G.A.S.P.

(Great Adventures to Scenic Places)

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August 21, 1999

The next morning, I was the first one up, and walked to the lodge (about ź mile) for breakfast, then back by way of the beach. By the time I got back, Hap and Diane had already packed up and left for the lodge by way of the road. I kept expecting to find them again later in the day, but never did. For most of the day I rode through timber country, and found many signs saying when the timber had been harvested, when replanted, when due to be harvested again, etc. The timber industry obviously is sensitive to (environmental) criticism and is trying to do a good PR job.

Click on thumbnail to see fulll photograph.

I tried to find a campground in Hoquiam or Aberdeen, but there were none so I rode on (85 miles total) to Lake Sylvia State Park. The sign said "Full", but I rode around until I found the campground host and asked about a Biker/Hiker site. There was one left (hoo-ha, because I don’t know where else I would have gone), so I readily took it. It was a beautiful campground full of large trees, and I had my own giant evergreen of some kind.

Olympic is a fantastic National Park. It has exceptional scenery and a lot more diversity than many of the other Parks: a beautiful mountain range, ocean shores, majestic trees (the world’s largest of several species are here), and a true rain forest. In my mind, Washington State is rapidly becoming a "must see" destination point for travelers who want to view the best scenery in America.