Vacations Blog

Seattle is a port city. It exists and thrives today because of its long history of maritime shipping, trade, and proximity to the natural resources of the Great Northwest. Scenically nestled at the edge of Elliot Bay on Washington’s Puget Sound, Seattle  still has a unique and intertwined relationship with the sea. If you are interested in experiencing a taste of that relationship the next time you visit, leave the high-tech, cosmopolitan atmosphere behind for a refreshing and scenic nearby side trip. No car required, just head down the hill from the heart of downtown shopping and dining, until you find yourself at the waterfront along Alaskan Way.

If you are interested in a walking tour of Seattle’s Waterfront, try starting on the southern end at Pier 52, where Washington’s famous ferries depart Seattle for Vashon and Bainbridge Islands, or Bremerton on the Olympic Peninsula. It’s enough fun to watch the big boats come and go, but if you’re feeling especially adventurous, you can walk on for a $7.00 round trip fare. It would be well worth your time, because on a clear day, the views are outstanding and the air refreshing, though cold, so dress warmly.

Walking North on along the waterfront you will shortly come to Pier 54 and another Seattle icon, Ye Olde Curiosity Shop, a store loaded with interesting artifacts, novelty items, oddities, and the main attraction a pair of actual mummies on display, as well as rice grain carvings (seriously!) and other curiousties. It’s a bit tacky, but fun, so I recommend you stop in and take a peek, so you can at least say you have been there.

Pier 56 is home to Argosy Cruises, where you can book a sightseeing or dinner cruise, book a sailing expedition on Puget Sound, or board the Elliot Bay Water Taxi ($3.00 one way) for a 20 minute crossing to West Seattle and Alki Beach which offers abundant dining and recreational activities.  A free bus shuttle on the other side will take you to Alki Beach or the West Seattle Junction (more on this neighborhood in a future post).

Walking further north along the waterfront, you will pass several shops and restaurants, including Ivar’s Seafood Bar and Elliot’s Oyster House (where I dined on delicious fresh pacific oysters during a rare night out not long ago). Eventually, you will come to The Seattle Aquarium at Pier 59. The recently remodeled Aquarium is a world class facility with several fascinating permanent exhibits focusing on Pacific marine life, including a 360 degree glass domed room which will be a hit with the small people in attendance. I have been a member, and highly recommend the aquarium.

As you continue north along Alaskan Way, you will be treated to abundant breathtaking views of Elliot Bay, and on a clear day, the Majestic Olympic Mountains beyond. Once you reach Pier 67 you will come to an attractive lodging option for your next Seattle stay, the luxury Edgewater Inn. The Edgewater, situated right on the water and which many will remember as the place where the Beatles famously fished out of the window of their hotel room during a 1964 Seattle concert visit, offers what could very well be the most unique and scenic lodging experience in the city.

Seattle Art Museum’s Olympic Sculpture Park  (free to the public) is a wonderful outdoor space, just before the scenic and peaceful Myrtle Edwards Park. The Olympic Sculpture Park is a spectacular new waterfront park where visitors can view a variety of sculptures 365 days a year, in an outdoor setting. I have not been there yet, but my better half has, and she was duly impressed with the layout and interesting variety of the thought provoking sculpture.

You can check out nearly all these spots in a single day (with the exception of the ferry rides), but they are so nice you might want to take your time!

Waterfront photos from Seattle.gov, Beatles photo from Beatles Ultimate Experience

The economy is kicking everyone’s butt right now.

Traditions, vacations and luxuries of all kinds are being axed from the family budget – and the Daytona International Speedway wants to do something about it!

On Sunday, Feb. 15th, NASCAR’s 51st Daytona 500 race will take place in Daytona Beach, Florida.  In an effort to allow more race fans to be able to afford to attend “The Great American Race”, the Daytona International Speedway has cut prices on select tickets.

Race fans can now attend the Daytona 500 for as little as $55.

This is a significant savings in price, bringing ticket costs to 1995 levels and saving over $40 on regular priced admission.  The $55 race tickets are, obviously, for select seats.

The $55 seats are located in rows 1-8 along the Superstretch in the Allison/Lund and Turn 2 Grandstands.  I have no idea what that means as I am not a race fan, but the ticket operator referred to this area as the “lower grandstand”.  Presumably if you are planning to attend this event, you understand what words like “Turn 2″ and “famed superstretch” mean.

Visit the Daytona 500 web site for ordering information on these select tickets.  You can also call 1-800-PIT-SHOP.  (I would highly recommend using the 800 numer to do your ordering and find out about all available specials.)

When you call to order tickets, you will hear the automated attendant advertise tickest as starting at $99.  All you need to do is ask the live operator about the $55 seats and they will let you know what is still available.  As of January 30th, there were still unsold tickets at the $55 level.

Of course, even if you can get the tickets for nearly half price, what about the rest of your expenses?

First, remember that on race day you can bring in your own food and beverages.  In fact, the Daytona International Speedway allows race fans to bring in entire coolers!  Head to the local grocery store and stock up on snacks, drinks and water.  Yes, water.  A full day in the sun with little to no shade requires massive amounts of water in order to prevent dehydration.

There are several options (and price points) for lodging during Speedweek as well.

You can camp right outside of the Daytona International Speedway for $575 for Tuesday – Sunday.  Or, you can camp at one of the campgrounds in the area for a heck of a lot less (yes, that’s the official offer).  Nova Family Campground offers special rates for Daytona 500 Race week.  Sure, you can’t stumble out to your RV after a day at the races, but Daytona offers a great cab system to get you home safely for $10-$20.

Camping in February?  Absolutely!  Florida weather in February is perfect for sleeping in a tent or RV.  It’s not too hot and not too cold (although the nights can get chilly so bring blankets and sweatshirts!)

If, however, you are much too classy and/or RV impaired for camping, you can head for one of the Daytona Beach hotels or motels.  Be aware, there are only about 4,000 hotel rooms in the immediate Daytona Beach area.  That’s why you’ll pay about $300/night for a place like the Daytona Bahama House on the beach during Speedweek.

If you can’t find or are unwilling to pay for a hotel room right in Daytona Beach, remember to check surrounding areas like South Daytona or Port Orange.

Wherever you stay and whatever you do when you’re not sitting in the grandstands, be safe!  Remember that Daytona Beach is a relatively small town that will be packed to the gills with tens of thousands of other race fans and tourists, not to mention  the poor suckers who actually live here.

Photos courtesy of TequilaMike and Scubabix.

The family spent the recent Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend at our Lake Tahoe North Shore compound in Dollar Point. We’d been promising the kids a trip up to the snow for about two years now but I’ve been hesitant to make the drive until I was reasonably sure it wouldn’t snow.

Let me explain.

We’re not really snow people in that we don’t ski or snowboard or take part in any other snow related activities short of building snowmen or sledding. The last time we went to Tahoe during the winter we nearly got snowed in. I couldn’t manage to get the chains on the car and had to be towed out of the Dollar Point development, much to my embarrassment. In short it was an exercise in frustration and one I vowed not to repeat. So when I say I would only make the drive if I was reasonably sure it wouldn’t snow I mean at least during the 48-hours we planned to be there.

As luck would have it the weather was on our side that weekend. The forecast was for clear skies and cold temperatures, which to my way of thinking is just about perfect, so go we did.  We arrived about 12:30 AM on Saturday to a freezing cold cabin and what appeared to be a broken furnace. The house was probably below 50 degrees, and remained so until the following morning when the heater inexplicably decided to begin working. I did not question it I simply enjoyed it, and left it on for the remainder of our visit lest it decide to stop working again.

But this is all background information that I’m sure does not interest you so let’s get to the activities.

The kids wanted to do some sledding so we drove to the summit of Mt. Rose. From Tahoe City it’s about a 45 minute drive on N. Tahoe Blvd (Hwy 28) to the Mt. Rose turn-off (Hwy 431). On the drive up Hwy 431 there are a couple of other places that are great for sledding as well. Don’t ask me exactly where, but they’re right on 431. You can’t miss them. Just look for the people sliding down the hillsides.

According to Wikipedia, Mt. Rose is “the highest point of the highway and the highest mountain pass open-year round in the Sierra Nevada.”  In other words, during the winter you’re very likely to find snow there, which we did. Unfortunately we also found a lot of other people there so we had to share the hillside, alas.  Never the less we spent about two hours having a great time nearly killing ourselves.

If skiing is more your bag there are more than twenty resorts in North Lake Tahoe to…enjoy your bag – including Squaw Valley, Sugar Bowl and North-Star, just to name three. Many of the ski resorts offer “sno-parks” for those of you with younger kids.

For lots more on Lake Tahoe winter activities check out Gold Country Best, with information on ice-skating, snowmobiling and even dog-sledding.

Of course we had to hit CB’s Pizza & Grill, our traditional Tahoe dining establishment.  While the pizza is good this time we opted for something other than pizza. CB’s offers a full array of burgers (the girl is a burger fanatic) and sandwiches, salads, pastas and appetizers.  A note of caution; don’t order the eggplant Parmesan.  My wife ordered it and it was basically a thick slab of tough eggplant covered in sauce and melted cheese. Eggplant Parmesan should be sliced thin, fried and then baked with all the accompanying goodies.  Live and learn.

It was a short trip; up late Friday night, home by Sunday evening. But that’s one of the great things about Tahoe. It’s only a 3-hour drive from most locations in the San Francisco Bay Area.  At 188 miles door to door, it’s a very doable weekend trip for us, and one we’re hoping to do again before the spring thaw.

National Geographic called Lake Coeur d’Alene one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.  I might be a little biased since I live right next to it, but I’d certainly have to agree.  Located in the panhandle of Idaho, far from the state’s population center of Boise, the alpine beauty of Lake Coeur d’Alene offers a wide variety of fun family activities, whether you’re on a budget or you have money to burn.

To me, it’s just about the ideal place to spend a few carefree summer days on the water.  With a length of over 25 miles and a shoreline measuring over 109 miles, the lake is big enough that it never feels crowded, even on the busiest Saturday in August.

The obvious place to begin your family vacation is in the city of Coeur d’Alene, which sits on the north shore of the lake and is your best bet for lodging.  Your hotel options range from the luxurious Coeur d’Alene Resort, which juts out over the water near downtown, to a Holiday Inn Express less than a mile from the city beach.

During the summer months, mainly July and August, the water temperature of the lake is perfect for any activity you can imagine.  My kids and I swim at least two or three times a week during these warm days.  Coeur d’Alene’s city facilities stretch out across the north shore, so you don’t have to go looking for a spot to set up your beach chairs.  City Beach offers the safety of lifeguards, but if you want to get away from the crowds there, simply stroll down to the adjacent beach in front of North Idaho College.  You’ll feel like you have the lake to yourself.

If you want to do more than just sit on the beach and take in the beautiful view, you don’t have to go very far for a refreshing hike.  Right smack dab in the middle of downtown Coeur d’Alene is what can only be described as the jewel of the town.  Tubbs Hill is a 135-acred forested peninsula with a 2-mile loop trail that takes you all along the shoreline, where you can find secluded beaches, scenic overlooks, rocky coves, and woodland habitats.  My family hikes Tubbs Hill regularly, and I’m always amazed at the beauty of the place, not to mention the fact that the city was able to save this urban wilderness from development.  We pack a picnic lunch, hike out to the tip of the peninsula, and find a quiet spot for the afternoon.

If you want to get out onto the water, there are several options.  At Independence Point, next to City Beach, you can rent jet skis, kayaks, and paddle boats.  Many different businesses in town offer reasonable rentals on everything from jet boats to luxury yachts.  Well, I’m not so sure if the words “reasonable” and “luxury yacht” go together.  The Resort also offers daily lake cruises, ranging from 90 minutes to 6 hours.  There’s even a parasail boat and a float plane if you want to see things from a different perspective.

If your kids are waterlogged and tired of hiking, you can rent some bikes and head down any number of paved bike trails that hug the lake shore.  The Centennial Trail runs right through downtown, heading east all the way to Higgens Point and west along the Spokane River, across the border into Washington, all the way into the city of Spokane.  Or, you can explore the prairie north of the lake on the new Prairie Trail, which connects with all the other bike trails.  Come to think of it, there are so many miles of trails around here, you might actually get lost.  But a good kind of lost.  If a park is what the kids are hoping for, there’s the City Park which, naturally, sits right next to City Beach, and contains a huge castle-like play structure for the kids to run wild on.

Hiking, biking, boating, and swimming.  What more could you ask for in a relatively inexpensive family vacation?  You’ll find it all here, in one extremely centralized location at the north end of Lake Coeur d’Alene.  Like I said, though, it’s a big lake and there’s certainly more to explore.  But I’ll save that for another post.  I could talk about “my lake” endlessly.  I’m sure that if you bring your family to this part of Idaho, you’ll also be talking about one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

All photos by Phil Corless

1.  As evidenced by the annoyed people seated next to me on the Nemo Submarine Voyage I get excellent cell-phone reception up to 20,000 leagues under the sea.  This despite dead zones in my own home.

2.  Until a wrong turn on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride took me there, I never realized that hell was not just hot but also quite humid- not unlike Florida.

3.  After walking through Innoventions I can’t help but feel that Microsoft’s biggest issue is not lack of innovation, but rather a failure to communicate.  They make awesome stuff for the home and nobody knows it.

4.  Old country bears don’t die, they just retire to the Hundred Acre Woods.

5.  If a princess has found her prince she is highly unlikely to kiss a frog, no matter how nicely you ask.

6.  The best way to keep pirates from boarding your boat is flash photography.

7.  If visiting the parks in February the crowds will be small and the rides will be closed.

8.  Not all of the 999 spooks are grim or grinning.  At least two ghosts appear indifferent.

9.  Should a ride have the word “terror” in its name, there is good chance you may find it somewhat terrifying.

10.  Despite Flick’s insistence to the contrary, some bugs deserve to be swatted.

11.  The whole thing about human children contaminating monsters is an urban legend.

12.  With just 10 Dalmatians Cruella de Vil could have had a nice handbag.

13.  A full bar, a winery, a tequila booth and a beer cart are a nice touch.

Read more about the Disneyland Resort here and here!

Photo by Whit Honea

Too bad California will be paying tax refunds with I.O.U’s.  I was going to pay for our recent day trip to New York City with that.  Maybe theaters will start taking I.O.U.’s pretty soon?  No?

I was back in Connecticut visiting my family and a group of friends graciously moved their NYC day trip up to January so my husband and I could be included.  We were pretty terrified of going into the city and (gasp) walking from place to place when the forecast called for 20-degree weather and snow.  Turns out, it was fun and even beautiful.

Eight of us took the Metro North Railroad ($25 round trip ticket purchased at the automatic ticket machine with a credit card) to Grand Central Station, where much to the dismay of our more city-savvy friends, some of us stared up at the incredible ceiling.  Don’t miss it with its constellations and intricate art.  It’s been cleaned recently, and the cleaners left a tiny patch of dirt to show you just how dirty it once was (black).

From the station we walked to the Stage Delicatessen, home of the 4-inch pastrami sandwich.  All sandwiches were completely devoured.  Not sure how.  The place was PACKED but we managed to get in and sit at two separate tables (lunch cost about $20 per person) and then get out in time to make it to the show.

As we walked to the Gershwin Theatre, home of Wicked (tix cost $160 per person, purchased ahead of time online) it started to snow.  We were all bundled up nicely, so nobody really noticed or minded the cold.  And the snow made it all so, as my mother likes to say, romantic.

The Gershwin Theatre lobby is decked out with cool props from the set and signs that warn you about entering and exiting Oz.  Also?  Beer sippy cups.  Worth the $9 price with $5 refill for a crappy can of Bud Light.  Our seats for Wicked were almost all the way in the back, but still good.  One of those places where every seat in the house is a good seat.  During intermission the beer lines were long and the women’s bathroom lines were longer.  Don’t try to beat the lines by skipping out too early before intermission however, my friend did that and missed the best scene of the show!

After the show we all walked, in thicker snow, to Carmine’s, a family-style Italian restaurant where you basically eat like you’re at an Italian wedding.  The post-theater crowd was crushed together at the bar and in the waiting area, but thank goodness (and my friend Robert) we had reservations, so it was not a long wait for our big group.  Nine of us (Robert joined us for dinner) had several plates of appetizers, several more plates of dinner, a tiramisu, and several bottles of wine.  Final tab was about $60 per person.

Riding on the high of warm food (and wine) consumed in good company and inside a warm restaurant, we all decided to walk to a bar where the atmosphere was low-key and the music level was also low enough that we could still talk to each other.  Going by those requirements, someone had recommended Under the Volcano a tequila bar which did not disappoint.  The music was from the bartender’s iPod, there was plenty of seating at the early hour of 9PM, and nobody tried the tequila.  An unspecified bar tab later shows that we did try other things.

At some point someone realized that we’d better get back to Grand Central or we wouldn’t be making it home that night.   We made it just in time to wait 40 minutes for our train (too bad, because I had a fantasy that we’d get to stay in some kind of nice hotel, credit card bill be damned).  More staring at the ceiling ensued.  In all, despite the fat price tag, the trip was worth it, even if we never did get to stop at a Dunkin’ Donuts.

All photos by Christopher Tjaden

Like Sally and “Conroy”, I find myself perched at the living room window moping and watching the inclement weather outside.  But instead of rain, it’s snow and there’s no Cat coming to my rescue.  No, my salvo is a furry rodent named Phil.  Punxsutawney Phil.

This coming Monday is Groundhog Day.  And the only hope I have of lasting another winter in America’s Bitter and Cold-Blooded Heartland lies in hands of what would ordinarily be considered a menace to the farming community.  A freaking Groundhog!  Yep!  You got it.  My will, my resolve to last, is at the mercy of that hairy little critter and whether or not he sees his shadow come February 2.

No shadow and winter can end as it should–soon.  But if that little fur faced demon happens to catch a glimpse of anything long and dark then I’m gonna be needing to fill a prescription.  I’m not so sure I can handle an extra six weeks of Arctic Bliss unaided.

For over 100 years, the little community in Punxsutawney, just northeast of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has held special observances on Groundhog Day in a little area known as Gobbler’s Knob.  Though popular in it’s own right, the town and it’s celebrations were made even more so by the movie “Ground Hog Day” starring Bill Murray.  For the life of me, I can’t imagine getting up at 3:00 in the morning to stand in sub zero temperatures for four and a half long hours waiting for a prognosticating rodent to give me a shred of hope that winter will soon be over.  I don’t care how good the hot chocolate is.

Phil’s not the only groundhog in this gig, either. He’s just the most famous.  Here’s a few other groundhogs that you may or may not be aware of.  Of course, if you ask me they all look the same.

• Jimmy the Groundhog of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin , USA
  

  Jimmy

• Wiarton Willie found in Wiarton, Ontario, Canada
  

  Willie

• Staten Island Chuck found in New York City, New York, USA
  

  Chuck

• General Beauregard Lee, PhD found in Atlanta, Georgia, USA
  

  General Lee

• Dunkirk Dave in Dunkirk, New York, USA
  

  Dave

• Malverne Mel and Malverne Melissa found in Malverne, New York, USA
  
  

  Mel

• Brandon Bob of Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
  

  Bob

• Balzac Billy of Balzac, Alberta, Canada
  

  Billy

• Shubenacadie Sam of Shubencadie, Nova Scotia, Canada
  

  Sam

• Gary the Groundhog of Kleinburg, Ontario, Canada
  

  Gary

• Spanish Joe of Spanish Ontario, Canada
  

  Joe

• Sir Walter Wally of Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
  

  Sir Walter

• Pardon Me Pete of Tampa, Florida, USA
  

  Pete

• Octoraro Orphie of Quarryville, Pennsylvania, USA
  

  Orphie

• Holtsville Hal of Holtsville, New York, USA
  

  Hal

• Buckeye Chuck of Marion, Ohio, USA
  

  Chuck

List courtesy of Wikipedia, links by UpTake

I feel certain that the festivities involving each of these fine groundhogs is nothing short of splendid and each town is a treat to visit even without a groundhog day.  Take, Punxsutawney, for instance.  There is  groundhog festival every year around July 4th.

Summer!  Now that’s more likely to be a time you’ll find me visiting.

But right now, it’s winter.  It’s cold.  And I don’t care if you throw in a traditional spam burger with the hot chocolate, nothing is going to drag me out to watch someone wake up a hibernating groundhog predict the weather.  Just tell me what he said.  I’ll make a note of it and then file it with all of my other 63% accurate weather reports.

Orogenisis. Mountain building. Plate tectonics and erosion. A geological blink, really, but an eternity to us.

Mountains have always had a calming effect on me. I run to them like a child running to his mother with a scraped knee or hurt feelings. Mountains always reciprocate my feelings. Pulling me gently into their arms and soothing me.

Yosemite, Yellowstone, Denali. These locations are all fine specimens, steeped in history and tradition. The afore mentioned mountains are of epic proportions. A fine place to visit. Explore. Escape. But, to truly see how mountains age, I would recommend a visit to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

While the winter months will keep even the most seasoned backpackers out of the high country, the views and majesty of these old, hard-luck mountains can be viewed through the now barren forest canopy.

Townsend, Tennessee, dubbed “The Peaceful Side of the Smokies” is an excellent place to get away from the hustle and bustle of more popular areas in the Great Smoky Mountains. It is my home away from home. You can warm your cold and weary bones after a long hike at Doc’s Motel. Ask for Sharron. Tell her Charles Downs, the Younger, sent you.

My stomach tells me things after a long hike. Things like, “if you don’t feed me I’m gong to make things rough on you.”  Fuel is needed after, as well as before, a good hike. While Townsend offers a myriad of dinning options; Smokin’ Joe’s Barbecue in particular is very good.  May I suggest a short 30 minute drive to Maryville, Tn. Say hello to my friend and, on occasion, Flyfishing partner, Tommy Vaughn, at Foothills Milling Company. The fare is gourmet, the atmosphere is casual, and you won’t leave hungry.

Now go. Lace up those boots. Grab a warm jacket and load the camera with film. The ghosts of spring are calling you. If you listen close, you can hear them.

Photos courtesy of nps. gov