Day 2, October 18th, Third blog entry

To leave the area where we spent our first weekend and get back to the Seattle area, we had to cross this mile-long suspension bridge across Puget Sound, at a point called The Narrows. I thought it was a neat looking bridge so I took a picture as we were driving across. Later a friend told me something about it that I am very glad I didn't know at the time.

In 1940, only 4 months after it was built, the bridge collapsed. Winds of 40mph caused it to start vibrating and twisting until the cables could no longer take the strain. There is a video of the whole thing on the internet. Why someone happened to be filming it at that time I don't know but it is sure scary to watch. The bridge is twisting and turning and rippling like a long piece of taffy. I'm not sure you would get me on that bridge again.


We had a heck of time getting thru Seattle, almost as bad as the first night, except this time it wasn't raining. There was bumper to bumper traffic again, and we figured a football game was either getting ready to start or was just ending. We were sure glad to get past it and finally stop to catch our breath at a rest area. This big tree trunk was on exhibit at the rest area. This tree trunk is 20 feet in diameter and was about 1000 years old when the tree died about 100 years ago. This trunk was brought from a couple of miles away to be displayed at the rest area. The trees here grow very tall but not that big around anymore.

We found the resort without too much trouble and checked into our unit for the week. We are in a little town called Birch Bay, about 120 miles north of Seattle. Tourist season is over, so the resort is not full and there are few people around. I imagine that it could get crowded here in summer.

We were pleased to find a king size bed among all the other amenities, and surprised to see so many decorative pillows so prettily arranged.

The bed not only looks good. It is very comfortable, with down pillows and a down comforter.

I like this chair made from rope. It's actually comfortable too, but you might want a cushion if you sat in it for very long. They have them in the hallways and lobby too. I wonder if they would be good chairs for us to have in front of our wood burning stove? Or would they pose a fire hazard?