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Eating, Drinking and Geocaching in Olympia

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Olympia We've grabbed or tried most of the geocaches around Tacoma, so we escaped to the state capitol last weekend for some geocaching and good eats. We found ourselves starting the day at McMenamin's Spar Cafe. The pizza was great! Olympia

Olympia

After lunch we went to Priest Point Park for our first geocache. The tide was way out. Olympia

We found a cache! Olympia

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All that geocache hunting made us hungry, so we grabbed some tacos at Quality Burrito, which reminded me of Casa Que Pasa in Bellingham. Olympia_20130303_0049

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Amanda found another geocache just outside Sylvester Park on our way out of Olympia. Olympia_20130303_0062

We made a pit stop in Steilacoom and caught a sunset on the way home. Olympia_20130303_0067

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Snowshoeing at Kendall Peak Lakes, Snoqualmie Pass

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Snowshoe Kendall Peak Lakes We spent yesterday snowshoeing on the Kendall Peak Lakes Trail at Snoqualmie Pass, near Hyak. Amanda has asked a few times if we could trade in the speed of skiing for a more leisurely walk in the snow, so I rented snowshoes from REI and we headed out to the pass. Considering there hasn't been much new snow to ski on, it was a perfect day to try something new.

I actually enjoyed snowshoeing quite a bit. I only wish I would have known that we needed to pay cash or check to park service for a Sno-Park permit ($20/day or $40/season) because that sent us all over the place trying to find an ATM and we got a later start on the trail. We got a good workout hiking up for a couple hours. We didn't reach the lakes because of our late start, but I wouldn't hesitate to try for it again. We got a few photos at a break.

Snowshoe Kendall Peak Lakes

Snowshoe Kendall Peak Lakes

Snowshoe Kendall Peak Lakes

Snowshoe Kendall Peak Lakes

And then my camera battery died! Fail!

Exploring Vashon Island

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Vashon Island Last weekend, Amanda and I braved the fog and took the ferry from Point Defiance to Vashon Island. Neither of us had spent much time on the island (except for a weekend soccer camp I worked at in college), so with (Google) maps in hand we explored!

Aboard the Salish Ferry. Vashon Island_20130121_0023

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Vashon Island in the distance. Vashon Island_20130121_0017

At Point Robertson on Maury Island. Vashon Island_20130121_0025

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We ate a yummy meal at The Hardware Store Restaurant. Highly recommend it. Vashon Island_20130121_0036

We stopped at the old K2 offices, which are now overgrown with moss and on schedule to look like the NYC in I Am Legend. Vashon Island_20130121_0039

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We stopped at several coffee destinations on the island, including The Vashon Island Coffee Rosterie.

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We also made a stop at the Burton Coffee Stand. Vashon Island_20130121_0069

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Highly-caffeinated, we returned home. Vashon Island_20130121_0021