Greetings from the Pacific Northwest!

[lrogers]

Bit of culture shock going on for me. We are in the Pacific Northwest for the rest of this week visiting family. So far, we have been in Seattle (went up the space needle), Cannon Beach (froze my butt off), Redmond, Aberdeen and currently, Bellingham (and all points in between). Later this week we will be going to Whistler, BC.
I have seen more rain since Friday than I have in the last month. So far, what the locals call hard rain, is what we, from Mobile, call drizzle! There has been a lot of drizzle!
As I type this, I'm looking out the window of my SIL's house. This house sits on the side of a small mountain and the view is stunning.

What a difference between this coast and the gulf coast!

[Hoover]

You happened to visit the Seattle area during the rainy season. It starts January 1st, and ends on December 31st. It helps to have webbed feet. Enjoy your stay.

[LCHIEN]

some places don't ever see hard rain, But like Larry, we have torrential rain storms and tropical storms on the gulf coast (Texas, Alabama, LA, MS, FL).

I always recall a driving instructor, during a class, we were talking about driving hazards, he said he grew up in the midwest and they could never figure out why there was a high position on the windshield wipers speed.

[atgcpaul]

Bit of culture shock going on for me. We are in the Pacific Northwest for the rest of this week visiting family.

Keep us posted if you see anything interesting that's wood related. I'm going
up there for my first time first week of April, and I'm looking for things to do
in and around Seattle and then on the way to Bellingham.

Have fun!

Paul

[mschrank]

So far, what the locals call hard rain, is what we, from Mobile, call drizzle! There has been a lot of drizzle!

This house sits on the side of a small mountain and the view is stunning.

What a difference between this coast and the gulf coast!

I've probably not experienced what you call hard rain...I've always considered our rain more along the terms of constant drizzle. We generally get a "hard rain" or two in November/December.

When I first moved to the PNW, I was stymied by weather reports such as "rain turning to showers." or "morning showers turning to rain by early afternoon." Makes sense now.

Anyway, enjoy your visit and try to come back in sometime from July-September. It really doesn't rain all the time here, and those months are just the best!

[L. D. Jeffries]

Spent lots of time in that part of the country..and I do miss it now and then. If you are going to be in the Bellingham area stop in at GriZZly's headquarters. It must be as good as the one in Muncie, PA! Happy trip
atgcpaul.

[OpaDC]

lrogers,
You have now seen the two wettest parts of the US. Pacific Northwest and Mobile/Pensacola area. The difference is in how it comes down. PNW is over period of days. Down here it's over a period of minutes. Put up rain gauge about 5 years ago. Most in shortest time was 3" in about 20 minutes. Caused local street flooding and even got into few houses. Half hour later you could hardly tell it had rained. Why people down here build their driveways going downhill towards house is beyond me.
BTW, took me 3 tries going to Seattle to finally see Mt. Ranier.

[lrogers]

So far, I've seen some cool (and large) wood carvings, HUGE trees, three herds of elk, a bunch of deer, an otter, ducks, racoon, rain and more moss than I ever thought existed. Lose your compass in the woods around here and you are screwed since the moss grows on ALL sides of the trees. I had hoped to see Mt Ranier from the Space Needle observation deck, but all I saw was clouds in the distance.
It sure has been fun seeing a totally different part of the country. We are blessed with such a diverse country.

[Mrs. Wallnut]

Larry,
If you ever want to get out of the rain over there you can head over our way. Go east on I-90 and you will run right into our town. Its a small town with a few historic buildings and a few other things to see. But right now you are in rain, over here we don't have the rain but we do have the wind right now and that will go on for another month or so. Enjoy your stay in our wonderful state and hope that you enjoy it.

[cwithboat]

Hey guys, its RAINier not ranier.
BTW Bellingham has the worst weather ever, note the gape in the Cascades to the east. Probably Boeing's first wind tunnel.

[Whaler]

Larry,

I'm a bit late but welcome to the PNW, my favorite part of the USA. I have had the opportunity to live in many states from Maryland to Hawaii and Arizona to Alaska, I chose Seattle to settle down in and retire. We do get our share of rain but the plus side is green trees, beautiful waters and mountains. Don't spread it around but we do get a lot of great sunny days as well.
If you are still in the area and have a bit of time give me a call 206-499-7151.

[pushrod]

Larry,

I hauled my wife (A Pensacola girl) up there in August. She'd never been to the PNW, and I knew she'd like it.

We spent most of the time on the Kitsap Peninsula, but got into Seattle and ended our trip with a sea kayak trip off San Juan Island. Almost didn't get her home! She absolutely loved the area; she was amazed by the size of the trees.

It'd been a lot of years since I'd been in the area, and I couldn't get over the wood used in construction.

If you're still there, and in Greater Seattle, go to the Fisherman restaurant on Pier 70 (IIRC). The whole place is built out of huge timbers. The stair steps must be six inches thick. The view out the vast amount of glass doesn't suck, either.