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| Mount Rainier from Tacoma, WA |
I'm not sure if this will ever pass, but every time I travel to a new place, I examine it as a potential home, especially a place like Washington. My base camp for the week was Tacoma, but after quick trips to Gig Harbor and Seattle, I decided I could likely live anywhere in the Evergreen State and be satisfied. Plus, there are Fred Meyer stores and they sell Alaskan Amber.
I was fortunate enough to, between site visits and normal work tasks, to visit Mt. Rainier National Park. The weather was overcast, as I understand is normally the case there. The park was still beautiful. The old-growth tress, glacial streams, the sweet smell of the forest reminded me of places I've never been happier in. I was slightly surprised to find much of the ground cover consisted of plants I'd just seen in the Catskills and Adirondacks, although the climate is similar. I just felt so at home, so alive, running around on the trails by myself. Unfortunately, the best view I got of Mt. Rainier itself was out my hotel room window the first night (above), but I was happy just to be there.
I also made it to the Edgeworks climbing gym to meet Candace, a twitter friend. She's the first person from twitter I've met in real-life, and we had a great bouldering session at Edgeworks. The coolest thing about Edgeworks, without a doubt, was the fact that climbers can top out on the bouldering wall. I've never seen an indoor gym with that feature. It's the last time I leave home without my climbing gear, though! The rentals, despite being Evolv shoes (possibly the Defy, not sure), didn't quite fit, and it really made a difference in how comfortable I was on the wall.
The second twitter person I met in real-life came the next night. Chris and I met in Gig Harbor for dinner, and I had some of the best fish I've ever had. He told me all about how great the outdoor climbing is in the area, and I'm determined to make it back for an outdoor day!
All in all, it was a fantastic trip