The kids had a blast playing with their puppies this morning. They were brushing their fur with pine cones and getting them ready for a beauty contest. On our way out of town we stopped by the Food Co-op again for supplies. While Daisy went shopping, I chatted with a couple cyclists. They were volunteers working on the Olympic Discovery Trail! This trail heads from Port Townsend out to Forks, and we will be riding along it for the next few days. There is one section that is missing, though, along Discovery Bay, and I learned that it would be under construction next summer. So, for us to miss the busy/unsafe highway section we would still need to take a +10-15 mi detour. That is why we found a place to stay on HipCamp for the night.

We had a scare a little ways out of town. A was so tired she almost fell asleep! Unfortunately we were along a semi-busy road/area and couldn’t just pull off and take a break. We only had 1.5 mi further to go to the park we were planning to stop at for lunch, but she couldn’t seem to concentrate. We tried a few things, and what seemed to work was walking for a few hundred meters, then singing the alphabet song with Daisy – alternating every letter. We made it, of course.

We all ended up having a great lunch and then play time at the park. We finally called it quits to get back on the road and that is when our emotions swung in a different direction. A realized that her new puppy stuffed animal (bought in Port Townsend) was missing!! Melt down ensued. I called the co-op to ask if it was there (not found yet) and we strategized for potential puppy replacement. Then the co-op called back later and said it was found. YAY!!! Crisis solved. We could now fully recover and get back on the road. (And it ended up that Daisy’s cousin could come to the rescue with puppy delivery the following morning. Thank you!!)

The detour was on low traffic roads but there were definitely some hills. Our biggest topped out at around 600 or 700 feet and yes that isn’t that high, but it did feel like a mountain pass considering the circumstances. (Haha.) We had a long descent on the other side and then turned into the road to the farm.

Staying at the farm ended up being a great decision! The kids loved the animals and exploring. There was a lot to see. There was also a kitchen, which helped with dinner. We took a bath, did laundry, tried petting various farm animals, and played games and walked. It was a great time!