Our Blog

 We started the New Year with one of our favorite things about living in Port Angeles: Olympic National Park. Marymere Falls hike is the superhighway hike in the park and at peak times can be very busy but on cold January 1st mornings is was only us and a few other families and retirees with similar mindsets.  Its about a two hour trip door to door and has a nice rustic stair climb, a couple bridge crossings, and lots of big trees. It makes for a nice tranquil hike.

It also has the nicest little stream, Barnes Creek, for throwing rocks and sticks. Simon can now huck a stone across the creek and into the trees. This was a big accomplishment!  Finn's technique is also getting better. The water was lower than we expected but still provided a nice rushing sound and was a crisp and cold blue on a 36 degree morning.

 There was just enough water coming over the falls to create a wet, mist stir in the air. They boys paused just long enough to snap this fine picture.  Simon gave Katie a scare by missing a turn as he ascended the stairs at a quick pace and we had to split up to find him on the loop. I think he was just getting nervous as his mother crested the peak and spotted him. Finn and I continued on the correct path to the top. Finn made the trek up the wet steep stairs without help from me.

As is usually the case the boys collected pockets of rocks to dump into the creek from the iron bridge on the way back across.

 We all had a good time exploring the nooks, crannies, roots, rocks, limbs, branches, holes, crevasses, stairs, bridges, and tunnels of Marymere Falls. Katie and I mostly enjoy the hike because the boys focus on the nature around them more than their desire to chatter at and generally annoy us.

And of course, while it wasn't much, we did find a nice pile of crunchy snow for the boys to stomp on our way out of the parking lot.