Day 35: Olympic National Park and Port Angeles

The journey leaves its marks, we are exhausted, so we sleep until half past 9. That's very late for our standards. We decide against a visit to the hot springs, firstly the admission of $40 for all is high, secondly David is only allowed in a small pool, thirdly there is a heated pool on the campground in the evening. Erik takes it well and so we leave Sol Duc 1 hour later. Just 12 miles later Erik feels sick and goes over everything again. We suspect it was because he was playing on his tablet during the curvy road. Now we clean everything and continue our journey. We stop at Lake Crescent and admire the beauty of nature. The lake is clear and reflects a beautiful blue-green color. In the background, the mountains with their greenery, the clouds get tangled up in it. We decline a hike to waterfalls with a 1 1/2 hour walk, so Erik doesn't get worse again. 20 miles away is Port Angeles. It's a small town on the coast that, as the name suggests, has a harbor. After lunch, we stroll to the pier and look towards Canada. Only the sea arm separates the two countries. So close and yet so far. The city consists almost entirely of the harbor. Now it's time to visit a visitor center one last time, and that's from Olympic National Park. Erik hands in his filled out booklet and receives his 15th badge. The ranger realizes that he can't protect the park well since he doesn't live here, but he can tell others about his experiences and help them. So he doesn't have to move here right away. We arrive at the campground shortly after 3 pm. Erik wants to swim, so we jump into the small pool with 10 other children. The water is colder than expected, so David and I only stay in for a short time. After 30 minutes, it's over for everyone. The kids continue to play in the playground and we do laundry. A trailer ride with the tractor is offered and Erik, David, and I take a ride around the campground. After dinner, Rene and Erik borrow monster go-karts. The ride is exhausting, Rene has to push Erik uphill, the trucks are heavy. They have fun and half an hour is enough. We pack up a few things. The end is near.