Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
A Cold Walk at Nolte, New Bird Sighting, and the Green River Gorge
Yesterday was the last day of the bitterly cold weather here in the Northwest, at least for this round.
Regardless, we bundled up for a walk in the woods, around Deep Lake at Nolte State Park. Much of the lake was frozen and I wondered at the ducks; even with hat and gloves I was feeling rather frozen, myself.
Warmer in the lake than outside of it, I reckon.
Still, it was a beautiful day, and I got my steps in, if only the easy mile and a half around the lake.
There were all the usual sights, tall evergreens, ferns and mosses,
and trees fallen long ago by the side of the trail.
There were also occasional views of the lake, with its ice floes.
This backwater was frozen solid; it took a few tries, but we finally landed our stones and heard them bounce on the hard surface.
As we neared the end of the trail I heard an unfamiliar bird call, and stopped to find the source.
It wasn’t hard to do as his bright red head stood out against the trees.
A red breasted sapsucker, I confirmed later. New to me, it’s a variety of woodpecker whose main diet is – you guessed it – sap.
Afterwards we headed to the Black Diamond Bakery for lunch, with a stop by the Green River Gorge on the way. I walked across the one-way bridge and gazed over the side
at the falls far below.
This was the view of the river from the other side,
and giant icicles hanging above.
I never get tired of seeing the gorge, and occasionally making the trek down into it, but not in the winter.
~ Susanne
Hummingbirds through the Window
Due to the cold snap this week, I decided to add additional feeders for the hummingbirds, and that included a new location, the maple tree in front of the house.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before; they love perching in the tree before dropping down to feed. And since they’re much closer, it’s easier to snap a photo through the window, I don’t have to leave the house. (A plus when it’s 18 degrees.)
I took the first two pictures below from my living room. Same bird seconds apart, but notice the color of his head and throat changes from black to red – or is it purple?
I took the next set of pictures from my office above, and the reddish-purple color of the male was still visible, but nothing compared to what followed.
Same bird, but with a twist and turn of the head, his crown changed to iridescent fuchsia!
How does he do that??
Would you like to change your hair color with a flick of your head?
He’s not telling but to me it’s purely magical.
Sharing for this week’s Sunday Stills Challenge, #Looking at Life through a Window.
~ Susanne
Feeding the Hummingbirds during the Cold Spell
I was up at 7 this morning, put on some boots, and while still in my robe, put out the feeders. It was 18 degrees Fahrenheit! I have three locations now. Two in the back, and one in the front. The newest location in front is perfect and I can watch the hummingbirds from my office window.
After I took these pictures, I went out to replace the feeder as this one was already freezing. A hummingbird hovered nearby and waited, and immediately began to feed when it was back up.
I do love these sweet little birds and they need us during this cold spell!
More pictures because… why not?
~ Susanne
Winter Scenes, Frigid Temps and Feeding the Hummers
The snow didn’t arrive but frigid temperatures did, along with a bit of hail; it made for some lovely winter scenes.
It also highlighted the need to keep the hummingbirds adequately fed.
I brought the feeders in last night and returned them outside before sunrise this morning. The hummers were there immediately.
A couple hours later the feeders were mostly frozen, so I replenished them again and will need to do so all day.
There was more than one hummingbird wanting to feed and they are territorial, so I added a new location, this time in front of the house, where I can also watch from my office window.
Within a few minutes, a hummingbird was feeding, and afterwards rested in the branches.
~ Susanne
The Best Day of the Week for a Walk
It was today, because of the weather. So we headed south to the Pancake House for a late breakfast (I had crepes, yum) then on to Kanaskat-Palmer State Park for a walk on the Green River.
Cold but not yet freezing, light rain, but no snow, we took the short trail to the river,
getting as close as we could, which is to say, not very, as there was too much river and no beach.
Didn’t matter. The beauty was on the trail, in the wet hanging mosses and fern covered trees.
We returned back home to blue skies; we’d experienced a micro-climate further south.
Still, there were blizzard conditions in the mountains last night, and snow is increasingly possible in the lowlands, with temperatures expected to be in the teens and low twenties.
Such is winter in Seattle and surrounds.
And just for the practice, I created this post from my phone. I took the pictures on my Lumix, transferred them to my phone via Wi-Fi, and created this post in the car on the way home. Voila! From hike to blog under 2 hours!
I even had time to review at home, before publishing – I’m not that much of a risk taker when I don’t have to be.
That’s all for today. Maybe I’ll have a snow post in a few days.
~ Susanne
Friendly Flora from San Diego
We spent a few days in San Diego last month and I’m still sorting through the hundreds of pictures I took – when will I ever learn?
In the meantime, I decided that this cold and rainy day in the Pacific Northwest could use some brightening up with the beautiful flora we enjoyed there.
I’ll start with the birds of paradise – was there ever a plant with a more appropriate name? These happy birds invited me to join their conversation, and I did.
The friendly, bulbous, Baobab trees at the San Diego Zoo seemed to wave hello. Natives of Africa, some live more than 2,000 years.
The San Diego Zoo is part of Balboa Park.
The impressive Moreton Bay Fig tree stands alone in the park, demanding respect.
According to the Balboa Park website “it was planted as a small tree in a garden of the 1915 Panama-California Exposition… and measured in 1996 at 78 feet (24 meters) high, with a crown width of 123 feet (37 meters) and a trunk girth of 486 inches (12.3 meters).”
The Cactus Garden nearby invited me to walk its paths.
“Look, but do not touch,” it cautioned.
The Rose Garden was even more inviting and less prickly.
“Come enjoy my brilliant colors and breathe in my scent,” the roses said, and I did.
Who can resist roses blooming in December?
Stay tuned for more adventures from San Diego.
~ Susanne
Comforting Cats in Sickness and in Health
After good health for all of 2023, the new year arrived and brought me a cold, remember those? Not the bad one going around that lasts up to 3 weeks, but apparently the shorter version, just a few days long. Still, I was miserable and found myself wondering what the rules were, post-covid. (I did test and no it was not.) How long was I contagious and when could I return to society with a clear conscience?
Benji and Tiger adjusted to this week’s routine by staying with me until I got up, no matter how late. Bob could serve them breakfast but no, they would wait for me, their favorite human, Bob is wont to say.
I appreciated them staying with me, and they appreciated the excuse to sleep all day, not that they need one.
But after 4 days being housebound until I was bored to tears, and confirming again, there was no fever and no covid, I ventured out yesterday into the land of the living.
It’s good to be back.
~ Susanne
Traveling 2023 – A look back at our Comings and Goings from Seattle
A strange title perhaps, but I wanted to reflect on our travels in 2023 in a particular way.
Because as much as I love traveling, I find my hometown of Seattle to be more beautiful than any place I visit.
So I thought I’d share some pictures of our comings and goings this year by air and by sea.
When we fly out of SeaTac I try to get a window seat on the left side of the plane for close up views of Mt. Rainier. This worked well on last month’s trip to San Diego. This was the view facing east toward the Cascade Mountains and Lake Tapps, minutes before the mountain came into view.
At 14,411 ft., Mt. Rainier is the second tallest in the continental United States, but to me the most beautiful.
Did you know she’s an active volcano? I hope I don’t see her erupt in my lifetime, like her little sister, Mt. St. Helens did in 1980.
Sometimes the pilot heads north before going south and I catch good views of Seattle, Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. The pictures below are from last summer’s trip to S. California, so not much snow can be seen on the Olympics. The first two were leaving town.
The next two are from our return trip, when I got a view of Seattle facing east, with Lake Union and Lake Washington in the background.
I also recognized Smith Cove and got a glimpse of our cruise ship in the lower center of the picture below; the ship we took to Alaska in September.
This one.
The views of Seattle were great from top deck, and I was happy to get our fair city as the backdrop in a picture of us before we sailed. I don’t do selfies so was thankful when a couple offered to take our picture as we did theirs.
A week later, we found the city just waking up as we returned from our cruise under the cloak of darkness,
and the mountain waiting for us under cloudy skies.
May there be many more comings and goings as we sail away into 2024.
Sharing with Sunday Stills #2023.
~ Susanne
Happy New Year from the Cats and the Birds!
Today was fresh and green, just like the new year, and I was called into the garden.
The cats joined me for a while, Tiger content to inspect and meander,
Benji, escaping under the fence.
I filled the wheelbarrow with winter debris, then looked for signs of new life. I found it in the hellebores I planted last year; I can’t wait for them to blossom.
Soon the hummingbirds dropped by in their finest dress and my day was made full.
Happy New Year from the Cats and the Birds!
~ Susanne
Dropping by to say hello
I said I wouldn’t till next year, but this giraffe begged to differ,
and wanted to say hello.
From the San Diego Zoo.
Till next year.
Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 