morning coffee in the living room

: This sweet dog reminds me of our grandpuppy, Charles.

: My favorite painting at Hal and Cheryl’s.

: Hal, Cheryl and Rick

: The front of their house.

: The Space Needle in Seattle.

A whole-hearted apology to Texas-west Texas in particular. In the last few years, I may have said that Texas is the ugliest state ever. I now know there are far uglier places. In addition to northeastern Wyoming……Southern Montana….Eastern Washington-Spokane in particular, which may be the single ugliest city I’ve ever seen! Sorry if anyone is from there. Truly! Just kidding. Hahaha! By the time we took the turn onto Highway 2, we were both so tired of the landscape we wanted to scream.

Tuesday marked 9 weeks on the big road trip. I got a message on my iPhone saying I need to purchase more space in iCloud or start deleting, so I went through our trip photos backwards and got rid of duplicates or photos that just weren’t that good. It made me re-live some of the great times we have had. It makes me a little sad that the trip is almost over…….. We went as far as Missoula, MT. Drove through Billings, Bozeman, and Butte. So, basically most of southern Montana.

We got to Wenatchee, WA late Wednesday afternoon for a quick visit with Rick’s brother Jim and wife Renee’. Hadn’t seen them in forever and had a very nice visit! Afterwards we headed to Leavenworth for a little dose of Germany. As if Rick didn’t have enough German the last couple of months…. But I needed a dose. Wienerschnitzl and Pomme Frites! They tried to serve it with spaetzle (which is a German noodle) and that’s just not okay in my book…. It has to be French fries, darn it! It finally got prettier in the Leavenworth area! Our hotel is on the Wenatchee river with a balcony overlooking the river. Note to my brother-in-law, Hal, who has told me for the last 30 years that Leavenworth is not worth seeing: I call B***S***!

Thursday morning started out chilly and drizzly. We walked around Leavenworth and in and out of the many cute shops. Rick is not a shopper. I may have mentioned this before. So the only things we bought were some adorable stuffed animals for the nieces and nephews we would see when we got to Anacortes. There isn’t much room in our car for anything extra at this point anyway.

A quick apology to anyone who posted a message in the last few days. I have been inundated with BS spam, to the tune of up to 125 per day. So, when I sign on to the blog, the first thing I have to do is go through the messages and mark them as approved, spam or trash. I may have accidentally deleted some that I should have approved. I wish I knew how to block this evil intrusion, but unfortunately they are not all from the same sender or I imagine it would be pretty simple.

Some photos. Next stop, Anacortes.