Since I recently left my friends and family behind in Virginia, I didn’t have much to do around Christmas time. My partner and I decided to go somewhere since Christmas fell on a Monday and we had a three day weekend. We set our eyes on the coast to a small town Port Angeles. Port Angeles was right at the entrance to Olympic National Park. Most of the park was closed, but we just wanted to get away and explore.
Road Trip to Port Angeles
We booked a hotel in Port Angeles for two nights. Our plan was to wake up early Saturday and drive the coastline over. We wanted to take our time and drive along the 101. The Washington peninsula is packed with all types of small towns.
Bremerton
We set off for brunch in Bremerton. I didn’t know it before that Bremerton was a large naval and shipyard hub. I had many friends from back in VA who worked in the shipyards here. As we made our way into town, we first came across Grandtheft Auto themed shack. Curious we drove up and found out it was a lingerie shack that serves coffee. We ordered two coffees and made our way to the Garage for brunch. The Garage was your local neighborhood dive bar that served delicious pub food and your server know 75% of the clientele by name.
Port Townsend
With full bellies, we started our way up the 101 heading north. Along the way, we came across Port Townsend. This small port town on the northeastern tip of the Olympic peninsula feels like a step back in time. An old-school maritime theme is alive here. We spent some time checking out thrift stores and walking down the roads aligned with Victorian style buildings.
Port Angeles
Our final destination was going to be home base for Olympic National Park. Here we set up home base that provided beautiful views of Canada across the water and could see the snowcapped mountains at Olympic. We enjoyed dinner at Next Door Gastropub before we prepared for the next days of adventuring around Olympic National Park. You can view how we spent our days.