Olympic Peninsula, Oh Deer (STR-2022-16)

Saturday, 9 July

Picking up where we left off in the last blog post as we explored Olympic National Park.

After getting information at the Olympic National Park Visitor Center, we stopped to get a photo with the park sign. A couple offered to take our photo if we would take theirs.

The lady asked if we had been up to Hurricane Ridge. When we said no, she said it was worth the drive up. We knew it was up - 17 miles drive, elevation gain of almost 5,000 feet. With her encouragement, we called an audible and headed up to Hurricane Ridge.

The drive up reminded us a bit of our drive into Rocky Mountain National Park via the west entrance last summer. And of driving the Blue Ridge Parkway (35mph speed limit, winding twisting road with three tunnels).

As we started up the hill, there was a sign saying that the parking lot at Hurricane Ridge was full, and that the National Park was metering vehicles into the park - allowing one vehicle in once a vehicle came out. Seeing a stream of vehicles coming out, we confidently proceeded. Either more people were leaving (it was now almost 3pm) or they were turning around.

At the entrance station, there was a backup of about 20 vehicles, with the only delay being paying of entrance fees. Sprinty climbed the hill like a champ. And scored an RV parking place which was actually closer to the Visitor Center than most of the car parking.

The view from the Visitor Center was magnificent - snow and glacier covered mountains.

We decided to do the 1.3-mile Cirque Rim to Sunrise View Point Trail, which started near the Visitor Center. As we made our way down the sidewalk, we passed within about 3 feet of two deer feeding along the sidewalk. They ignored us as we walked by.

The closest we have ever been to a deer. And a little further along, we saw a herd of deer in the grass.

As we hiked along the Cirque Rim, we learned what a cirque is. The hollow scooped out of the hillside is the headprint of a glacier. During daylight thaw, snow and ice seeped into rock cracks, refroze and expanded at night, fractured the slope. Gradually the glacier steepened and quarried the cliff into a bowl-shaped amphitheater called a cirque.

Some of the trail also still had snow on it. Someone had fun making two small snowmen and placing them on a bench.

We also learned about Goatsbeard Lichen. The wispy pale-green threads take nothing from the tree. Goatsbeard fastens to boughs but produces its own food.

Sunrise View Point provides a commanding viewpoint. We were lucky to have a fairly clear day, although the clouds to the east obscured being able to see Puget Sound.

While we were near the top, we both received Welcome to Canada texts as our phones pinged off towers on Vancouver, Island. With our visit to Olympic National Park, Sprinty has visited 29 National Parks since February 2017.

Sprinty mostly coasted back down to Port Angeles, riding 3rd gear for most of the descent. Our campsite for the night is at KOA Journey in Port Angeles.

Sunday, 10 July

Being a weekend and having planned several short hikes with limited trailhead parking, we departed fairly early.

First up was Madison Falls, a 0.1 mile trail from the parking area. We were the only ones on the trail despite about a dozen cars in the parking lot. We think the vehicles were parked there for people backpacking into the park.

As we walked towards the waterfalls, we passed a huge stump,

and some very interesting trees.

Madison Falls was quite pretty.

As we passed by Lake Crescent, we stopped to admire the view.

Lake Crescent with its fiord-like terrain - steep rock walls, long narrow lake - was carved by a glacier. As the glacier receded it left Lake Crescent. The lake disguises the extent of the gouge - the water is 600 foot depth.

We continued to the Marymere Falls trailhead located at the western edge of Crescent Lake. The hike was through magnificent old growth forest.

Some of the trees were humongous - over 10 feet in diameter.

The trail was 0.9- mile one way. After some switchbacks, we arrived at Marymere Falls.

When we got back to Sprinty, we appreciated our early stop as the parking lot was filled up.

We continued west to Sul Duc Falls. The hike was 0.8- mile one way, following along the Sul Duc River which offered picturesque running water.

Sul Duc Falls was flowing enough to cast up a mist in the area.

As we headed back to US101, we stopped for a short hike on the 0.6-mile loop Ancient Groves Nature Trail. The towering Western Hemlocks and Douglas Firs trees were amazing.

We continued on to Forks, WA to get diesel, then went to John's Beachcombing Museum, Forks, WA 10am-5pm. John Anderson is the owner and curator of John's Beachcombing Museum in Forks, Washington.

Born and raised in Forks John has always had a passion for the beaches of the Northwest. In 1976 he went beachcombing with a friend for glass floats and was hooked on beachcombing. His take from the beach expanded over time to include anything useful or colorful and eventually included just about anything that washes up on our shores.

Retiring in 2013 as the town's only plumber for 40 years he turned his plumbing shop into a museum and opened to the public in 2014. The museum has everything from glass floats to a 20 million year old mammoth tooth,

notes from bottles, art made from debris,

bottles of every sort, buoys, Japanese Tsunami Display and even an alien on a bicycle. An interesting stop, sort of a throwback to the roadside curiosity attractions of the 1960s.

We then drove past the campground to Rialto Beach. It was near low tide, so the beach was very accessible. Fortunately, there was a parking area suitable for RVs and Sprinty managed to get a spot even on a Sunday.

We took a brief walk on the beach to take in the Pacific Ocean.

James Island

Both of us reflected on how long it has been since we were at the Pacific Ocean.

With over 5 miles of hiking for the day, we decided to postpone our long walk on the beach.

Sprinty's home for the next two nights is Mora Campground in Olympic National Park, near Forks, WA.

Monday, 11 July

The morning started off as planned. As I checked the weather, I was reminded of how far Sprinty was from home.

Sprinty was about as far from home in the Lower-48 as he can get without getting wet.

We departed the campground for the Hoh Rain Forest early as National Park alerts advised of road construction on the road to the rain forest - warning to expect delays of up to 30 minutes. The park also advised to expect delays at Hoh Rain Forest entrance station due to heavy summer visitation. The parking lot at the Hoh Rain Forest can fill early, and once full, they meter vehicles in - one out, one in. They suggested arriving early.

We arrived at the parking area just before 8am, and the parking lot was already about 1/3 full.

We started with the 0.8 mile Hall of Mosses trail. The trail wound through old growth trees, many draped in moss.

Mixed in with the douglas fir and big leaf maple trees were Sitka Spruce trees which can reach over 300 feet in height.

We then did the 1.2-mile Spruce Nature Trail. We appreciated the interpretive signs to better understand the trees, the mosses, and the plant diversity.  And visiting a rain forest on a bright sunny, dry day was different than we expected for a rain forest.

At the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center, we learned that the Hoh Rain Forest receives an average of 140 inches per year (12 feet) - that makes it the wettest place in the lower 48. So far, they have already had 70 inches of rain this year.

As we left the Hoh Rain Forest, we had to stop at the Hard Rain Cafe.

We indulged in caramel lattes.

Our next stop was going to be Second Beach located near the campground. As we left Forks, WA, and about to make our left turn, a deer decided to cross the highway in front of Sprinty. Despite hard braking, Sprinty hit the deer. We saw the deer continue in the woods, so we don't know the extent of its injuries.

Pulling over, we found coolant gushing out. Within a few minutes, the Forks Fire Chief stopped to see how we were doing. He summoned the Forks Police who gathered information for the police report.

Next up was to find a place to get Sprinty worked on. The Police Chief said the only repair place in Forks, WA only worked on Fords. The repair place recommended by the Fire Chief in Port Angeles could not take Sprinty - too big. The first Mercedes place we called that worked on Sprinters said they were booked till January. The next Mercedes place, in Lynnwood, WA (north of Seattle, near Everett), said they could take us. And we could spend the night in Sprinty in their parking lot since we would arrive after hours.

We used our roadside assistance to get a tow arranged. Our roadside assistance coverage does not cover towing for an accident. However, they offered to arrange for a tow at our expense. A relief as we were in spotty cell signal area, and did not know where to start calling.

The tow they arranged had to come from south Seattle, 4 hours away. We spent the rest of afternoon packing the basics for having to stay in a hotel while we waited on the tow truck. 

We were fortunate that the towing company let us ride in the tow truck to Lynnwood (many do not). Especially as the closest rental car place is 70 miles away in Port Angeles. And fortunate to have a shoulder to pull over onto. And fortunate it was 82 degrees, instead of over 100 degrees.

And fortunate to have just enough cell signal to make phone calls and such. And fortunate to have our Roadside assistance arrange the tow, even if the cost of the tow was not covered. And to be able to sleep in Sprinty so we did not have to try and get a hotel room after midnight, our ETA to Lynnwood.

The tow took 4 hours to arrive on site, about 45 minutes to disconnect the drive shaft and load on the wrecker, and about 5+ hours to travel to Lynnwood, WA due to a serious accident just west of Port Angeles that caused over an hour delay. 

We arrived at the Mercedes dealer in Lynnwood just before 1am.

Tuesday, 12 July

The day was all wait. Mercedes of Lynnwood said they would not accept the van for repairs until the body work was completed. They provided two recommendations of body shops nearby. The first said they could not handle Sprinty's height. The second did not return our calls for quite awhile, finally said they would come look at it in the afternoon.

In the meantime, we prepared for having Sprinty being worked on in confined spaces by getting a storage unit for the eBikes and bike rack as the added length would complicate the repairs. Space was extremely tight at the Mercedes Sprinter shop . Fortunately, a Public Storage place was only two blocks away. And we started the insurance claim.

We researched renting an RV to continue our travels while Sprinty was getting fixed. However, we found limited options due to this being peak season. The only TV available (checking CruiseAmerica, several other rental places, Outdoorsy, and RVShare.com) was a 1996 Class C clunker. We elected not to compound our challenges with an unreliable RV rental.

And we waited.

And we waited.

And started canceling campground reservations that we had spent hours and hours arranging.

We submitted our receipt for the tow to Lynnwood to Progressive - they approved the entire amount. A positive step.

Rickie, the owner of Showcase Body Shop in Kirkland, WA, arrived about 3:30. He is experienced in Sprinter repairs, and we immediately talked about what would be needed, etc. He was also experienced in working with Progressive on insurance matters. He arranged for a tow to get Sprinty to his shop in Kirkland, about 15 miles away. And we were again fortunate to be able to ride in the tow truck.

The body shop parking lot resembled a junk yard. They had to do some reshuffling of vehicles to make room for Sprinty, especially as Sprinty could not move under his own power due to no coolant and a disconnected driveshaft (for yesterday's tow). Rickie offered a 20amp electrical connection so we could hook up, charge the batteries, and keep the refrigerator running for awhile.

So Sprinty adds more unique adventures to his catalog of adventures. Getting towed on a flatbed truck. Spending the night in a body shop parking lot. Navigating the insurance process.

Wednesday, 13 July

We both had a more restful night as we felt things were starting to progress. At least we have the beginnings of a plan to get back on the road again. Before noon, the body shop prepared the estimate and sent it over to Mercedes for parts pricing and availability.

About noon, we got some positive news. The parts are available, coming from California, and could be here Monday, more likely Tuesday. They said they would reshuffle their work and try and get us back on the road by next Friday. As crowded as their waiting area is and as busy as they are, I think they are as anxious to get us back on the road as we are.

We are fortunate that we wound up at Showcase Body Repair - they are the only Mercedes-certified Sprinter repair place in the state of Washington. Not only are they familiar with the parts needed, they also have experience working with Mercedes for parts and Progressive on insurance.

Rental car and hotel arrangements have been made while we await the repairs. And Sprinty can stay plugged in to the 20amp receptacle, so we don't have to throw away the food in the refrigerator. And we have access to Sprinty for anything (clothes, food, etc.) during the shop work hours.

So Sprinty's adventures are on hold. An unplanned time out of sorts.