Jason and I took a couple vacations with my family last spring, but we thought we might as well make it an odd trio for 2018 via a fall trip to the coast of Washington. After all, everyone knows that odd numbers are more aesthetically pleasing than even ones.

Jason and I decided to head to Washington a day early to explore Seattle before the arrival of my family. We occupied most of that time by eating. You think I jest? I do not sir. We stayed near Pike Place Market and used that advantageous location to sample food in excess from many of Seattle’s best eateries. Our first evening, we gobbled sliders, kimchi, and wings at Chan, a Korean gastropub. Chan’s sliders are the nibbles of legend, which explains the restaurant’s ranking as #3 of the over 3,000 bistros in Seattle.

The next morning, we ate something called a sammy at Dahlia’s Bakery. Whatever the name, it was one of the best breakfast sandwiches I’ve ever eaten. We wandered around the Market and shopped a bit before chomping again. (A stomach needs a break sometime.) The Crumpet Shop supplied us with both savory and sweet crumpets for our next grub installment. Delish!

We filled the afternoon with something other than eating, just for variety’s sake. MoPOP gave us a peek at the props of fantasy, horror, and sci-fi culture. Chihuly Garden and Glass offered colorful displays of arty culture. Finally, we did what all tourists have to do in Seattle; we rode to the top of the Space Needle. The Space Needle was remodeled in 2018 to include the only rotating glass floor in the world. From 500 feet up, “The Loupe” affords a daunting perspective of the city. I thought standing on that turning base would set off some height misgivings, but I must be tougher than a talking goat. After our little break from stuffing ourselves, we couldn’t end the evening without stuffing ourselves. Lecosho furnished the ingredients for our last porking of the day.

The next day, my sister joined us for more eating undertakings. We gobbled Greek yogurt at Ellenos (the top-rated place in the city), pickles from Britt’s Pickles, pie and breakfast sandwiches from Dahlia’s Bakery, buttery croissants and macaroons from Le Panier, doughnuts from the Daily Dozen, tea from the Perennial Tea Room, cheese from Beecher’s, and pavlova from Café Campagne. Yup, all we did was chew food… and chew gum, which we deposited on the Market Theater Gum Wall. After that consumption overload, we headed to Port Angeles to meet up with my parents.

The subsequent morning, our whole group went to the Makah Museum and Cape Flattery. The Makah Museum displays some interesting tribal artifacts that were preserved in a mudslide hundreds of years ago. Yup, we went from nerd culture to native culture at warp speed. Cape Flattery is the most northwestern piece of the contiguous United States. Its sculpted stacks and warped hollows serve as a singular reminder of the ocean’s endless assault.

Following that eventful day, we spent some time at Port Angeles’ tiny farmers market before heading to Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. Hurricane Ridge is jagged and windy, a remarkable contrast from the soggy sections of the park. We did some mild hiking to viewpoints along the Big Meadow, Cirque Rim, and High Ridge Trails with a detour to Sunrise Point. Grand views sprawled into the skyline in every direction.

That evening, we sat around a fire in the backyard eating homemade soup, discussing politics and Poldark, and watching lights shimmer like celestial orbs across the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It was an iconic oceanic experience.

Our final day in Washington, we headed to Port Townsend to check out the Point Wilson Lighthouse and the rest of Fort Worden Historical State Park. Although still an active beacon, the lighthouse was not open to the public that day. So, we searched for marine treasures along the beach and hidden tunnels through the park’s many bunkers. Fort Worden contains over a dozen bunkers. These military installations are pretty awesome because, apart from their stripped innards, they have been left intact, and you are free to explore them in their entirety. Secret passageways, slim ladders, narrow stairways, and mysterious ramparts are all yours to inspect. You can go bonkers for bunkers!

What was left of the day, we spent shopping and dining in Port Townsend. For a smallish town, Port Townsend contains some surprising shops. My favorite of these was World’s End, a Victorian pirate and steampunk bazaar. We found some rare booty there.

Our time in Washington included memorable outings and memorable people. What better to do with the fine people in your life than explore the world, feed your face, gain cultural insights, and shout frustrations at the TV while you watch Poldark? Memorable indeed.

A nephew, Benson, wanted to celebrate his birthday via camping this year. He invited Jason and I to join him, along with a few members of his immediate family. So, we went on a late fall outing to Rockport Reservoir in celebration of this significant occasion. Chatting, crepe munching, hiking, and wind battling ensued.

Although I know my nephew loves me, I also know this invitation was extended in part to take advantage of my planning skills. Finding season-appropriate campsites at superb locations is a forte of mine, one that Benson wanted to utilize. I did not fail him. I reserved us a secluded spot at Rockport Reservoir, a great low-altitude option for the cool weather.

We spent our evening hours eating tinfoil dinners and conversing around the campfire. Sometime well after midnight, we finally crawled into our tents, minivans, and hammocks for the night just as the wind was preparing to begin a gusty jig.

The next morning, I made birthday crepes. No nephew of mine is having yogurt for breakfast on his birthday if I can help it. Creating crepes wasn’t the easiest task given our limited supplies and the limitless breeze. They turned out perfectly edible despite the wind’s many efforts to add leaves to the batter.

After some rock skipping, we broke camp and attempted, unsuccessfully, to find a trail to a row of cliffs above the water. Following that failure, we headed to Oakley for a hike up Seymour Canyon. We only trekked 3.5 miles on this path in total, but sections were drastically steep, so not all members of our group made it the whole way. Still, we had fun and earned the giant hamburgers we consumed at Billy Blanco’s on the way home.

Many years from now, Benson will look back to the days when getting older felt like an accomplishment. Somewhere in that nostalgic collage, he will recollect eating birthday crepes around a campfire with some eccentric relatives. I’m proud that the crepes and eccentricity etched in that memory will be mine.