Thanksgiving is typically a holiday of overindulgence. You
eat way too much food or way too many pieces of pie. You hang out with your
family way too much. It’s not supposed to be a holiday of discipline, but this
time, for us, it was a mix of excess and exercise.
Cold birds aside, Jason completed his race like a natural.
Jason and I have served as running coaches for our nephew since last August. He took on the ambitious goal of completing his first half marathon for a school class. That race, the Thankful 13, took place Thanksgiving morning. Although he was not always a consistent trainer and was sick the day of the race, he finished strong around 2:47. Jason also entered this half marathon; he pretty much did it cold turkey. (Yes, pun intended.) He finished in 1:50 at an 8:26/mile pace. I did the 5K and probably didn’t even burn the caloric equivalent of one of the many Magleby’s rolls I ate with my holiday meal; it was kind of a one-bun run.
It’s impossible not to smile after the completion of a long race, unless your mouth is otherwise occupied with vomiting.I only ran a 5K, so this victory shot may be more like a cheap shot.
Speaking of feasting, Jason’s family got together the
weekend before Thanksgiving, which made the holiday less stuffed for us both
literally and metaphorically. We were able to go to my family’s without any consumption
conflicts. My family’s gathering was sadly small this year. Siblings and their
families were on vacation, sick, or exiling themselves by choice. Still, the
small group present ate enough food to fill the gap.
The Sabin clan assembled rowdily the week before Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving provides a terrific excuse to bake fabulous things
that are too sinful and/or time-consuming to justify cooking otherwise. This time,
Jason and I made honeyed yogurt pumpkin pie with pistachio-coconut streusel and
a pumpkin pull-apart loaf from scratch and bought a marzipan cake from Gourmandise.
The cake was our nephew’s requested treat for completing his race. Even with the
heaps of cuisine available on Thanksgiving, our overeating didn’t set in until
afterwards. We consumed way too many leftover-turkey pot pies in the week
following the holiday, an easy undertaking when homemade crusts are involved.
We made a honeyed yogurt pumpkin pie with pistachio-coconut streusel. It was as good as its fancy name suggests.
Thanksgiving kept us running around and eating around but in the intentional sort of way. Praise be to dessert and dashing!
Moab is a place unlike any other. Despite the dozens of
times we’ve traveled to its crimson outcroppings, Jason and I are still
enamored by its resilient magnificence. We took a monumental escape to that
enigmatic countryside last fall, as we do every autumn. Hidden art,
architecture, and arches abounded, along with a little vengeance.
Sipapu Bridge is solid yet elegant.
On this trip, we decided to seek out Natural Bridges
National Monument. Natural Bridges is two hours south of Moab, far enough away
that we never realized it was that close. Better now than never.
Horse Collar Ruin is so named because the openings on these two structures look like horse collars.Horse Collar Ruin includes a number of structures camouflaged under the niches of White Canyon.
In Natural Bridges, we decided to hike the 5.6-mile loop
that twists through the Cedar Mesa sandstone cliffs in White Canyon to Sipapu
and Kachina Bridges. What a terrific trek! The canyon was peaceful and vibrant,
filled with gilded sunshine filtered through golden leaves and reflected off bright
canyon walls.
Kachina Bridge trades refinement for strength.
Sipapu Bridge, the second-largest natural bridge in the
United States, was the first span we encountered on our path. Ladders, handrails,
and staircases guided us to this remarkable 268-foot arc. After we passed its worn
bow, we didn’t see another human being until we emerged from the canyon miles
later. That’s my kind of hike!
We made it to Owachomo as the sky was darkening from blue to black.
Between Sipapu and Kachina, we nearly missed our favorite
part of our trek. Horse Collar Ruin, a seven-hundred-year-old group of buildings
constructed by the Ancestral Puebloan, was a highlight of the day. Jason went
on a side trail looking for the ruin in the area we thought it was probably
located and came back shaking his head. He had, in fact, been gazing right at
it, but it blended into the background quite effectively, as its builders intended.
Luckily, I noticed one of its stone structures thanks to both happenstance and
my attention to detail. When seeking Horse Collar Ruin on your own hike, be
aware that there isn’t a sign directing you to it. You will have to pay careful
attention to the canyon ledges to find these fascinating edifices.
It’s not just the terrain that takes your breath away on Hell’s Revenge. The views do that too.
Kachina Bridge, our last stop in route, was a chunky
contrast to Sipapu. Its 44-feet girth is bulky and rough. Maybe it just needs
the seasoning of another 30,000 years in nature’s finishing school.
Thousands of arches hang in the area surrounding Moab, each of them worn exquisitely.Change your perspective and an arch looks completely different.
By the time we completed our loop through Sipapu and
Kachina, the sun had set in a moonless sky, and blackness was rushing in to
fill the void. Yet, we still set out on the short path to Owachomo Bridge,
determined to see the last span in the monument. The bridge’s slender shape was
impressive silhouetted against the deepening heavens. Good thing we lack the
common sense to stop hiking when night falls.
The trail to Jeep Arch begins in an unusual fashion, through a metal tunnel about 200 feet long.
The next day, we scheduled an activity that is typical for
Moab but atypical for us in Moab: jeeping. Robert Mick, son of legendary Dan
Mick, took us on Hell’s Revenge. Vengeance is sweet! Hell’s Revenge starts out
intimidating with the aptly-named Intimidator, a thin fin of sandstone that
doesn’t look fit for a vehicle. The rest of the trail keeps the adrenaline
pumping, the eyes popping, and the giggles erupting. Robert did some crazy
stuff I would never, ever, ever have tried. Not only did we ride along the
Abyss and Black Hole, we also took the optional plunge into Hell’s Gate. Hell’s
Gate is nearly vertical and skewed in every direction. It looks completely
unpassable. One guy watching us said, “I just pooped my pants” as we crested over
the last of the Gate’s twisted inclines.
The route to Jeep Arch is just as marvelous as the final destination.
After jeeping, we hiked to Pinto Arch. Never heard of Pinto
Arch? How about Corona Arch? Yes? Pinto Arch can be reached by taking an
offshoot from the Corona Arch Trail. Even with the many times we’ve been to
Moab and the multiple times we’ve hiked to Corona Arch, we didn’t realize Pinto
was right there. It is visible from Corona’s path if you know where to look. It
reminded me of a squatter and portlier relative of Bowtie Arch. We hit it just
around sunset, which made for some great photography.
Jeep Arch has a boxier opening than most.
Our last day in Moab, we hiked to Jeep Arch. Online reviews said this trail was super hard to follow and getting lost was practically guaranteed. We did not think that was the case at all. Tracking cairns was necessary in many spots as the path wound over stretches of rock, but these sections were well marked. The route was scenic and the arch’s jagged opening curious. If you undertake this hike, the left side of the loop is the better side. The surroundings are prettier and afford a finer perspective of the arch. It took us about three hours to complete this nearly-four-mile jaunt. Driving back from this excursion, we discovered something new. Although we’ve gone down State Route 279 many times, we never realized there are hundreds of petroglyphs along this road. If you want to find yourself similarly surprised, look for a sign on the south side of the byway near the climbing routes. The petroglyphs can be viewed from the road easily, but binoculars are nice.
We’ve passed the abundant petroglyphs along State Road 279 numerous times without realizing they were there.
After over a decade of biannual trips to Moab, that desert wonderland
still holds mysteries and marvels, along with a few of Hell’s hurdles.
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.
The Chihuly Garden is conveniently, and strategically, located right by the Space Needle.
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.
We visited the Market Theater Gum Wall not once but thrice.
The remains of my chewings are now stuck to Seattle forever.
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 didn’t gain any time by taking a ferry out of Seattle, but we did gain this briny urban vista.
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.
Ships drifting in and out of the port provided nightly entertainment from our back porch.
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.
A saturated forest separates Cape Flattery from the rest of the land.
Even the most tentative of hikers can easily travel the trail to Cape Flattery.
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.
At Cape Flattery, strings of caves and whittled sea stacks attest to the relentless persistence of the ocean.
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.
From Hurricane Ridge, mythical mounts, like Unicorn Peak, are revealed in a majestic sweep.
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.
Battery Kinzie’s two stories and 15 rooms are all yours for the exploring at Fort Worden, including the spooky parts.
The Point Wilson Lighthouse is still illuminating Puget Sound after more than a century.
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!
If you haven’t taken a trip with your family in a while, you really should. Now is the perfect time to reconnect with those crazy people you call kin.
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.
The home we rented was situated perfectly on the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
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.
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