On the Road with T and S

  On Wednesday morning after breakfast, we headed back to the airport to pick up our car. We got a very nice car, a Ford Edge, fairly large for what is described as a small SUV. Then it was off on the road trip part of the holiday. Our first stop was in a cabin in Ashford, a very small town near the entrance to the Mount Rainier National Park.  Thursday morning saw us head to Mount Rainier NP. Mount Rainier at 14,410 ft is the tallest mountain in Washington State. It is an active volcano and is the most glaciated peak in the lower 48 states. We drove up to Paradise which at an elevation of 5,420 ft. is famous for its stunning views.  We then walked to Myrtle Falls and the views all round us were just stunning.  After lunch we drove to Reflection Lakes along a road with hairpin bends and precipitous drops to the side.  While in Ashford, we ate at the quaint Copper Creek Restaurant which opened in 1946 and is the oldest, continuously operating restaurant in Washington State. 

After a long but enjoyable flight from Dublin to Seattle, we checked into our hotel for an overnight stay. Then following breakfast we headed back to the airport for our flight to Juneau,                 We landed in Juneau and headed to our hotel. It felt as if winter had arrived early. It was overcast, cool and damp. We then remembered that we were now in a temperate rain forest. We walked downtown which did not take too long. Juneau is the state capital but it is very small with a population of just over 30,000 people.  The following morning we explored the city and visited the City museum and the State Capitol building.  In the afternoon we went whale watching and we were fortunate to see a number of humpback whales swimming quite close to us.  On the Thursday we woke up to torrential rain and boy, were we glad to have rain gear with us! We went out to the Mendenhall Valley to see the glacier which is gradually receding due to global warming. Luckily the rain eased up for a ti