2020 was going to be a big year for travel and it was going to be a big year for car tours. Before COVID hit, I was signed up for five different Porsche Club tours and one by one, they were all delayed and eventually cancelled. That’s why I was so excited when I found out that the Olympic Peninsula tour was actually going to happen.. My local chapter, Pacific Northwest Region, had found a way to make it work. The tour had to be limited in size and broken up into smaller groups. There would be no in-person meetups and no group events or dinners. Each group needed to be spaced out so we could always keep a safe distance from each other. Thing we’re going to be a bit different but I wouldn’t have cared if they required me to wear a Hannibal Lecter face mask the whole time. The tour was on and I was ready to go! Four days of driving and car photography was going to be the break I needed to clear my head and recharge my batteries.

I was so excited that I decided to start the tour a day early. While the tour didn’t officially start until Saturday morning, the meetup was in Port Gamble and I didn’t want to drive from Seattle that early in the morning. On Friday morning I loaded up the car, kissed my family goodbye and then drove off to pick up some camera equipment and give the car a quick wash to start the trip.

It turned out that washing the car was a stupid idea because as soon as I hit the road, it started pouring!

Even with the rain, traffic was light and I had a great time making the trip from Seattle to peninsula. I made great time so I decided to explore the Port Ludlow area where I would be staying for the night.

I booked a night at the Port Ludlow Resort and had some time to explore before starting the tour the next day.

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Day 1 started at Port Gamble and I arrived a few groups early so that I could get as many photos as possible, I had assigned myself as the official photographer for the trip so I could move between groups. While we had to stick to small groups, it was nice to have a chance to meet at least a few people and enjoy some coffee together before we started our drive. Our leads charted a fantastic route and we enjoyed some amazing twisty roads on our way to have a picnic lunch at Fort Worden in Port Townsend. The rain made the drive even more exciting and I was glad to have all wheel drive and fantastic brakes. While these are driving tours, we always manage to find some fun places to stop, stretch and get some air. After lunch we stopped at another beautiful beach and then drove on to a truly bizarre place, the Troll Haven. After checking out the trolls, we went on to our hotel in Port Angeles, the Olympic Lodge. Our course took us through some of the best driving roads that I’ve ever been on and I can’t wait to find them again on another trip to the peninsula. After we checked in, we were on our own for the evening. After a long day of very “spirited” driving, my body and brain were fried so I stayed in, edited some photos and went to bed early.

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Day 2 was another amazing day of driving, talking to other Porsche fanatics, taking photos and enjoying some twisty back roads through the peninsula. We made a loop from Port Angeles to Lake Crescent Lodge for lunch and then back to the same hotel for another night of much needed rest! If day 1 was “spirited”, day 2 was…well, extra spirited. We were always responsible, we had our official lead, a sweeper in the back and two-way radios to stay in contact about any safety issues along the route. That being said, day 2 was 4+ hours of focused driving that demanded your full attention. In addition, I had gotten up extra early so I could wash my car (yes…again) and so I could get some photos of other groups as they left for the day. I had big plans to head up to Hurricane Ridge for some night photography but the thought of more seat time and tight turns caused me to change plans…it was takeout and the Seahawks in my hotel room for me!

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Day three was a short day. We all checked out of the hotel and set off for a leisurely morning drive to the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge, aka, the Dungeness Spit. After a hike to the beach, we all said our goodbyes and went in whatever direction home was. Like any of these club tours, the cars are cool and the driving is a blast, but it is the people that you meet and the passion that we share for Porsche cars that really makes the trip so much fun. Huge kudos to the PCA for finding a way to make this trip possible and for everyone on the trip for following the rules and keeping us all healthy.

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My family thought I was crazy because on Saturday morning, while most sane people slept in, I decided to set my alarm for 3 AM. I’m a night owl, so 3 AM is more likely to be my bedtime than my wake up call! When my alarm went off, I had the moment of “what the hell am I doing this for” but I pushed through it. I showered, geared up and hit the road.

My destination was the Sunrise Visitor Center at the end of Sunrise Park Road. At 6400 feet of elevation, it’s the highest point that you can drive to at Mount Rainier. Fun fact – Mount Rainier has had several Native names including Talol, Tacoma, and Tahoma and we may officially change it back soon. With its 14,411 feel of total elevation and larger than life presence, Seattle feels very much in the shadow of Mount Rainier. I never get sick of seeing the mountain and I’ve always wanted to see a sunrise on the mountain. Hence the need to get up at 3 am to make the 2 1/2 hour drive to the top to beat the sun.

This was me “sneaking” out of the house ~ 3:30 AM, hoping my exhaust wouldn’t wake up the whole neighborhood!

I drove right by plenty of gas stations in Enumclaw but started to panic as I approached the huge national park with only half a tank. Luckily I found the Greenwater General Store (the last stop for gas as it turns out) and while it looked abandoned at 5 AM, the pumps were on and I was so thankful to be able to fill up the tank!

The drive up in the dark was a bit sketchy. I would catch the eyes of elk and deer by the side of the road and had to swerve around a few unlucky roadkill, but I made it without incident…maybe a few new gray hairs.

What greeted me, was the most spectacular view of the mountain that I have ever seen in my 22+ years here. I was mostly alone, the sun hadn’t risen yet, but given the height of the mountain, it was already enjoying plenty of light. I spent the next few hours looking at the views and taking photos of the mountain and my car because…well, that’s what I do now.

My favorites (click any image for full-sized slideshow):

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Honorable mentions:

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Outside of catching a flight to someplace amazing or to see far away family, it is hard impossible to get me to wake up at 3 AM. Gabe said I had lost my mind and likely had dementia or something 🙂 It was so worth it and next time I’m dragging Meg out of bed with me. We will skip the cars and cameras and just enjoy the sunrise and a picnic breakfast on top of the world.

I have to close with my favorite photo again.

This Saturday was a repeat of last Saturday but in reverse. I started my morning very early with a trip to Mount Rainier and made it back to Seattle in time for Cars & Coffee, Japanese Car edition, at The Shop. There was a great turn out but I was tired from my morning trip and didn’t take that many photos. The lot was full of Acura NSXs, a few Nissan GTRs and a number of classic Toyota Celicas, Datsuns, etc. My favorite was an uninvited guest for Japanese day…a new Exclusive Series Porsche 911 Turbo S. A very limited edition color/design package on an already incredible car. Gold isn’t my favorite but this one looked great in person.

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The Pacific Northwest has some of the most beautiful driving roads in the US. We are surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, countless lakes and huge mountain ranges on all sides. From Seattle, you can head South to Mount Rainier, West to the Olympic mountain range, North to Mount Baker or East to the Cascade mountain range. No matter which direction you head, you will not be disappointed. You can go for a day trip or spend weeks exploring. Some go to hike. Some go to camp. Some to hunt. I took off last Saturday afternoon, after a quick car show, to find some fun driving roads on the way up to Artist Point, Mount Baker.

The trip from Seattle to Artist Point was about 280 miles round rip and would take about 6 to 7 hours based on traffic. Not nearly long enough but it would have to do for a day trip. Mount Baker Highway is a blast and the last 10 miles or so is a crazy fun and twisty hill climb. I got stuck behind an RV at one point but they say my car, pulled over and gave me the thumbs up as I past them…such a great road!

At the top and then in a few different places on the way down, I was able to stop and take some photos. I even ran into another car photographer who shared some of the photos that he took of my car. You can see one of his photos below, watermarked @holdon.media. Of all the photos I took throughout the day, I think my favorite was the lucky snapshot of the shadow. The 911 shape is so iconic that you can recognize it in shadow form. It was a great Seattle summer drive.

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I started my Saturday morning with Cars & Coffee, German Day, at The Shop. Given that most big car shows and events have been cancelled, the small gatherings at The Shop have been a welcome diversion from the day to day malaise of COVID.

First the Porsches because…well…they are the best!

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There were some awesome non-Porsches there as well:

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Okay, my real dream garage would hold dozens of beautiful cars with all of the fun toys to go along with them but those are champagne dreams on a LaCroix budget so this will have to do!

Like everyone else in the world, COVID has caused my entire family to work and school from home and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. To give each other more space, and so I can stare at my car all day, I decided to move into the garage. A very utilitarian garage with a lot of wear and tear…not the best place to spend 10 hours a day. I have always wanted to update the garage to go along with my car obsession and what better time than now!

This was the garage when we first moved into the house 10 years ago. The smallest space (19’x19′) that can legally be considered a 2 car garage but it was my first garage and I loved every inch of it:

This was the garage after 8 years of abuse and during a “small” project to add a Jeep top lift that is still in use and works great (details on that project here):

Now the big reveal and a total transformation! I used a rubberized tile product from Garage Flooring Inc,. some rubberized trim, canvas prints from my car photo hobby and fun Porsche accessories that I found on Etsy. I had the painters use a gray that is close to the interior of the 911 and a yellow accent stripe that matches the yellow on the car to pull it all together. I totally love the way that this came out. It makes me smile every time I see it…and I see it a lot 🙂

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