Mount Rainier

Dry road to Seattle

We left Boise this morning and headed towards Seattle to attend the wedding of Gabe and Leanna.  Our plan was to drive straight to Seattle by way of Interstate Highway, without our usual side trips...of course it didn't happen.  We left the Interstate in Yakima, WA and headed towards the Cascades and Mount Rainier.  We really could not pass up a scenic highway or byway especially when it's 'on the way'.  The weather seemed to be good and we hoped that the sun was shining on the volcano.

Traffic delay- behind

Traffic delay

As we got on Rt 12 it was pointed out to the driver that there was a highway sign alerting us to the possibility to of traffic delays..."possible 45 minute delays."  Not fun...the driver stated 'they're lying' and off we went looking for a spot to have lunch.

Lunch by the river

After lunch by the river we continued on up the mountain taking in the huge pines, the river and wondering about the lack of traffic delay.  Again it was mentioned that they lied about the delays.  As we got to the top of the next ridge...stopped traffic.  People were out of their cars taking pictures and walking dogs.  It was then mentioned 'maybe they weren't lying'.  It appeared that the delay was due to blasting and cleaning the rock debris off the roadway. 

Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier

Right around the curve from the blast site we had our first view of Mount Rainier...sun shining and bright blue skies against the bright white snow.  Stunning view that we had to ourselves for a few minutes before traffic descended on the overlook.   We stopped at a few overlooks on our way to Seattle, but the sun was shinning on the snow too brightly to photo well.  It really didn't matter it was still a beautiful sight.

Glacier on Mt. Rainier

Tomorrow we're going to wander around the city of Seattle a bit...that'll be different.