Trip Details:

Another sunny day and once again I played the vacation card. Lloyd and I decided since the temperatures would be between 82 and 90 degrees a ride to the coast would be in order. I played around in Map Source until I found a route that provided some new roads I have not yet traveled. The norm would be to take I-5 to hwy 101 and the hwy 8. Instead I planned the route to take us up I-5 to Olympia then  turn off on to Tumwater Blvd and shortly after on to Little Rock Rd. This deviated from the normal beaten path and introduced us to 35 miles of new roads loaded with scenery, turns and a ride next to the Black River. A river I didn't know existed.  The route took us through Little Rock, Oakville, Cedarville and Porter. From now on, this will be the route I take when heading to Westport. That is, unless I'm riding caged! After the completion of the 35 miles of newly found road bliss, we dumped out in Elma on to hwy 12 just in time to see the Satsop Nuclear power plant facility located on the top of the hill south of the highway. We stayed on hwy 12 until we came to the hwy 107 junction. It was there we turned off on to hwy 107 which took us through the town of Melbourne and across the Chehalis River. As soon as we turned off , we rode past an old lumber mill that was still in action. I'm not sure what it's name is but it's not Simpson or Warehouser. hwy 107 lasted a brief 8 miles. it was brief but fun. At this point we turned on to hwy 101 which we rode for another 17 miles into and through the town of Raymond. This stretch of road is also new to me. At the end of the Raymond town line, we stopped for a break and to get some pictures of a water way called the Willapa River. Our stop was brief as we were excited to get to the coast. As we rode on it was only another 5 miles and we caught our first glimpse of Willapa Bay. This is another location I have not traveled before. This is where the ride really became cool. The next 21 miles or so of hwy 101 parallels the coast, providing ample views of the coastal beaches and many view points to stop and get some pictures. We were lucky to have blue sky's and sun. There was a band of clouds farther out over the water and north towards Westport that I figured we would catch up to sooner the later. We took advantage of a few of the view points and pulled over to take in the view and snap some incredible photo's. The next 18 miles of hwy 101 took us parallel to the coast through Grayland and on to Westport. This stretch of road was nothing like the last as we did not have the ocean view we enjoyed just moments ago. I can't say it enough... Watch your speed when riding through Westport. Westport is very small but the Police are very active and aggressively seeking revenue. Not only do they issue you a ticket, they put your name in the Westport paper informing the public that you were given the citation. How do I know this? I found my name in print when vacationing one year. Just a couple days after I was issued a speeding ticket. I hate it when that happens! As you ride into Westport or maybe a bit before, on the left side you will se a sign for the Chateau Westport. I have stayed here many times and found it to be by far the best place to stay in Westport. 1 bedroom rooms in season range from $96 - $101 a night. Off season around $80.00. All the rooms I have stayed in have kitchenettes with fridge. The Chateau also has a decent indoor pool and hot tub. Every morning you can enjoy the free continental breakfast or go into town for a small diner type breakfast. Turn right at Sprague avenue and left on hwy 105. Why? Follow it past the Police station (at the posted speed limit) and around the bend and on the right next to the Surf Shop is the Original house of Pizza. I have been coming to Westport since I was a kid and this Pizza place is without a doubt the best food in Westport. The Pizza's are killer. I tend to get the Heart Burner! Salami, Sausage, pepperoni, Onions, Pepper Jack cheese, pepper seeds and loaded with Jalapeño Pepper slices. And guess what I had for lunch! Wow! It was great as usual. They also have great sandwiches, salads and pasta dishes. As we pulled in the lot, we noticed it was full. We parked by the road next to 3 other bikes. 2 of which where 1800cc Goldwings with Nebraska plates. After we ordered, Lloyd was approached by one of the riders as he went out to get his reading glasses. It's an age thing I have yet to encounter. :-) The rider was looking for some information on the Olympic Peninsula Loop.  He was looking for a redwood forest to be correct. Lloyd sent him to me. Unfortunately the only tourist attractions I knew of around that section of road was Sul Duc Hot Springs, Lake Crescent and Hurricane Ridge. He was intrigued by Hurricane ridge and pulled out a map for directions. I'm bad with remembering names but I believe his name was Steve. I showed him how to get there and he went off on his way with his riding buddies. Lloyd and I spent the next 40 minutes consuming our pizza and  jacking our jaws. When we were ready to continue our journey we paid our tab and headed onward to the Westport Docks. The docks and main part of Westport hasn't changed much over the years. There is several gift shops some doubling as charter businesses. There is a chocolate shop, taffy shop, kite shop, pastry shop, souvenir shop and a few diners. It's a small town based mainly on tourism and fishing. There is a new set of condo's going in on the east side of the Marina. We made our way to the jetty where we took another break to take some more photo's. Our trip back was the normal way most take to come and go. We rode hwy 105 into Aberdeen where we took hwy 101 for approximately 53 miles to Tumwater. We rode boring I-5 for 15 miles until we hit bumper to bumper traffic. I planned this route perfect because this is where we turned off to ride through DuPont and Steilacoom. From here it was a boring ride through town to home. Lloyd and I pulled into a shopping center off of Pearl street in Ruston to say good-bye's. He headed home and I headed to the drive through of the Espresso Stand located in the parking lot. I was really impressed with this ride specially with the new set of roads we were able to enjoy. Check out the pic's below!

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