Posts In The “North Puget Sound” Category

Farther Afield

Farther Afield

When we’d previously lived in Seattle, much of our spare time was spent traveling through the Puget Sound and British Columbia. This was mostly done by boat however, with relatively little exploration on land. Since returning to live in Seattle, the many local attractions had kept us busy without feeling a need to leave the…

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Tender to Condo

Tender to Condo

Our most recent tender to Dirona was an AB 12VST capable of about 32 kts (37 mph, 60 kph) and a range nearing 50 nautical miles. Our new ‘tender to condo’ is a Honda Passport Elite that is even better across most dimensions. We’d so far not needed a car since returning to Seattle, as…

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Northgate

Northgate

Northgate Mall, opened in 1950, was one of the first modern shopping malls built in the US following World War II. The mall is currently going through its second major renovation, this time evolving into a mixed-use facility that includes the training center for the Seattle Kraken NHL team. Not much was open in the…

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Fall to Winter

Fall to Winter

As fall ended in Seattle, we continued to take advantage of our downtown home, attending sporting events and enjoying restaurant meals. And the purchase of a patio heater allowed us to also keep spending time outside on our balconies, despite the weather. We also had our first traditional Thanksgiving dinner since leaving the US in…

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Bremerton by Ferry

Bremerton by Ferry

The Washington State Ferry fleet is the largest in the United States with 21 vessels that annually carry over 23 million passengers. The ferry system also is the second largest in the world for vehicles, transporting an annual average of 10.3 million as part of the state highway network. Ten routes operate out of 20…

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WildLanterns Light Display

WildLanterns Light Display

The WildLanterns winter light display at Woodlands Park Zoo just north of Seattle is simply amazing. We’d seen several pictures and were expecting an entertaining show, but the experience far exceeded that in scale, quality and interest. The show is spread throughout the zoo’s 70 developed acres (28 hectares) and visitors take in the exhibits…

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2021 Summary

2021 Summary

Although 2020 was a year of big and unexpected plan changes, for us, 2021 brought even more. We started the year living on our boat in Norway and ended it living in our apartment in Seattle. In between, we travelled 4,933 nautical miles across the North Sea, the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Ocean to…

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Norway in Seattle

Norway in Seattle

We got a little bit Norway in Seattle this holiday season as an unusual winter storm dumped several inches of snow Boxing Day morning. We’d had a few flurries yesterday and, with a big winter storm in the forecast, were expecting to wake up to snow this morning. At 5am we were disappointed to find…

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Fall in Seattle

Fall in Seattle

It’s been several years since we’ve lived somewhere that we can catch major league sporting events, and it’s one of several aspects of living in Seattle that we’re really enjoying. The fall brought the return of two of our favorite sports, football and ice hockey. We watched several live Seattle Seahawks NFL games, and also…

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Changing Plans, Again

Changing Plans, Again

Our plans are always fairly fluid, but the past couple of years have seen even more changes than normal. In 2020, we made three major itinerary adjustments: skipping the Mediterranean and instead heading to Scotland; crossing the North Sea to Norway while en-route to cruising the Scottish Orkney and Shetland island groups; and choosing to…

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Return Trip to Seattle

Return Trip to Seattle

The day after returning from Berlin, we made a ten-day trip to Seattle for James to attend some work meetings. While there, we picked up our mail, caught the last day of the Seattle Boat Show, met up with old friends and handled several medical appointments. And Spitfire enjoyed some time at “the resort” of…

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Two Weeks in Seattle

Two Weeks in Seattle

In mid-July, we made our annual summer trip to Seattle for James to participate in a multi-week AWS business review. It’s a busy time, with lots of meetings, plus we picked up about 300 pounds (136kg) of spares and supplies to bring back with us. We also found time to have some fun, including attending…

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January Trip to Seattle

January Trip to Seattle

In late January, we left a cold and snowy Amsterdam to make another return trip to Seattle. While there we spent time at the Seattle Boat Show and attended our first Nordhavn Owner’s gathering since leaving Seattle in 2012. During the evening, PAE president Dan Streech presented us with two special pennants: one for having…

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re:Invent 2018

re:Invent 2018

The day after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, we travelled half-way around the world to Las Vegas for the annual AWS re:Invent conference and made a quick trip to Seattle to visit with friends, catch a Seattle Seahawks game and pickup our mail. The full trip was a challenging one to pack for with such…

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Return to Seattle

Return to Seattle

In late July, we left the boat in Trondheim, checked Spitfire into “the resort” at the beautiful Pusehuset Kattehotell, and returned to Seattle for a couple of weeks. While James spent all day and most evenings in meetings, Jennifer picked up our mail at the UPS store, sourced some other parts and spares locally, and…

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Return to Seattle

Return to Seattle

We left Dirona in Scotland, with Spitfire at “The Resort”, while we returned to Seattle for a couple of weeks. This mostly was a work trip for James, but we did find time to enjoy the city, make a day trip to Victoria, and receive and pack over 200 pounds of boat spares to bring…

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Behind the Scenes on the Westerdam

Behind the Scenes on the Westerdam

We love technology, how things work, and digging in behind the scenes and so an important part of our trip around the world in a small boat has included stops to tour ice breakers, mines, manufacturing plants, container ships. We even tried our hands at the helm of a 5,000 HP tractor tug. Some highlights…

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Seafair weekend

Seafair weekend

Last weekend, for the first time ever, we took in some Seafair events up-close. Normally we’re on vacation in August, since that works best with both of our work schedules, and are leaving the area just as Seafair is starting up.  The unlimited class hydroplane races for the Albert Lee Cup anchor Seafair Weekend. The…

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