I’ll miss you. No matter how short a time you’re gone.  ~Alice Cullen, Midnight Sun, Chapter 1, p.27

Me doing my Emmett impersonation. The license plate was the actual one used in the movie. 5/20/12

Monday morning rolled around, it was time to go home.  With a bitter sweet feeling Nicole and I exited our hotel room and loaded up the car.  The tire, the one that was flat from the night before, was a little low but not too bad.  Seattle – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 4  I used the other can of Fix-A-Flat and we stopped by a gas station just to top it off with a little air before heading to the airport.

It was a rainy, dreary, hazy type of day, similar to the previous.  Typically what you’d expect from Seattle.  Nicole and I were spoiled with beautiful weather up until Sunday.  The weather did made it easier to exist stage right, but it was still hard.  We had that I-just-want-to-stay-one-more-day feeling.  Although, keeping my eye on the prize, I couldn’t wait to see Kyle and my family.

Dropping off the car was the easiest part of our trip.  We pulled up, paid for the rental and handed over the keys. Done!  This trip was the first time Nicole and I traveled together and our gates were almost exactly right beside one another.  We sat in a general area between the two, reliving our trip, before I pulled out my book and continued with my relaxation.  Nicole already started to look up flights to come back for Stephanie Meyers weekend.  Very tempting, but I would certainly want to at least see Marianne first.  Admittingly, I was rather intrigued by some of the events that happen that weekend.  I guess at one point everyone gathers down at La Push, First Beach and build bonfires. The Quileute elders come out and tell the legends of the their people.  Now that is too cool!

While we sat there alternating between shooting the breeze and getting lost in our books, Nicole told me to go check my gate, because naturally I was not paying attention to the time.  My first response was “I’m good” without even checking the time or the ticket counter.  Nicole’s insisted by saying, “Just go check!”  Well, she was right!  My flight was already boarding.  Good call!  I would have missed my ride!  Always leave it to my sister to keep in squared away.

Hoh National Rain Forest on the Olympic Peninsula

By the time I transferred flights in Chicago I was held up a bit, due to a computer issue on the plane.  I guess the computer needed rebooted.  All they had to do was ask me and I would have pushed the button. (sarcasm)  Once that was resolved I was on my way home bound.  By the time I touched down in Pittsburgh Nicole was already home.  Keep in mind, I left before her and I still had an hour drive to my house from Pittsburgh.  It was probably about 1:00 am before I unlocked my front door and dropped my luggage in the living-room before my head hit the pillow.  I had to work the next day and the morning was going to arrive too soon.

It was a great trip!  We couldn’t have asked for nicer weather and better hospitality.  I learned so much about the history, the area and the people, and the general culture.  At one point, I felt like a native.  This was my type of vacation, a lot of scenery, trees and hiking.

I will admit, I did miss Kyle terribly! It also didn’t help that for most of the trip, I had no cell phone service, sometimes spotty at best.  I’m used to getting a hold of the family when I feel like it.  In turn, I’m also used to them reaching out to me when needed.  In fact, weeks later I was talking about the trip to Kyle and he turned to me and said with his head down, “Aunt Heather next time, can I come with you guys?”  O my buddy!  That just broke my heart.  I said, “Absolutely!”  And you know what?  I really mean it.  I would never tell Kyle something that I didn’t intend to make good on.  Actually, I think he would have enjoyed the trip, well, maybe minus all the Twilight stops and photo opportunities but he adapts pretty good.  He is much like the rest of the family, we like to see new sights and learn about the area and the culture.  I think he has the potential to be a world class traveler.  Now that, I would encourage any way I could, ten fold!

Map of the US at the Forks Chamber of Commerce

No matter how you look at it, traveling is bittersweet.  Loving the excitement of making the plans, counting down the days and the energized feeling of looking forward to a vacation.  But then there’s the flip side during the trip, the slow moving feeling when each hour has passed and then each day, until the trip has come to an end.  Then on the other hand when a trip has ended, it’s a great feeling going back home, seeing the family, sleeping in your own bed, and unpacking and washing your cloths.  The memories are great, just missed.  Although there’s still that opportunity to relive every minute while telling the tails of the trip.  Sometimes the stories seem more exciting the second and third times around.

While traveling to different places, I certainly do enjoy my time when I’m there.  However I would never want to take up permanent residence anywhere I’ve been, except maybe Seattle.  I don’t know what it was about the city and the surrounding areas that I loved, but it worked for me.  Maybe it’s because we did have nice weather, or there wasn’t a lot of tourists because we went in May.  The town that encapsulating Beth’s Cafe was so cute and totally quaint.  It seemed like everyone in the town ran or walked and had a dog that accompanied them.  It was a really nice neighborhood overlooking a body of water, which was framed by a park.  I love it!

Me in front of the Forks Timber Museum & the Chamber of Commerce 5/19/12

Another place that caught my fancy was Port Angeles.  Again, another really lovely area with beautiful neighborhoods, neat little shops and a perfect view of the ocean.  Not to mention, I could totally live in a place that is supplied with fresh seafood consistently.  Port Angeles is a little bit of a hike from Seattle, but not too taxing.  It’s remote enough without being completely isolated.  At least they have Italian restaurants and a movie theater.  Thumbs up!

Seattle itself, was not what I expected.  I guess, I was waiting for the “grunge” type of landscape but it wasn’t.  It was very clean and actually well kept, at least the parts I saw.  We were told from one of our tours, it’s the newest built city in the United States.  The oceanic view plus the greenery surrounding the coastline made the experience complete.  I know it was just by chance but I loved the sunny blue days that were a bit chilly.  As I mentioned to Nicole, I’m guessing Seattle was much like Maine, although I’ve never been, yet.  It was that nautical fell that I liked.  I’m not really a pastel seashell, palm tree, type of person.  I’m more of a barges, ports, trees, rocky cliff sides and seafood type of gal.  Which was Seattle.

Twilight World Map.. I am amazed at the distance the fans have traveled to make their very own Twilight Pilgrimage.

Something else that I was fully aware of, but still took me by surprise, were those travelers before us and the ones soon to follow us, taking the same pilgrimage to Forks.  I wonder what their thoughts were of the city?  The Chamber of Commerce has a map of the world were they encourage visitors to place a pin from their hometown.  This map was amazing!  Covered in multicolored pins, there were places marked that I didn’t even know existed, let alone think people actually inhibited those remote places.  Example, there were pins, not just a pin, but plural pins from these tiny islands above Russia!  Yes, above, meaning right next to Antarctica.  Really?  There are Twilight fans all the way up there?  Yep! Of course, I can’t image there is a lot to do in their area but read, so that makes sense.  These Twilight fans made a trek to the other part of the world, from one remote location to another.  It’s almost comical.  Yet, what an adventure to for them!  Kudos!  I would have done it too!

Signs on the wall of a restaurant in Forks…they’ve embraced it!

I’m sure Stephanie Meyers couldn’t have fathomed the popularity surrounding the books that were a result of a dream she had years ago.  What is neat is all the details that became a part of our trip, all because Stephanie Meyers chose to do her research and build this very real place into her fiction story.  Making over $50 million plus a year, I know Stephanie Meyers is not concerned about my thoughts and opinions but, great job!  Thanks for bringing us on this adventure that seems to be staying for a long time.  I hope to see more good things in Twilight.  I think it’s great!  A really great read and fun to be a part of it all.

Read the trip from the beginning.

Pre-flight – Twilight Pilgrimage Prequal

Forks or Bust! – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 1

Rain Forest, Forks, Beach…all in a Day! – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 2

More Forks & Port Angeles – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 3

Seattle – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 4

Nicole posing with the Twilight crew… this picture is absolutely ridiculous! 5/20/12

Nicole at First Beach - La Push, Olympic Peninsula

Saturday morning was another exciting day.  We survived the night in our motel.  Did I mention our heater was not working at all and the temperature dropped into the 30’s?  At one point I told Nicole, “We don’t have to worry about someone killing us, we’ll just freeze to death.”  However, we did have a small space heater to break some of the chill, adding to our camping experience.  Even Nicole found that funny!

Keeping with the same theme, we were taking our official Twilight tour with others of the same interest at 11:00 am.  After breakfast, we walked up and down the only real street in Forks, at least the only one with most of the business fronts.  Taking in an antique store and another Twilight paraphernalia store, before hitting a chocolate shop.  Nicole got some fudge and I chose a few bonbons and chocolate covered potato chips, satisfying a sweet tooth before we started to burn more calories.

When Nicole booked this tour, I was kinda skeptical.  I do love all the additional information and fun facts supplied on tours and I wanted to see  what they outlined to be specific places in the book.  However, I didn’t want this to be cheesy.  Admittingly, the tour was very well done.  Our guide (sorry I can’t remember his name and yes I said HIS) was very knowledgeable about the movies and the books, and I mean knowledgeable!  Come to think about it, so were the Chamber of Commerce people.  I bet they could sight the books faster than Stephanie Meyers herself.

Our Twilight Tour Bus... it was worth it to learn all fun facts about the area!

Before we even got started, our guide was giving us some tough trivia questions to answer and was shooting out miscellaneous information on Stephanie Meyers and the town in general.  It was wild!  He even educated us on the Quileute language, which was so much fun!  Great guy, cracking jokes the entire way and really keeping the energy of the tour going, even though he’s probably done this a million times and was sick of hearing the word Twilight.  Although, I couldn’t tell if that was the case.

As we road in our little black mini bus, we were escorted to all the key places from the book including:

Nicole & me with Bella's truck (almost) but the license plate is the one used in the movie

The Chamber of Commerce to see Bella’s truck from the book and a similar model of truck from the movie.  The license plate on the truck was actually used in the movie.

Bella Swan’s house, which is a person’s real home.  Now none of these landmarks are exactly based off of the books but they best fit the descriptions.  The lucky owners of this house were nice enough to allow people to stop and take pictures in front, just not to encroach too far on the property.

The tour guide told us a story that actually happened and why they were strict with the no trespassing rule.  Evidently, one night the owner of the house heard a noise in the kitchen and went for a closer inspection. He walked in on some Twilight fans checking out the color of  ‘Bella’s’ cupboards.  Can you imagine?  I believe it!  They didn’t mean any harm, they just were curious.  In fact they actually told the owner of the house, as they stood in the middle of the night in his kitchen, ‘We wanted to see what color was Bella’s cupboards.’  I guess it’s situations like that, that make the towns people irritated with Twilight fans.  Although, they are still apart of the tour.  Very cool!

Nicole with Carlisle Cullen's parking sing in front of Forks Hospital

Then the next stop was Forks hospital.  Yes, this tiny little town has a hospital.  It looks more like a fire hall but they don’t need a huge facility.  The guide told us that a busy day in there consisted of about 12 people, I’m sure that wasn’t a problem for Carlisle.  At this point a bee flew in our bus and as I’ve mentioned Dog Gone, I’m allergic to bees!  Me and another girl began to squeal until our tour guide took notice.  By then the bee landed in front of Nicole, who jumped out of her seat and I grabbed my book to settle this once and for all.  I got a good hit in and it dropped on the seat.  The other girl yelled “It’s a bee!” and I followed it up by saying, “I’m allergic!”.  Our tour guide turned into comical super hero by saying, “O gotcha, it’s like a black widow in the air for ya.”   He came back removed the problem and off we went.  Way to go! Of course, if I got stung, I’m sure Nicole wouldn’t have minded a trip into the Forks ER.  It might have actually topped off her bucket list.

Nicole & me in front of Forks City Hall & Police Station

As we continued to the other side of town, we made a stop at the Forks school, which was recently remodeled and beautiful.  It was really a pretty setting for a school up against the mountains and rain forest in the background.  The school also embraced the Twilight phenomena head on.  They allow people to stop in and look around, take pictures and that sort of thing.  In fact, on Stephanie Meyer day, September 13th (Bella’s birthday) the students give tours through the school.  That’s the spirit!

We made our way to Forks City Hall and the Forks Police station.  Nicole really wanted her picture in front of a cop car, but alas we were not allowed past a specific point to obtain a picture.  One item not crossed off her Twilight bucket list.

Cullen House, equipped with a cardboard cut out of Edward in the attic window

Across the yard from the City Hall and Police Station was the Cullen house.  This was the oldest house and most closely resembled Stephanie Meyer’s description in the book, except it was not positioned on a windy road in the woods.  But regardless, it’s a beautiful house and it’s used as a bed and breakfast.  We were allowed to step up on the porch where the owners graciously encourage the Twilight madness by posting a message on the whiteboard daily.  They even equipped the experience with a piano inside the front window, which we were allowed to peek through and the see the Twilight decorated front room, adding to the Twilight craze.  They even had a cardboard cut out of the one and only Edward Cullen in the attack window, which was visible from the front lawn.  Wonder if our friend earlier had the same cut out? Rain Forest, Forks, Beach…all in a Day! – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 2

Nicole, me & a girl from our tour (fellow bee hater) at the Treaty Line

Boarding our mini bus once again, we headed out of town towards the reservation.  On the way we stopped at the treaty line to get more pictures and to play with the vampire threat-o-meter.  While resting, the tour guide said that the group who makes the Twilight parodies actually shot an episode at one of the cabins there.  I’ve seen them, they are funny and I agreed with the guide, Jasper’s actor looks just like him.  During our ride to this point, our guide was giving us a lesson in the Quileute language.  Nicole asked a very good question, “What did Jacob say to Bella in New Moon?”  It was Quileute for ‘Stay With Me Forever’.  Fun facts!

Everywhere we went... it was all Twilight fun!

Moving down the road we stopped at the Jacob Black house, which also was transformed into a bed and breakfast.  Even sporting a motorcycle by the mailbox.  I will admit the house really did feel like the Jacob Black house from the book and even looked like it from the movies.  I must say these entrepreneurs are brilliant, they see an opportunity and take it.  Good for them!  I wish them all the success!  While we were there I noticed these piles of dirt everywhere.  Nicole and I noticed them in the rain forest too.  When I pushed them with my foot, it felt like soft dug up dirt.  Nicole’s explanation, it was poop.  That was funny, well not really if it was, then I would have intentionally placed my foot in crap.  So taking this as another opportunity to quiz our tour guide, I asked him about the mounds of dirt everywhere.  He said it was a critter, can’t remember the name of it, kind of like a mole or chipmunk that dug up the ground.  I guess the wolf pack better get to exterminating!

La Push - First Beach on the Olympic Peninsula

As we continued our tour, we made our way down to La Push Beach, First Beach.  Again another perfect day!  As we approached the beach the tour guide pointed out two bald eagles!  I have never seen a bald eagle in person.  Even though they were at a distance, they were amazing!  Then we saw a seal play around in the water!  I guess if we would have stopped out two weeks earlier, we might have been able to catch a glimpse of the Orca’s.  I looked for a spout out in the ocean, but nothing.

Jetting out from the beach were island type of cliffs, and I guess one of the protruding rocks was the Quileute holy ground.  We were told, as part of their tradition, they would climb the cliffs of these specific islands with their deceased, and put their corpse in a tree as a final resting place.  As I took in the scenery, I could see it happening.  I love hearing legends and traditions!

First Beach - La Push on the Olympic Peninsula

During this down time, I took the liberty of questioning our tour guide again on the mysterious drift wood logs.  Nicole thought they were strategically placed by the Quileute’s along the beach and on the rocks.  Wrong!  They were washed up on shore from swells and tsunami’s.  That must be an awesome sight to see during a storm, these huge trees crashing into the shoreline!  Again they were ENORMOUS!

We also found out that during Stephanie Meyer day, which our guide said has since turned into Stephanie Meyer weekend, everyone gathers down to First Beach.  They build bon fires and the Quileute elders come out to tell their stories and legends.  Now that is wild!  Totally worth a trip back!

Nicole in front of Jacob Black's house on the reservation

I couldn’t help but wonder, what do the natives think of all this hype and popularity.  Our guide said, for the most part they love it and embrace it because it really did their economy good.  Then he said there are those that want to be left alone and are not fans.  But the majority seem to enjoy the town’s new found fame.

As our tour came to an end and we made our way back to the car, our very funny and friendly tour guide shared another piece of fun fact.  He said that they have a Bella Sandwich at the Subway.  In order to have a sandwich renamed, the owners had to go to corporate and get it approved.  The only Subway sandwich changed just for that location is in Forks.  He also pointed out different restaurants and such, mentioning a place that had the best salads.  What?  Are you kidding me?  I’ve been craving a great salad since I started this trip and there was a place right under my nose?  Nicole looked at me and snickered.  I mean most people talk about great steaks, seafood, pasta, not usually salads.  But there the information was shared on a great salad and we were leaving town.  Next stop back, I’ll need to confirm his claim.

Quileute School House on First Beach - La Push on the reservation - Olympic Peninsula

As the trivia was shared, he gave a non Twilight related story,  if that’s possible.  He even cracked a joke, “Now there is more than Twilight fever that exists in Forks”, or something along those lines.  He said, not only has Stephanie Meyers made her appearance in Forks for her book signing, but this small town has seen other celebrities too.  Most recently Matt LeBlanc, who played Joey Tribbiani from Friends, made a stop with his buddies while riding motorcycle along the coastline.  He said he was a great guy and took the time to sign autographs and pose for pictures.

Again, being excited to move on to see more of the area, we had to take one final drive around this once unknown town, now very famous, before heading back out to Port Angeles and ending up in Seattle.  It was a bittersweet feeling.  I would never want to live in Forks, but visiting this remote area was worth it.  I guess I didn’t know what to expect over our visit, especially the weather.  It was another perfect drive, all 57 miles to the closest civilization, Port Angeles.  Nicole had already planned for us to eat at La Vita E Bella, now better known as the restaurant where Bella ate mushroom ravioli with Edward.

Famous Bella Italia at Port Angeles, Washington

Once we got there, I wanted to walk around the dock and see the area a little bit more.  As I stood on the pier and looked out over the water at the boats, Nicole and I both commented on the floating logs we saw.  Yep!  Now that we were equipped with more information, than when we began this trip, our eyes began to hone in on specifics that caught our interest.  One being the washed up logs.  I couldn’t believe it, there were random logs just floating in the water!  Could you image?  I guess it’s nothing new to the locals but it still amazes me.  I mean, just think if you were in a boat just sailing along and all of a sudden you wrecked into a log?  In the middle of the ocean?  How would you explain THAT to the insurance company?

At the Cullen House... apparently they were out for the day

Once we had our fill of the sea air we headed up a couple of blocks to the restaurant.  By now all I wanted was a huge delicious salad!  I knew this was the place that was going to satisfy my craving, and it was!  Of course Nicole had the mushroom ravioli, which was very good too.  I talked to our waitress about the Twilight craze and she stated, as I’ve heard many declare, that it was great for business.  I asked her, wanting to be certain that this port, which had its place in the books and movies but was by no means the focal point of the story and was 57 miles from it, was still a hot spot for Twilight tourists.  She said, even to this day.  Amazing!  I asked, “Do you know they are Twilight fans, ’cause they order the mushroom ravioli?”  She shot me a grin and a look of ‘cha’.

Nicole in front of the Swan residence, Forks Washington

Now that Nicole got through her Twilight bucket list, at least most of it, and my stomach was occupied with a fantastic salad, we headed back to Seattle, back to the starting line.  As we put our travels in reverse, driving onto the fairy was equally as exciting, especially since I had to drive up on the second level.  Although on this ride, we remained seated in our car during the 20 minute ride across water inlet.  Nicole and I were both tired, plus I enjoyed just sitting there reading and enjoying the relaxation.  I even found left over chocolates I was munching on from Forks.  At that point it already seemed like a lifetime away.

Once we got our hotel, I was happy over the living quarters.  A beautiful big bathroom with tile floor and a granite counter top.  Sometimes it’s the little things in life we take for granted that we appreciate the most.  Taking a safe shower without fear of critters crawling out of their hiding places in the wall was a blessing.  We talked to my cousin Marianne before turning in for the night.  Next stop Seattle!

To Be Continued…

Pre-flight – Twilight Pilgrimage Prequal

Forks or Bust! – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 1

Rain Forest, Forks, Beach…all in a Day! – Twilight Pilgrimage Part 2