Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Cats Deserve a Place at the Table
“Right, Benji?”
“Tiger?”
Happy Friday from Tiger and Benji 🙂
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Daisies in the Grass
On today’s walk I noticed the grass arrayed with flowers – charming, tiny, flowers, common daisies. They grow unbidden, anywhere they choose, so small you may not even notice them at your feet.
Today I did.
Sharing for Terri’s #The-Flower-Hour-17
~ Susanne
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Giant Amethysts from my Travels
This week’s theme from Sunday Stills is #Amethyst and I took the challenge quite literally, reminded of the giants I’ve seen in my travels.
I saw two of the largest Amethyst geodes at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. They were formed more than 135 million years ago in Uruguay. The first one below is 9 feet tall, the second 12 feet tall.
I saw the Grape Jelly Amethyst Geode at the Perot Science Museum in Dallas (its first exhibit, the museum was built around it.) It’s five feet tall and behind glass, and you can open and close it by turning the wheel.
Also at the Perot Museum, was a heart shaped Amethyst, 3 feet across. This beautiful geode was in the lobby, not behind glass.
I found another approachable Amethyst at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington DC.
Amethyst is a variety of Quartz, a hard mineral composed of silica, found widely in the earth’s crust. Not all Amethysts are geodes. The Berns Quartz from Arkansas, at 7 feet tall is the largest Quartz crystal in the world, displayed in a museum, at the Smithsonian.
Pure Quartz is colorless, like ice, but various impurities cause it to come in all colors of the rainbow. I love the purple impurity!
~ Susanne
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Coots and Seahawks at Coulon Park
It’s been a busy week, but I managed to get out for a walk on a beautiful, blue winter’s day.
I came across a covert of Coots feeding in the grass,
and admired their unique feet.
Then I saw the walkers, dressed up for the big event.
The Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots meet again in the Superbowl, this weekend.
Go Seahawks! 🙂
~ Susanne
P.S. Update: About those strange coot feet! Here’s what the Audubon website says,
“While its shape might look strange to the human eye, the curious configuration of the coot’s foot makes the bird adept at getting around both on water and on land, unlike most other waterfowl. Comparable to webbing on a duck’s foot, the palmate toes help a coot push through the water. On land, the lobes fold back when the bird lifts its foot, which facilitates walking on a variety of surfaces like mud, grass, and even ice.”
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Happy National Feed the Birds Day!
If you plant flowers, herbs and shrubs, and add a water source, they will come!
I became a backyard birder accidently some years ago at my home in Seattle, when I planted a garden.
The birds were attracted, so I hung feeders.
I don’t have a lavish garden at my home in Renton; most of my yard is shaded. But honestly, it’s a bird bonanza!
I still feed the hummingbirds and they come year-round, multiple times a day.
Varied native plants supply seed for other birds and the trees provide all the bugs a bird could ask for. During cold winter spells I put up additional feeders with seed or suet.
All the birds appreciate the water. I have two birdbaths and a stream my husband built.
Most of the birds that visit my yard are small, 4- 7 inches or so. But occasionally larger birds drop by, my favorites are the woodpeckers!
I was surprised to see a Northern Flicker checking out the lodging in the snag this morning.
The snag has been quite a hit with all the birds, including the chickadees,
and this surprise visitor!
Did you know that February 3rd is National Feed the Birds Day? Well now you do!
Sharing with Sunday Stills, #Feed-the-Birds
~ Susanne
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Stormy Weather, Flooding Rivers and Cheerful Hummingbirds
It was just last month when the Pacific Northwest was hit with torrential rain that lasted several days, flooding our local rivers.
In Renton, the Cedar River rose over 18 feet, higher than the previous record, closing the Community Center.
This was the view from the same area last fall, when I went down to watch the salmon spawning.
The flooding will likely have a negative impact on the salmon’s already dwindling numbers.
The river ran high through town,
though no harm was done to the library.
This was the view at normal levels in October.
I was considering how much worse the damage would have been if the river had not been rerouted into Lake Washington over a hundred years ago.
“In 1911, there was a major flood along the lower Cedar River. This prompted the city of Renton to make a diversion canal so that the Cedar River emptied into Lake Washington instead of the Black River. The diversion was completed in 1912.” Wikipedia
The river is still running high, but January has been milder overall. The Anna’s Hummingbirds are still feeding, bringing life and color even to the dreariest days;
and are wondering,
Is it Spring yet?
Sharing with Sunday Stills, #Storm.
~ Susanne
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Tiger, My 100-year-old Cat
“Who me, Sue? I don’t feel that old.”
“Yes, you, Tiger! According to the doctor. She said 18 cat years is like 100 human years, never mind what the charts say.”
“No wonder I’m so tired.”
“She said you look pretty good for your age, and I think so too.”
“Thanks, Sue, but it’s time for my nap. Would you close the door on your way out?”
“Sure will, Tiger.”
We took Tiger to a new vet this week; no wonder he has so many issues, he’s an old man!
We’re awaiting the results of lab work, but regardless of the outcome, we’ll keep Tiger as happy and comfortable for as long as we can.
Annie, the oldest cat I ever had, made it to 21 and she let us know when it was time to help her over the Rainbow Bridge.
Tiger will let us know, too.
~ Susanne and Tiger
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Top 10 Pacific Northwest
I once picked up a travel book on the Pacific Northwest and was surprised at their top 10 attractions. There was nothing listed from Washington State except the Burke Museum of Natural History in Seattle – huh? Have you ever been to Washington? So I decided to create my own list, and I admit I may be biased. (All such lists are subjective.)
#1 – Olympic National Park, Washington
#2 – Oregon Coast
#3 – Mt. Rainier, Washington
#4 – Columbia Gorge, Oregon
#5 – Seattle, Washington
#6 – Skagit Valley, Washington
7 – Victoria, British Columbia
#8 – Port Townsend, Washington
#9 – Sequim, Washington
#10 – Astoria, Oregon
Now that I put the list together, I see how hard it is to choose only 10! Vancouver, British Columbia should be on the list, but I haven’t been there in years and have no current pictures. And many other charming towns deserve a spot including Oregon’s Florence and Washington’s Bellingham, home of my alma mater. But I have chosen what I have chosen and that’s my final answer for this post, which was inspired by #Sunday Stills, 10’s
~ Susanne
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Best Waterfall on the Columbia Gorge – Latourell or Multnomah? You Decide
Multnomah Falls is the more famous of the two, and one of the top attractions in Oregon, receiving 2 million visitors a year. It can be reached easily from the main Gorge Highway, 84.
At 622 feet high, it’s one of the tallest in the country. It’s a beauty and you should definitely see it, preferably in the off season without the crowds.
But there’s another waterfall at least as beautiful as Multnomah – Latourell Falls, the first you come to going eastbound on the Historic Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway 30. We visited last week and took the scenic route winding through the fog till we arrived at the falls.
Latourell Falls drops 224 feet, into an amphitheater of columnar basalt, brightened by golden/chartreuse lichen. You can see it from road or take the short path down to the base and feel the spray on your face.
A beauty, don’t you think? You can get closer to it, without the crowds; it has my vote.
There are several other waterfalls on the scenic route, including Shepherd’s Dell Falls, most requiring no hiking, unless you want to. (We didn’t.)
This route will also take you to Multnomah Falls, so you can easily do both from Historic Highway 30. I highly recommend it.
~ Susanne
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