Final Approach

At last we've arrived in Seattle and have time to update the last few days. Last Saturday we made our way through Montana, aka the former stomping grounds of Uncle Nick, who worked with the Bureau of Land Management in Missoula and later at the Big Sky Resort. We stopped by the resort and with some cell phone navigation from Nick, we took a tour of the area, including his aquiline old apartment.

Emily and I were impressed with the size of Big Sky Resort: there were dozens of hotels, condos, etc., and ski runs everywhere. It was an enormous operation.

We continued on to Missoula and visited some friends, Kelli and Andrew Larson, who have two daughters, Averi, 3, and Sophie, 1. Emily and Kelli worked together at Loyola for a few years until she and Andrew moved back to their homestate of Montana two years ago. We had a terrific time with them and their kids. Alas, we didn't take any photos of them, but I did find online this picture of Andrew from when he kicked the game-winning field goal in the 1995 I-AA championship game. Go Griz!

From Missoula we continued to Lewiston, ID, where we visited some of Emily's cousins on her dad's side. We stayed with her cousin Betty, who spoiled us with fresh huckleberries and peaches and wonderful hospitality. We had a wonderful visit with her. When were first arrived, Betty's daughter Nancy was also there with her husband and two kids, Gabe and Joe. We enjoyed catching up with them, and they enjoyed meeting Michael.

After two nights in Lewiston, we were up early for the last leg of our journey to Seattle. We were surprised to find that eastern Washington is not verdant at all. The farmlands on either side of the highway were sun-baked and occasionally sun-burned. It wasn't until we reached the Cascade Mountains that the rain began, and it lasted the entire climb through the mountain range, which meant I had to keep my eyes close on the road without taking in the beautiful evergreens around us. The rain let up as we neared Seattle, and once we got to the ferry station it was a light but steady drizzle. We found our ferry without much problem...

...but we missed the 1:oo ferry by just a few minutes! That gave us an hour before the 2:00 and a chance to stretch our legs and look out over the Puget Sound. Michael was definitely happy to be out of his car seat!

Soon we caught sight of the 2:00 ferry approaching the dock.

The upside of missing the 1:00 ferry is that we were first in line for the 2:00. We pulled forward all the way to the bow. Here is the view of Puget Sound through our windshield. On a clear day Bainbridge Island would be totally visible; todayyou could just make out it contours.

Then finally after thirteen days on the road and over three thousand miles we arrived at 9386 Ferncliff Avenue and found our PODS container waiting for us with everything more or less in place -- and also dry!
Here is the cottage we'll be living in. It's one of five properties on the compound. Once we get things settled, I'll post some photos of the interior, but right now it's total mess.
The owners of the compound and all its properties live in a house that overlooks the Puget Sound and the city of Seattle. Their yard is maybe twenty yards away from our cottage and has a fantastic view of the downtown. Emily and I walked out there again tonight to see the skyline at night and it was also a wonderful sight.