Brake Lights & Bug Bites

The next stop on our journey was North Cascades National Park in Northwestern Washington. There are not many campgrounds that can accommodate large rigs near the park, and since it was Labor Day weekend, everything was booked. Instead, we decided to spend the weekend in Spokane. We watched football, explored the city, and celebrated Charlie’s 15th birthday.

How is he already 15? Cue the mom tears. I’m so proud of the young man Charlie is becoming. He loves Jesus and others so well. He is kind, thoughtful, servant-hearted, and a joyful big brother. He loves circling the lake one more time, strumming his guitar, working hard, and exploring nature whether it’s hiking, animals, or geography. I could go on and on, but simply put, he’s a gift to our family. Celebrating him was such a joy, and I can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store for him.

On Monday, we packed up and drove 5 1/2 hours from Spokane to Marblemount, WA. In my last blog, I mentioned that one of the reasons we love travel days is the surprises we encounter along the way. This day was no exception. For much of the drive, we followed the Columbia River, passing several dams, including the Grant Coulee Dam, the largest in the U.S.

But, our favorite surprise was the apple orchards. For about an hour, we drove through acres upon acres of apple orchards with towering stacks of apple bins and massive storehouses. It was such a fun sight! After the river valley, we came to the Cascade Mountain Range. Wow! This volcanic range stretches over 500 miles as part of the Pacific Ring of Fire and is home to famous peaks like Mount Rainier and Mount. St. Helens.

Driving to our campground in Marblemount meant crossing the mountains themselves. Once again, a huge shoutout to Ken for safely pulling our camper over those steep grades.  I’m always so grateful for the way he gets our little home from one place to the next.

We only had three full days in North Cascades, but with just one road through the park, we were able to see a surprising amount. What struck me the most was just how different it felt from Glacier National Park, only eight hours away. The Cascades are dominated by jagged, steep peaks while Glacier featured more of the classic rounded mountain landscape with bowl-shapped areas that have been carved out by glaciers.

And then–the glaciers in North Cascades! This was the surprise of all surprises! I had the opportunity to teach about glaciers this summer at our church’s Vacation Bible School. If I am being honest, I really did not know that much about glaciers. I learned so much as I prepared for teaching and I could not wait to see real glaciers while we were visiting Glacier National Park. But, I was so disappointed. We only saw a few, and they were far in the distance. But North Cascades? They are everywhere! In fact, the park holds the largest concentration of glaciers in the lower 48, more than 300 compared to Glacier’s 25!

Here’s the quick version of what I learned while preparing to teach. Glaciers are large bodies of slow-moving ice, formed over hundreds of years when more snow falls than melts. Year after year, the layers compress into dense ice until they grow heavy enough to move, carving valleys and shaping entire landscapes. Glaciers currently hold Earth’s largest supply of freshwater. Fascinating, right? Seeing them in person, reminded me just how powerful and beautiful these slow-moving giants are!

On our first day, we ventured outside of the park to explore the Mount Baker Scenic Byway in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. It was a long drive, three hours each way, but absolutely worth it! The byway is a winding road that features towering old-growth trees, a swift-moving river, and splendid mountain views ending in some of the state’s most breathtaking views!

Just before the ascent, I stopped for gas. That’s when the twins suddenly shouted, “Lambo! Porsche! Maserati!” To our surprise, about 25 luxury sports cars were gathering to drive the pass together. Somehow, I ended up leading the pack—in my minivan of all things. Needless to say, I pulled aside quickly to let them fly past. As they zoomed past us, slowing on turns and then blasting forward, it felt like we had stumbled into a Formula 1 race. For our car-loving twins, it was like Christmas morning came early.

The road ends at Artist Point, which offers a 360° view of Mount Baker and Mount Shuksan. Mount Baker is the northernmost volcano in the Cascade chain and one of the snowiest places in North America. It even holds a record for most snowfall in a winter season. We stretched our legs on a short hike, soaking in the views, before winding our way back down. By unanimous vote, the Mount Baker Byway became our family’s favorite scenic drive.

As I mentioned, there is only one road in Cascades National Park, North Cascades Highway. Since we drove this on the way in and would be driving it again as we left, we spent a day revisiting the overlooks and hiking trails that caught our eye. We hiked Thunder Knob trail–a 3.6 mile trail through a mossy forest that eventually opens up to spectacular views of turquoise Diablo Lake. The boys splashed in the lake, learned about Diablo Dam which helps to provide power to Seattle, and earned another Junior Ranger badge. Unfortunately there were a few wildfires throughout the park so many of the views were hazy.

I want to share one more story with you. I often share about the things that we see and experience along our way, but I rarely share about the people we meet. We have had the opportunity to meet a lot of different people along our journey. Each one has their own unique story to share. The boys love when we meet other families with children. While in Glacier, we connected with a family from Florida. The kids all had the best time together.

As we were leaving North Cascades on Friday, a man two sites over stopped me to ask about our rig. He and his wife are from Arizona, traveling with friends. As we chatted, he turned to Charlie and shared a story I will never forget.

He had been scheduled to be at work in the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, in an office right below where the first plane hit. But that morning, he stopped to chat with someone at a bagel stand and was not at his desk when the plane struck. He described piling five people into his minivan and racing out of the city, watching as the second plane hit in his rearview mirror.

Looking Charlie in the eyes, he said he’d learned two lessons that day: first, that—besides the Lord—family is the most important thing, and second, to say yes to the moment. Yesterday is behind us, tomorrow is not promised, but we can choose to fully live the moment. If he would not have stopped to talk with the man at the bagel stand, his story may have ended very differently. He believed the Lord had saved him that day and he felt compelled to share his story with people he meets. His story was powerful, and I’m grateful Charlie was there to hear it firsthand.. We ended up leaving the campground 45 minutes after Ken pulled out, but I am thankful we were able to say yes to the moment to talk this man and his friend. He encouraged us on our journey and challenged us to live in the moments that God gives us.

Normally, I would begin this section with “unfortauntely,” but in light of that conversation, I will frame it differently. Our journey has taken a little bit of a detour.

Instead of heading to Seattle and then Olympic National Park, we had to backtrack 5 1/2 hours to Post Falls, Idaho to drop our camper at a dealership. While the original repair in St. Louis fixed the main issue, the finishing work was sloppy–stripped screws, cracked moldings, things reinstalled improperly, messy glue and caulk. We were so incredibly disappointed. Brinkley found a dealer in the area that would be able to make it right. We are not exactly sure how long the repairs will take, but we are going to continue our travels for now living out of Airbnbs. Next stop: Seattle! Stay tuned for what’s ahead!