Ideas for Vancouver, Whistler & Washington

Hells Gate on McKenzie River
Leavenworth, WA, It has a Bavarian motif.
North Cascades Highway
Grand coulee Dam. Summer nighttime laser show on dam face.

The mountains east of I5 and north of Seattle are accessed via

- US2 Stevens Pass, Lake Wenatchee and Leavenworth

- Mountain Loop Hwy - Granite Falls to Darrington; lots of hiking; full loop includes gravel forest service driving.

- WA20 - Baker Lake, North Cascades, Winthrop etc

- WA542 - north side Mt Baker

To the crest, most of this is in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. There are lots of hiking and scenic drive guides.

In Canada, Hwy 3 climbs into these mountains, with Manning Prov Park.

North of Whistler, you could continue on 99 to Lillooet, and loop back on Hwy 1, or 97 (BC and USA). Some Canadian roads may still have temporary repairs from flooding and washouts this winter.

https://www.cascadeloop.com/ Cascade Loop is a Chamber of Commerce promotion of much of this area.

Or have you considered the Gold Coast to Powell River, Campbell River, Victoria? Some ferrys involved as part of the adventure.

Believe it or not - When we walked out of the Royal BC Museum in Victoria both kids wanted to go back...

Yes we love BC and it's people!

We really enjoyed the Washington State International Kite Festival a few years back at Long Beach, WA during the third week of August. You can check our blog entry for pictures and more info about our stay. The previous entry covers the campground we stayed at.

MPond wrote:
Any must-see areas or must-do activities around Vancouver while we're there?

Thanks!

If time allows you really need to go a little further west (on the ferry) and spend a bit of time on Vancouver Island.

It’s only about 50 miles west, but it’s a world away.

If you or the kids are into trains there is a railway museum in the town of Squamish which is about an hour south of Whistler. https://www.wcra.org/

You might even consider coming up the east side of the mountains, through Bend OR, into Eastern WA, Northern ID. Hit Canada somewhere near Kelowna. That would be a nice drive...

Mt. Baker is a lot of fun -- great hikes, wildflowers, wild blueberries. The whole North Cascades area looks like this:


Click For Full-Size Image.

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate all the ideas and info.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we're having to postpone this trip until next summer.

But I saved all of your suggestions in my planning notes for next year.