Monday, November 26, 2012

A Wonderful Thanksgiving on First Beach



We decided to spend Thanksgiving in La Push at Quileute Oceanside Resort.  We both have a lot to be thankful for each and every day.  After the year that I have had, I feel especially grateful this Thanksgiving.  And it felt very spiritual to be spending it  next to the ocean on Native American land.


The Bainbridge ferry seemed like a good choice-better than heading south and driving around the Hood Canal.  We caught the 7:55am and the fare was less than what we expected with Ruby-score !
The day was gray and overcast-just what you expect this time of year in the Pacific Northwest-but it never dampened our spirits.  The Olympics had a beautiful dusting of snow and some trees still had their Autumn leaves .  The ride to Port Angeles went by quickly .


We hadn't been along the route to La Push out of Port Angeles for at least 15 years  I had forgotten how beautiful it was.  The road winds along Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park and every turn holds a view prettier than the last.





It took us about 4 hours, including the ferry ride, to get to the resort.  We were prepared for rain so imagine how happy we were to find overcast skies and no rain ! We pulled into our spot and set up for the long week end.  We were in space #38 with the ocean right out our front window.  The sites are gravel with electric,water and sewer hook up. This time of year there aren't many people camping so we had lots of  breathing room between neighbors.  There were about 5 RVs to our right and only  1 to the left,so we had a very peaceful week end.

The view from our front window


It's amazing what you can accomplish in a tiny kitchen-especially for Thanksgiving.  I made a small turkey breast,stuffing,mushroom gravy,garlic mashed potatoes and fresh cranberries. I passed on the sweet potatoes-if I can't have my sister's special sweet potato casserole it's just not the same.


Add a little candlelight,some good wine (Viognier from Starlite Vineyards) and a quiet moment of reflecting over what we were both thankful for -it made for a perfect evening.


This was the first time we put the awning down and it didn't stay down for long.  After dinner I did a quick weather check before we headed out for a walk on the beach. Oh-Oh, a high wind warning for our beach-predicted to be 45-50 mph winds.  So down came the awning and at about midnight we were very happy that we rolled it up.  The winds were howling so much I thought we were going to get lifted up and dropped in Kansas ! Ruby was rocking and rolling well into the wee hours of the morning.


Do you see the face of the Wind spirit in the tree stump?

The beach here is one of the wildest ones in Washington.  The whole area feels untamed and the waves are crazy incredible !





The beach foam reminded me of snow and felt a little festive.

You can't believe the size of some of the logs on the beach-and it's even crazier to see the ocean roll them around like little sticks.





Our parking enforcement officer.

We thought it was going to be a grey sunset with a little streak of pink and orange.







And then the skied started to turn more blue and purple.

And just when we thought nightfall was settling in, the clouds literally parted and we got to witness one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen.



 


As we watched the setting of this gorgeous sun, we knew we were very blessed .  An absolutely perfect  ending to day of gratefulness and thankfulness for all that we have.







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