Are you Game?

These two are game for anything!  We had been making the most of our spring break, but were waiting for Seth to get back from Sitka where he was catching our halibut and blackcod IFQ's.  He made it home Wednesday night at about 1:30am and we headed out the next day.  I wanted to give him a day of rest, but these two were pretty adamant that we were leaving the minute they saw him. We caught a Ferry to the Olympic Peninsula and headed for the Game Farm.

The ferry ride was quite eventful since the Navy was out escorting this submarine.

The Coast Guard was with them too (white boat in back). 

There were two small speed boats that you can see on the outer edges of the picture, then the two big boats right close to the submarine, then the Coast Guard was just cruising around not staying in any real formation.  I'm tempted to make a Coast Guard joke here, but will refrain since they did give Seth a tow this year. 

Reading books on the ferry

We got off the ferry and headed through the broccoli smell to the game farm.   Does that mill in Port Townsend always smell like steaming broccoli?  Every time we past it, which  was 4 to be exact, someone said, "why do I smell broccoli?"  It was Ryker the first time, but I was thinking the same thing.  Then I did it the second time, then Ryker again, and just when Seth thought he had gotten it through the two of our heads and we would stop asking, Kya asked as we were heading out of town.  We all busted out laughing.  Kya missed the memo the first few times we talked about it, I guess.  She's caught up now though.  I know it doesn't seem that funny, but it was hilarious.  Ryker even asked me in the car the other day on the way to school what that broccoli smell was and then laughed hysterically at himself.  Good one, Ryker.  Still funny, almost a week later.

At the Game Farm

All boosted up on blankets and coats so she could see out her window. 

Ready with his bread and farm pamphlet.  Ryker kept asking to see the Ferry Schedule, the Game Farm map, and this pamphlet we got at the entrance gate.....who knows what he was checking out. 

Out of the road Llama!  We see your kind all the time!

"License and registration please."

This is about where I started giggling uncontrollably.  I actually apologized to Seth, because I was acting like a little kid who had never seen a yak, especially a yak eating bread out of cars.  His response was something similar to "Don't apologize, I pretty much expected you to be acting this way."  He knows me too well and he's been here before so he knew what to expect.  For me, it was like Bear Country in South Dakota all over again.  Hopefully, our kids will remember this day as fondly as I do Bear Country as a kid.

Now if this was the Zinda car at Bear Country, we would be blocking the road, unable to pass because the bears were busy licking all the bugs and honey bees off the front of our car that we hit on the drive there.

Gimme that bread!

Ahhhhh, that's the stuff....

Kya kept saying the "big fat guys" like the one shown on the right needed more bread. 

Ryker was not as interested as Kya in having them eat from his hand or stick their heads in his window so he came up with this plan to roll the bread up in the window.  This way he got to see them up close and experience the snot and slobber show without any of it getting inside.  I can relate.  I felt the same way when those big ol' black bears had us surrounded at Bear Country.  A few minor differences that should make you feel very lucky kid:  1) I had to crank my window up fast when they were coming close.  I didn't have the luxury of automatic windows or my parents rolling it up for me from the front seat.  2) It was hotter than hell in Rapid City in the summer time and we had no air conditioning so we needed that window down some of the time.  

 

"Too tiny!  Give me the rest that was inside the window that got cut off when you rolled it up!  There's a whole pile behind your booster, kid!" 

Yep, even the best plans are not without fault.   We should have let those long necked elk clean up the back seat before we left.

Ahhh yes, Game Farm celebrity, the brochure cover bear.

"Home of the waving Bears." 

He really did wave when you waved at him.

Who doesn't love to gather on a dump truck?

I was worried that these babies would get them all excited to have a pet rabbit again......

Not a word so far.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Smells like bread in here.  Hand it over!

I bet Kya really liked that lead goose, the way he left his feathers tasseled instead of just letting it's mom comb it for him.  You better grow out of that stage real fast girl or you're going to end up with a short perm all through grade school.......see below if you're not sure what that would look like....

 

 

Here's how it looks styled straight.  You decide, but I think your answer should be pretty clear.  Let me comb your ratty hair!

 



 

"Wanna Race?   Winner gets your loaf of wheat?"

 

Seriously?  You guys are out?  Who brings one loaf to feed this many animals?  Rookies...I better trot back to that SUV with all the windows down.

They must be getting rid of a whole loaf before they leave the park.

Ahhh.....yeah..... the Bison told me you're out of bread.  I just want to make sure you know that is unacceptable.  No less than 4 loaves next trip!  Now off you go.

Washington was all clogged up with pins so we put a pin in Wibaux!  There was a hole in Glendive before they cleared the pins to start again but other than that, the Game Farm hasn't really been a vacation destination for Eastern Montana folks.

Game over......

Until we arrive at the lighthouse and beach anyway.

 

 

Seth and Ryker on the right taking the long way back to the car.

We were a little too late to make the ferry we wanted so we put our car in line and headed to dinner.

Ready to load!

Coupeville Ferry cancelled due to weather.  Buckled back up and headed for the Keystone Ferry.  Time for Kya to get that last whif of broccoli.

Waiting in the Keystone line, Kya had a lot of questions about whether or not we would get on, what time the ferry would be there, which one was coming for us, was the weather too bad, what if this one got cancelled....... 

I just sat back, laughed, and let Seth answer all the questions.

The whole day was quite an adventure.

Kya thinks we need to go back every day to feed the animals.  We've had to have a couple talks with her.  She is concerned that it is our job now to feed them and that they won't have any food if we don't go.  I guess she didn't notice the dozens of other cars rolling through there, the piles of hay throughout, or the racks of ribs in the wolf area.  I think they're going to be okay without our single loaf of wheat bread.  I don't know if you've noticed a repeatative theme throughout so I'm going to spell it out for you.....take about 3 loaves of bread!  It is fun to feed them and there are a LOT of animals.