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Old 01-25-2013, 06:37 AM   #1
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Suggestions for BC to Seatlle area

We are finishing our tour of Alaska on Sept 2 in Smithers, BC. I would sure appreciate some suggestions on where to go afterwards. We are thinking of less touring and more relaxing on the way down to the States since we will be coming off of a 48 night tour. Rough plan is a couple of weeks to get to Washington, then, the last two weeks of September somewhere in Washington and heading down the coast to get into California to see our daughter in LA area by the end of October. We live in Texas and have never been in the Northwest before, so any ideas would be welcomed.
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Old 01-25-2013, 06:56 AM   #2
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Cross the border, head south on I5 and at Longview,WA follow the signe to hwy30 west toward Astoria,OR. From there any and every state park south on US101 is a cant miss situation. Once you cross i to CA you have the redwoods and hwy1 if you have a small car to travel it. Hwy1 in northern CA is definitely NOT RV friendly. You can cross back to I5 on hwy20 in CA or continue on south on 101. The biggest hurdle is then SanFrancisco, but judicious planning should get you through that mess with minimum problems. Then it is contimue on south on 101/1 down some more spectatular scenery.
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Old 01-25-2013, 10:58 AM   #3
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Thanks Don. Any suggestions on the BC to Seattle route? Also, Recommendations in the Seattle area to stay for a week or so?
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Old 01-25-2013, 04:22 PM   #4
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BC to Seattle, I5 is about your only choice. Personally unless you have a reason to stop i would get through SEATAC as fast as possible. There are some south of Tacoma but not a lot that i can think of
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Old 01-25-2013, 05:30 PM   #5
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If you can afford the ferry to Vancouver Island, it's beautiful, especially in early Sept. There is a nice ferry from Victoria to Port Angeles to cross back to the States, then down the to Seattle there are many nice little spots to explore.
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Old 01-25-2013, 06:51 PM   #6
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When you end your tour at Smithers be sure to take in the Ksan Historic Village which is right there, including the tour that takes you inside the structures. It's fabulous.

Most definitely you'll want to tour Jasper down to Banff if you haven't already - Jasper is our favorite of the two but you need to see it all. From Banff cut over on Hwy 93 to Radium Hot Springs for some soaking. You'll need this relaxation by then! Then take 95 north a short distance to pick up Hwy 1 at Golden and go to Kamloops and continue down to Hope. A good crossing back to the U.S. is at Sumas, Washington a short drive from Hope. Further west, the Blaine crossing is VERY slow and busy.

Unless you really want to tour Seattle and get into its traffic, I would suggest picking up the Port Townsend ferry from Oak Harbor. It's a very short ride and it will put you on the Olympic Peninsula. Port Townsend is a neat area with some nice RV spots. When you get off the ferry, Fort Worden State Park is near and it has wonderful waterside RV spots for any size RV. Reservations are recommended as it's a popular park.

You can do some more relaxin' in that area and there are multiple routes to get to the Oregon coast. One is to take Hwy 101 all around the Olympic Peninsula. Port Angeles and Forks have some nice RV spots. There aren't many parks from Forks down to Hoquiam/Aberdeen so stop for a night before that. The Olympic rain forest in the national park is nice to explore from Forks. From Aberdeen continued down 101 onto the coast of Oregon. It's all good easy driving with an RV and this is the most scenic way, in our opinion. Or from Port Townsend just get on I-5 south. Have a great trip!
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Old 01-25-2013, 08:00 PM   #7
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Chillin47
If you are serious about staying in Seattle area for awhile, there is an RV park about 10 miles from down town Seattle east on I90. My DD & SIL stayed there about 2 years ago when he was getting medical treatment and needed to be close to the hospital. If you want more info let me know and I will get it for you.
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Old 01-26-2013, 06:46 AM   #8
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I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of the input. It really takes a load off my mind in this planning stage (and being freshly retired, I would rather not have any more stress",lol) so, thank you everyone.
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Old 01-26-2013, 02:21 PM   #9
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We don't like to go south in I-5 through Seattle any more. The three right lanes are very rough for a rig like ours (32' Class A on an F-53 chassis) and cause resonant suspension bouncing that destroyed a VCR in the overhead on our first trip. If you're passing through in non-rush hour times, going round to the east of the city on I-405 is smoother.

If you want a CG with good access to Seattle, you might want to consider Lake Pleasant in Bothell. It's about 18 miles out, just off I-405 and has transit bus service going by outside. Since we lived in Bothell before we moved to Anacortes, and have family in the area, we've never stayed there.

I concur with two gypsies' comment about going across on the Port Townsend ferry (which runs from Coupeville, a fair stride south of Oak Harbor). That ferry route is actually part of SR20, and south of Port Townsend SR20 meets Highway 101. You then have the choice of going west on 101 to the Washington Coast, or on the eastern loop of 101 which goes alongside Hood Canal. CG options are much better on the peninsula and you can take a ferry as foot passengers from Bremerton into Seattle for a day in the city.

Of course, 101 isn't as quick a route south as I-5 would be, but for a gentle "ramble" it's pretty nice, and it's not narrow and twisty.
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Old 01-28-2013, 08:09 AM   #10
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The Fraser River canyon route is very scenic as well...
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Old 01-28-2013, 09:44 PM   #11
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If you have not been to Seattle before, then it is worth the stay. As a previous poster recommended, the best place to stay by far in the area is Lake Pleasant in Bothell WA. You would being going south on I-5 and exit onto I 405. Not far from there.

While in Seattle, check out getting a tour of the 777/767/747/787 plant in Everett. The downtown Seattle area is great. Waterfront, Aquarium, Pike Place Market are some things to see. Also see Museum of Flight in South Seattle and Seattle Center. Mt. Rainer is a beautiful place to visit. And lots more.

Sept is a great time to be in Seattle. Head south on I-5 and work your way over to the ocean and take highway 1 south through Oregon.

Enjoy your trip and your stay in the NW.
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Old 01-29-2013, 06:54 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RUFINIT
If you have not been to Seattle before, then it is worth the stay. As a previous poster recommended, the best place to stay by far in the area is Lake Pleasant in Bothell WA. You would being going south on I-5 and exit onto I 405. Not far from there.

While in Seattle, check out getting a tour of the 777/767/747/787 plant in Everett. The downtown Seattle area is great. Waterfront, Aquarium, Pike Place Market are some things to see. Also see Museum of Flight in South Seattle and Seattle Center. Mt. Rainer is a beautiful place to visit. And lots more.

Sept is a great time to be in Seattle. Head south on I-5 and work your way over to the ocean and take highway 1 south through Oregon.

Enjoy your trip and your stay in the NW.
We have never been to the Seattle area. Thanks for all of the suddestions
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Old 01-29-2013, 06:57 AM   #13
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Originally Posted by frankdamp
We don't like to go south in I-5 through Seattle any more. The three right lanes are very rough for a rig like ours (32' Class A on an F-53 chassis) and cause resonant suspension bouncing that destroyed a VCR in the overhead on our first trip. If you're passing through in non-rush hour times, going round to the east of the city on I-405 is smoother.

If you want a CG with good access to Seattle, you might want to consider Lake Pleasant in Bothell. It's about 18 miles out, just off I-405 and has transit bus service going by outside. Since we lived in Bothell before we moved to Anacortes, and have family in the area, we've never stayed there.

I concur with two gypsies' comment about going across on the Port Townsend ferry (which runs from Coupeville, a fair stride south of Oak Harbor). That ferry route is actually part of SR20, and south of Port Townsend SR20 meets Highway 101. You then have the choice of going west on 101 to the Washington Coast, or on the eastern loop of 101 which goes alongside Hood Canal. CG options are much better on the peninsula and you can take a ferry as foot passengers from Bremerton into Seattle for a day in the city.

Of course, 101 isn't as quick a route south as I-5 would be, but for a gentle "ramble" it's pretty nice, and it's not narrow and twisty.
Sounds like a great suggestion...could we take our bikes on the ferry and use them in the Seattle downtown area?
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Old 01-29-2013, 05:26 PM   #14
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From the Olympic Peninsula - Port Townsend - we've drive down to Bremerton in our Jeep (about a 30 min. drive) parked, hopped on the ferry and within a hour got off the ferry right at the Aquarium/Pike Place Market area where we explored both. We then hopped on the aerial tram which took us to the Space Needle. We returned to Pike Place Market for a meal and to pick up some veggies and hopped back on the ferry for a return. It was a very easy fast day - a lot easier than parking in Seattle. Consider it!
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