People who know me well know that I am that I am a homebody. I am not a person who loves adventures, or traveling, or going for long drives or checking out new locations. I’m perfectly content with my day-to day-life — working Monday through Friday at The Daily World and staying home on the weekends with Mike, reading, watching my favorite TV shows, and going for walks.

So it kind of surprised me that lately I’ve been having thoughts about “hitting the road” and do some traveling this year.

It’s kind of scary to put that in print ‘cause when husband Mike reads this he’ll think, “Hurray. She’s finally seen the light and we can start traveling.” You see, he LOVES to travel. His dream is to buy an RV or a travel trailer and visit as many states as we can. But my mild anxiety issues won’t allow me to even think about that.

So instead, I decided to compile a list of the various parts of Washington state that we’ve visited over the years, when we’ve enjoyed the amazing variety of landscapes Mother Nature has filled Washington state with.

Long, long ago, Mike was a student at UW majoring in forestry engineering. One quarter his class did an internship in Forks. One weekend our daughter Tara and I drove up and spent the weekend with him. We drove all the way out to Neah Bay and visited the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park. It was unlike anything I’d ever seen before (or since). And on the way home we drove up to Hurricane Ridge (a spectacular view) and visited the Olympic Game Farm in Sequim.

What an incredible experience to visit Westport, Ocean Shores or Long Beach and drive for miles along the compact sand. We used to stop along the way and wade into the Pacific but since hitting our 70s Mike and I have had to be careful if we do that. It’s harder to walk along the soft sand then it used to be and even if we do make it to the surf and go out only ankle deep we no longer feel strong enough to withstand the pull of the tides. But driving is still a good option.

I’m not a big fan of driving to Eastern Washington but when I’m in the passenger seat I challenge myself to see how many water falls I can see along I-90. They’re much more plentiful and powerful in the spring and early summer but even later in the summer if you look hard enough you can find some hidden in the crevices. And in the winter, finding a frozen cascade along the way is always a special treat. My favorite view of the whole trip is dropping down to the mighty Columbia River either going eastbound just past Vantage or coming westbound shortly after you pass George. The view is breathtaking.

Of course there’s lots of other places we’ve visited: Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, the jaw-dropping beauty along the Canadian border, the drive along the Washington-Oregon border, taking either Washington state Route 14 for a more leisurely drive or when we’re in a hurry Interstate 84 on the Oregon side of the river.

But I’ve saved my favorite “let’s take a day trip” location for last. I encourage everyone to drive south to Kelso (stop at Captain Yoby’s for the best halibut fish, amazing fries and terrific fry sauce). Get onto state Route 4 and head to Cathlamet. Cross the Julia Butler Bridge to Puget Island and board the ferry for a short but well-worth-it trip to Westport, Oregon. The ferry is small to say the least. (I think it can hold only about 10 cars). The first time I saw it, I told Mike it reminded me of an oversized version of the raft Tom Sawyer might have built. It’s really a fun experience and you’ll get an amazing view of the Columbia.

Please let me what your favorite destinations are in our state. I’d love to share them in a future column.

Karen Barkstrom is the editorial assistant for The Daily World. She can be reached at 360-537-3925 or karen.barkstrom@thedailyworld.com.