Camping For Two

By James

Lots have been going on lately, thus the lack of anything remotely resembling a post.  I decided to pick the best of most recent, and decided upon the recent camping trip Karen and I recently took...

Two weeks ago, Karen and I decided that we were to go camping with only a few days to plan. We found Dosewallips in the Hood Canal area as one of few places still available.

With only Karen and I going, we found that packing was incredibly easy.  With gear for just two and our cooler barely packed, we found that all we needed was to fold down the seat of my car, with plenty of room to spare.

On the ferry

Campfire lil smokies

We got out of work on Friday evening and immediately left for the Fauntelory ferry to Hood Canal.  It has almost become a standard for Karen and I to have to take the ferry to go camping.  Even though we're less than a hundred miles away, riding the ferry certainly adds to the feeling that we're getting away from it all.

The closer we got to Dosewallips, the darker it got.  We barely had enough time to set up our tent and put up a campfire to enjoy our marshmallows and lil smokies.

Tarp then clamming!

Once morning hit, we woke up to cloudy skies, but came prepared with a tarp and rope.  We quickly put it up and had breakfast of ham/egg/cheese crepes.  Afterwards, we went down the road to start our newest hobby, clam digging!

With shovel, bucket and shellfish licenses in hand, we started getting to work.  On our last clamming trip, we dug up butter clams, which were about the size of your palm.  This time around, we dug up your standard super market manila clams.  We also found that there was quite a bit of oysters, but came without oyster shuckers (state law requires that you shuck the oysters on the spot).  As time went by, the tides pushed us back further in and the clouds started sinking lower.  It was a clear sign that it was time for us to head back to our camp site for lunch.

As we got back to our camp site, it started sprinkling. We tightened our tarp rope, with each tie getting progressively more and more elaborate. Despite our efforts, there was still ponding on the edge of one part of our tarp and I was forced to poke a hole. We took advantage of our dripping fresh water by placing our bucket of clams underneath for them to spit out their sand.




After getting our tarp situation straightened out again, we prepared and ate our lunch of Korean BBQ.  This idea stemmed from our love of Korean BBQ and last year's camping trip at Lake Wenatchee.  Last year, we were bestowed by the deliciousness of Soo's cooking and her idea of having Korean BBQ for dinner...while camping.  This year, we took the Korean BBQ out of the campfire, onto a camping stove, with a grill.  It's amazing how simple it is and makes me wonder why anyone would ever want to eat a burger or hot dog while camping.  It might even be easier to prepare and make than most camping foods, just bring the grill, the meats (some pre-marinated) and bring some potato salad.

Post awesome lunch, the rain decided to definitely set in with no end in sight.  Under the protection of our tarp, with a warm rain, a nice campfire and stomachs full, we sat back and relaxed with our own favorite books.  Despite the weather, it was definitely nice to be clamped down by the rain and forced to open up a book, reading is something I definitely do not do often enough.

At Xinh's

With some solid reading time in, we cleaned up and headed one hour south towards Shelton.  It is here, where we got to enjoy one of our favorite restaurants, Xinh's.  The first time we came here was last year while at Alderbrook Resort.  We've been trying to find a reason to go here ever since, but due to Shelton being close to nothing, we had been unable to find a reason to go or pass through there.  Camping was a good enough reason for us.

Xinh's was opened by a Vietnamese lady (named Xinh of course), who worked for Taylor's Shellfish Farm as an oyster shucker.  She also just happened by to be the oyster shucking champion for something like ten consecutive years.  Along with being known for her oyster shucking, she was known for her good cooking.  As a result, Xinh's was born.

The food is quite simply amazing here.  I'm not sure if it's the fact that it's in the middle of nowhere, or that Xinh is right there to greet you, or the massive amount of food that is what makes this place terrific.  But the three combined does make for something quite delicious.  Karen ordered some mussels, which meant she had a plate of literally 40 mussels.  I ordered the oysters, which meant I had a plate of literally 30 oysters.  All the dishes are cooked in distinctly familiar southeast Asian flavors.  It is definitely worth the trip if anyone is able to find a reason to pass through Shelton.

One of the most enjoyable parts of this trip was driving back from Xinh's.  As the sun was setting, the clouds started to clear.  There is something unexplainable about driving through fresh evening air, through windy roads, while taking in the waters of Hood Canal.  Karen and I have been through Hood Canal three times, twice for camping and once at a resort.  Every time, there is something new to see, and every time I look forward to the consistent beauty of driving through there.  As we got back, we set up our last campfire of our trip and enjoyed our last smores and lil smokies.

The next morning Karen and I packed up and headed out.  As we drove back, trying to soak in the final views of Hood Canal, we ran into a herd of elk.  Cars were pulled over with everyone struggling to keep their distance.  There must have been at least 50 in total, mothers, fathers and baby elk.  They struggled to get across the road, which really explains the elk crossing signs and eventually gave up.  We eventually gave  up on them crossing also and headed towards the ferry.

While waiting at the ridiculously long ferry line, we ran into one last surprise, Mora Ice Cream.  This is a place Karen and I had heard of before, but never thought we would have a chance to try.  There are a couple of locations, all of which are located in the Hood Canal area.  The ice cream was creamy and smooth; and absolutely helped in our long wait to get back across towards Seattle.  This place could give Molly Moon's a run for their money.

Going to Hood Canal has definitely become a once a year affair for Karen and I.  Despite the fact that we couldn't fly our kite or see the stars and milky way, because of the rain and clouds, it was a successful trip.  Summer is coming to an end soon, but we will for sure look forward to another trip next year full of camping, shellfishing, eating, reading, kite flying, star gazing and whatever else might come up.  Who's in for next year?  Rain or shine.

Something old, something new...Whidbey Island

By James

One of mine and Karen's all-time favorite places to go to is definitely Whidbey Island.  We usually end up going 2-3 times a year, at least, and it doesn't really matter what time of year it is.  In the fall, there is pumpkin picking and corn mazes; in the winter the beaches are desolate and windy, yet nice somehow; in early spring there is a mussel festival with lots of seafood to be enjoyed; and in the summer there is just nice weather, warm beaches, art festivals...the things to do at Whidbey are endless.

After changing our plans a couple of times for this past weekend to go to Yakima, Carnation and what feels like all points in between, Karen and I finally landed upon going to Whidbey Island (big surprise, right?).  We've always "planned" on going clam digging, but never got around to doing it.  This time around though, Karen found out that there was a clam digging class and we decided to go.  We were definitely glad we went to the class, despite the general reaction of, who needs a clam digging class, aren't the just stuck in the dirt?

We hopped on the ferry at Mukilteo and made it to the class a little late.  The instructor was a nice older gentleman named Eugene.  He had been doing it for 10 years and was ranting about the internet for a bit.  Simply put, he was awesome!  He gave us a run down on what to look for, how to open the clams, and which parts were used/cooked for what.

What to come prepared with...
- a good pair of shoes, shovels and buckets

- don't forget your shellfish licenses also, $14 for a day or $17 for a year, we went with the yearly  

As you can tell by the way we're dressed, it doesn't really matter what else you're wearing. Karen opted for the skirt and Run DMC tank. She's got her poka dot rubber boots, I found a reason to buy Crocs. Also, check the tide table to make sure it's low tide. It's really nice and picturesque during low tide.

After the class, we got to work. The beach we were at (Double Bluff) had butter clams, imagine a clam the size of your hand. We spent about 2 hours walking around and digging, we worked up a sweat for sure but it was well worth it. This hole gifted us with 21 clams for us! The things near my right foot are not rocks, those are the clams.

After hitting our quota, we headed north to Coupeville to start the food part of our adventure. This time of the year, Whidbey is definitely a nice drive. Certain parts of the road are surrounded by lavenders, just literally roll down your windows and enjoy the sweet breeze.  Last time we went to Whidbey Island in the spring, there was a mussel festival in Coupeville. We had some good mussels, but a lot of the vendors were sold out. So of course, we decided to fulfill our void from last time of mussels in curry from a local Thai restaurant.

It's a great little place, a house turned into a restaurant.  The owners came out and asked us how we wanted our mussels, in the shell or outside the shells.  They made sure to remind us also that these mussels were from the very nearby Penn Cove mussel farms.

Afterwards, we drove to one of our standard stops on Whidbey, Dugualla Bay Farms.  They always have u-pick produce year round and Whidbey Island Ice Cream.  Last fall, we came here to pick pumpkins.  We didn't get any ice cream this time, but we did get to pick some strawberries.

Last part of this story?  Sweet D's Shrimp Shack!  This is the standard of all standard stops for us.  Usually we come from up north and drive through Deception Pass and stop by Sweet D's on the way down south.  This time around, we drove from south to north, ferry first then through Deception Pass to Sweet D's.  We discovered this place three years back on our first trip to Whidbey in the spring and have been going here ever since.  It feels like every time we come here they have something new going on.  First they put in a new giant fridge room, then the temperature signage and now they have a giant smoker.  Dieder, the owner of Sweet D's was standing around his smoker.  He definitely looks like a man who's living the dream, just hanging out and chatting it up with all the customers.

I've never had anything bad here, but it's been well confirmed that the plain boiled shrimp is a must.  I'm not sure what they do with it, but it's delicious!  This time of year, you're going to get spotted shrimp since that's what's in season.  

Being full already, we attempted to order just a pound of shrimp.  The lady at the counter nonchalantly asked us if we were sure we wanted just a pound "cause I can eat a pound all by myself."  We had to explain to her that we had been eating all day but relented to a pound and a half, she seem decently satisfied with the updated order and finally gave it to us.

Overall, another awesome trip with Karen through Whidbey Island.  Always something to do here, and always something new to experience.  The next day, we shared our bountiful harvest with some friends and made clam chowder, clam strips and sashimi.  Sashimi was a bust, tasted way too much like the sea for me, but the chowder and strips were definite winners!