Cats and Trails and Garden Tales

Sun Goes Down, Sun Comes Up at Paradise, Mt. Rainier

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

For this week’s Sunday Stills Challenge, I went searching through my archives for pictures of sunrise and sunset, since I had little to draw from so far in 2024.

I intended to use multiple locations but got stuck in Paradise, at Mt Rainier.

We stayed there the summer before last and enjoyed the sun’s glow on the mountain at sunset and sunrise.

Now just so you know, I’m from Washington State, and have been to Paradise many times before. But until this particular stay at the Paradise Inn, I’d never captured the mountain in such a way during the golden hour.

And I’m sharing pictures in the order they occurred, sunset first, then sunrise, and in accordance with this biblical principle:

“And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. and there was evening and there was morning, one day.” Gen 1:4

Here was the mountain our first night before sunset, pictures taken between 6 and 8 p.m.

And here it was the next morning, between 5:00 and 6:30 am. Though I’m not a morning person, I was happy the mountain woke me early to enjoy sunrise.

I admit without the date time stamps I can’t tell them apart. Regardless, the mountain is the star, and not the sunset or sunrise per se, so forgive me for that.

And this post reminds I need to book another night or two in Paradise while there’s still room at the Inn.

~ Susanne

Busy as a Chickadee on a Spring Day

Posted on March 17, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

11 Comments

We’ve had four days in a row of pure sunshine and temperatures reaching the 70’s; the sun-starved natives of the Pacific Northwest are rejoicing!

The chickadees are happy too and busy excavating nests in the snag we left standing for this purpose.

I hope they find the accommodations suitable.

I’m delighted to have them.

~ Susanne

Pie on Pi

Posted on March 14, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

22 Comments

We had pie on pi day.

Did you?

At Copper Creek, Mt Rainier.

A day well spent.

-Susanne

Yellowstone National Park – Favorite Park, Favorite Feature

Posted on March 13, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

17 Comments

Despite two gorgeous parks in my own backyard – Mt. Rainier and Olympic National Park – my favorite national park is still Yellowstone, the world’s first, and largest in the continental United States.

I’ve lost track of how many times we’ve visited. From our first trip, tent camping back in the eighties, to our last, upgrading to Snow Lodge at Old Faithful.

No, we haven’t seen it all, at 3,400 square miles that would take a lifetime. But we have seen some of the best in the park, including Upper Geyser Basin, home to 150 thermal features including Old Faithful, Riverside Geyser and Crested Pool.

We saw hundreds of Buffalo, concentrated mostly in their favorite places, Lamar Valley and Hayden Valley.

And what’s not to like about these grand and glorious falls?

Yellowstone is home to the largest, high elevation lake in North America, sitting at 7,733 feet.

While the lake is too cold for swimming, and the hot springs would scald you to death, you can swim in the Firehole River.

There are many other wonders to enjoy when visiting all four corners of the park and walking the boardwalks among the thermal features.

But it was on my most recent trips to Yellowstone (2018, 2021) that I discovered my favorite feature of all – Grand Prismatic Spring.

“Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest and one of the most brilliant of Yellowstone’s many colorful hot springs. Its massive expanse stretches approximately 200 ft. across. The high temperatures of its water (160F) ensures that the spring is often cloaked in steam. Deep underneath us, magma from an active volcano heats water that rises to the surface through fissures in the rocks. The result is a hot spring that pours almost 500 gallons of water per minute into the Firehole River.”

I saw it the first time at ground level, shrouded in steam, mysterious and golden.

It was awesome but I couldn’t grasp its enormity and true colors until our next trip when we discovered the overlook. (See the tiny people on the hill above?)

We learned about the trail from staff when we stayed at Old Faithful, who told us it was a must-see while we were there. Yes indeed! The short, moderate hike took us high above the springs for a bird’s eye view, one I will never forget!

Can you say ooooh-la-la?

To commemorate this special place, I even created a little framed version of the spring using the National Park Service App.

Hope there is at least one more trip to this magnificent park in my future! I hope there’s one in yours too!

~ Susanne

Spring Green

Posted on March 10, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

27 Comments

Last month we had tantalizing glimpses of spring and I puttered in the yard, snipping and trimming and straightening up the garden, even planting a new rose, Ketchup and Mustard – I refuse to give up on roses.

The birds were out and about thinking it was spring too. This junco gave a wonderful performance in song to attract a mate.

Then March came in like a lion and brought our first substantial snowfall of the season.

Even though it was gone the next day, it’s been cold and rainy ever since. Spring is fickle in the Northwest.

But it won’t be long until spring green begins to flourish everywhere: a green that is young, full of energy and new life, and providing the accent to other colors to follow.

I can’t wait. 😊

#SundayStills, Green.

~ Susanne

Surprised by Snow

Posted on March 6, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

26 Comments

Yesterday that is. We woke to our most substantial snowfall of the season and even then it was no more than an inch or two.

But it was enough for me to get my seasonal pictures of snow on the berries out my front door.

No more snow in the forecast but who really knows?

That’s what makes life interesting.

~ Susanne

Rainy Day at Redondo Beach

Posted on March 5, 2024 by Susanne Swanson

18 Comments

Saturday started out clear and (mostly) sunny. We were desperate to get out of the house after a long, rainy week, so we headed to Redondo Beach in Des Moines (the one in Washington not Iowa.)

But the sunshine was fleeting and by the time we arrived at our destination, the wind had picked up, the sky was turbulent, and rain began to fall.

Storm clouds hovered in the distance and whitecaps whipped up the water.

Bob wondered whether we should walk or not; it was freezing cold and it felt like the picture below, drained of all color.

“Well, you see, dear, there’s a rainy-day challenge so at least I’ll get some pictures of rain,” I thought but didn’t say.

Instead I replied, “Let’s walk down the boardwalk and if it gets too cold, we can always turn around,” and so we did.

We persevered and the rain subsided;

the gulls were grounded and fishing in the surf.

On our return we saw scuba divers – in the 46 degree waters of Puget Sound; even with wet suits they are brave souls, indeed!

They were no doubt hoping to see Pacific Octopus (the largest in the world,) whales and porpoises, along with many small creatures we saw inside the Mast Center Aquarium next door, an aquarium we stumbled upon, not knowing it even existed.

It was small but charming and we loved all the colorful creatures, both plants and animals.

I especially loved discovering something new – a Grunt Sculpin – a fish that can walk (or at least hop.)

According to Wikipedia, “The grunt sculpin generally remains close to shore and is often found in empty giant barnacle shells. The common name comes from reports that the fish vibrate or “grunt” when held. Its defining feature is its tendency to “hop” along the ocean floor on its orange fins.”

So……. I didn’t exactly get pictures of the rain except from a distance. But I did enjoy the fresh air, gulls, starfish, anemones and even a walking fish.

#SundayStills

~ Susanne