A couple of months after our first land-based weekend on Bainbridge Island, we made another trip, this time by car with our new rucking gear. In a busy overnight trip, we visited one of our longtime favorite pubs, tested our new gear with a ruck through Grand Forest park, enjoyed the views from the deck of our rented VRBO (pictured above), and shared an excellent pizza in town.

On the afternoon of our return, we got in a soggy ruck at Discovery Park, the first of many rucks we’d make in that park. And a couple of days later had one final dinner at Wild Ginger in Seattle the night before flying to Iceland for a spectacular cruise along Greenlands’s east coast.

Below are highlights from June 1st through 5th, 2024. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a map with our most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.

6/1/2024

VO2 Max Position: 47°37.17’N, -122°21.51’W James on the treadmill at DexaFit Seattle for a VO2 max performance test before we take the ferry to Bainbridge Island. VO2 max is the maximum rate of oxygen consumption measured during incremental exercise and is a strong indicator of physical fitness and cardiovascular health. Those with higher VO2 max scores relative to their age group tend to be much healthier as they age. One of our new exercise goals is to improve our scores, and we’re getting a baseline today. James didn’t ace this one, but a low baseline should make improvement easier.

Seattle Waterfront Position: 47°36.18’N, -122°20.36’W The view looking north across the Seattle waterfront from Coleman Dock where we’re waiting for the ferry to Bainbridge Island.

Harbor Public House Position: 47°37.28’N, -122°31.37’W A great lunch on the patio at Harbor Public House, one of our favorite haunts on Bainbridge Island.

Rucking Position: 47°39.31’N, -122°32.65’W Rucking (walking carrying weight) in Grand Forest on Bainbridge Island. After several outings where we used bottles of water for weight, we decided we enjoyed the activity so purchased purpose-built rucking packs and plates. With more padding, these packs and are more comfortable than our standard packs for carrying weight, and the plates keep the weights closer to our backs than the water bottle did, providing better stability. Jennifer got a 15L pack and is carrying a 20-lb (9 kg) plate, while James got a 20L pack and is carrying 30 pounds (13.6 kg).

Issel Creek Position: 47°39.28’N, -122°33.52’W About to cross the bridge over Issel Creek during our ruck through Grand Forest on Bainbridge Island.

Eagle Harbor Position: 47°37.35’N, -122°31.14’W Relaxing on the covered porch of our VRBO-rented Bainbridge Island house, with its fabulous view to Eagle Harbor. This one shares the property with the cottage we rented on our previous trip, but is larger with a much better waterfront view.

Bruciato Position: 47°37.50’N, -122°31.15’W Another delicious pizza dinner at Bruciato on Bainbridge Island, this time at a window table with a view to the activity outside.

6/2/2024

Eagle Harbor Position: 47°37.34’N, -122°31.15’W Dawn view to Eagle Harbor from the deck of our VRBO-rented house on Bainbridge Island.

Discovery Park, Seattle Position: 47°39.29’N, -122°25.10’W Out rucking in Discovery Park on a rainy Seattle afternoon. We almost skipped it due to the weather, but ended up having a great time. The park is only a 20-minute drive north of our apartment, but this was our first visit. Even in poor weather, a surprising number of people were enjoying the popular park.

West Point Lighthouse Position: 47°39.71’N, -122°26.11’W West Point Lighthouse at the western tip of Discovery Park. The still-active lighthouse was first lit in 1881, using a fourth-order Fresnel lens.

Stairs Position: 47°40.04’N, -122°25.29’W Our route descended from the car park at 350ft (106m) above sea level, down to the beach, and then back up on these stairs. 350ft (106m) doesn’t seem like a lot, but climbing up those stairs is pretty tiring with a weighted pack.

6/3/2024

Tug Assist Position: 47°36.99’N, -122°20.59’W Quantum of the Seas making a very late approach to Pier 91. The ship arrived into Elliott Bay just past 5am this morning, but couldn’t dock in the 35-knot gusts. The crew had to anchor and wait until 1:30pm for the weather to settle down and, even then, required a very rare tug assist. Final disembarkation typically is around 9am for ships on these routes, so many passengers likely would have missed their flights out of Seattle.

6/5/2024

Crane Position: 47°36.99’N, -122°20.58’W A crane lifting what looks like HVAC equipment onto a roof near our apartment. We were amazed how close the crane operator brought the boom to the side of the building.

Wild Ginger, Seattle Position: 47°37.06’N, -122°20.35’W A delicious mid-week dinner at one of our favorite Seattle restaurants, Wild Ginger. Jennifer particularly enjoyed the beautifully-presented Hanoi tuna.

Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map. And a map of our most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.