Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Autumn Comes in on a Cloud – at Coulon Park
After a very warm and dry summer, the rain arrived last week, the tail end of one of many storms that slammed the West Coast.
It was inevitable and welcome.
I went for a walk at Coulon Park where the beach was deserted.
Billowy clouds filled the sky.
And colors were beginning to show.
Welcome, September!
Sharing with Sunday Stills.
~ Susanne
Wakin’ Up is Hard to Do
Just ask Benji.
Happy Monday!
~ Susanne
Black-Capped Chickadee
The little bird that caught my attention many years ago and turned me into a birdwatcher.
Cheerful and talkative, still one of my favorites, presented first in black and white, then in living color.
“A bird almost universally considered “cute” thanks to its oversized round head, tiny body, and curiosity about everything, including humans. The chickadee’s black cap and bib; white cheeks; gray back, wings, and tail; and whitish underside with buffy sides are distinctive. Its habit of investigating people and everything else in its home territory, and quickness to discover bird feeders, make it one of the first birds most people learn.”
the Cornell Lab All About birds
Saying farewell to Cee’s Black and White Photo Challenge!
~ Susanne
A Forgotten View of Mt. Rainier – from Crystal Mountain
I was reminded by Facebook Memories that once upon a time we took the Gondola at Crystal Mountain.
I’d heard of Crystal Mountain before but since I don’t ski, I’d never been there. But one day on a trip to Mt. Rainier, we saw the sign and decided to swing by. Who knew you could take a gondola to the top of the mountain during the summer?
It was a little scarier than I thought it would be – a 12 minute ride – 2,400 vertical feet up, and neither Bob nor I are good with heights. Still, we survived and would do it again.
We had lunch on top at the Summit Restaurant, at 6,872 ft, Washington’s highest.
The food was good, and the view of Mt Rainier was exquisite.
This was before I carried a good camera with me on my outdoor adventures so these pictures were taken with my LG phone. Next time I’ll carry a real camera and when that happens, I’ll let you know, probably not this year. The end of summer is rapidly approaching, and the window is closing.
More about Crystal Mountain can be found at Crystal Mountain Resort in case you’re in the area and would like to visit.
~ Susanne
Long Beach, Cape Disappointment and Two Lighthouses
We love visiting the Long Beach Península on Washington’s southern coast, not only for the beach but also for the rugged scenery and history (this was the end of the road for Lewis and Clark), and the two lighthouses that help guide ships over the treacherous Columbia Bar, one of the world’s most dangerous crossings.
We rode our e-bikes on the Discovery Trail, a paved path through the dunes along the Pacific Ocean,
climbing through forest
to the North Head Lighthouse for views of the beach and mouth of the Columbia River.
“North Head Lighthouse was built to provide an aide to navigation for ships approaching from the north. Those ships could not see Cape Disappointment lighthouse, two miles to the south, in time to safely enter the Columbia River channel.
Construction began on North Head lighthouse in 1897 and it was completed and lit on May 16, 1898. “
History of the North Head Lighthouse
Later that day we drove to the Lewis and Clark Interpretative Center in Cape Disappointment State Park
and got a good look at the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, the first in the Pacific Northwest, completed in 1856.
On the way down we stopped by Waikiki Beach, so named I assume, for its soft sand and protected waters, making it safely swimmable.
But not always.
Photographers flock here during storms to catch the waves.
Someday, I may try to do the same.
That’s all for now.
~ Susanne
A Trip to the Beach without Benji
We just returned from a few days at the ocean, perfectly timing our visit to escape the heat wave in Seattle. Honestly, we got lucky, it was twenty degrees cooler at Long Beach.
We had a great time. Bicycling. Hiking. Enjoying the sights.
And once again, Benji was not invited.
Which reminded me of this.
********
“Watcha doin’, Benji?”
“Getting ready for the big trip, Sue.”
“What trip is that, Benji?”
“Wherever it is your going. I’d like to come along if you don’t mind.”
“But you hate riding in the car. Have you forgotten? I think you’ll be much happier at home. And I’ll bring you back a present, I promise.”
A few days later I did.
He was enthralled.
Hope to share more photos from Long Beach soon.
~ Susanne
Looking for Yellow at Soos Creek Botanical Garden
I went to Soos Creek Botanical Garden looking for yellow and was greeted by giant sunflowers and bees of all persuasions.
I walked the paths inside the garden and found more yellow flowers
some fragrant,
some enhanced by touches of red in the background.
The secret to gardening is planting flowers and shrubs with complementary colors.
Both yellow and burgundy look better for being near one another.
Even the butterflies complemented the purple flowers they drank from.
Look closely and see them using their built-in straw, their proboscis.
And that will do for this week’s Sunday Stills Challenge, Yellow.
~ Susanne
Turbulent or Peaceful? a Water Scene
Waves pulled into volcanic rock forms a small but turbulent blowhole at Turtle Bay, mesmerizing and peaceful to watch.
Remembering Oahu from early in 2020.
Sharing with CFFC – Contrast.
~ Susanne
No Sheep but Plenty to Love on our Hike to Sheep Lake
I’m not sure where the name came from as there were no sheep to be had.
But every time we crossed Chinook Pass to the other side of the mountains, Bob had noticed the trailhead and the hikers ascending, so we finally made the hike to Sheep Lake our destination.
Starting at an elevation of 5,430 feet, just past Mt. Rainier National Park, this lovely hike to Sheep Lake was less than 4 miles round trip and had everything.
From the ridge on the first section of the narrow trail, we saw the highway far below and vistas east into Okanagan-Wenatchee National Forest.
The wildflowers were plentiful
and we were welcomed by a gnome.
After a while we entered under the forest canopy and stopped to eat our lunch in the shade,
before continuing up to the lake.
The lake was small and still and lovely, surrounded by jagged peaks and meadows.
Bob carried his flyrod and tried his hand at fishing,
and was rewarded with a Brown Trout, which he released.
While he fished, I wandered about with my camera and came across a bobbing bird, a Spotted Sandpiper, I believe. It was getting food for its young, which I saw peeking out from the shrubs.
It did its own kind of fishing in a mud pond where butterflies came to rest – rather like sitting ducks I thought – and unlike Bob, did not practice ‘catch and release.’
After we had our fill of the lake, we headed back down the trail, wondering why both directions couldn’t be downhill; it was so much easier. 🙂
On our way we stopped to watch this little chipmunk eating berries in the shrubs.
Back to the truck with wobbly knees, we found a view of Mt. Rainier just around the corner. I was shooting into the sun, so it was too bright to get a good picture (but still worth a try.) And it was mostly swallowed up by clouds even though it was sunny everywhere else; the mountain makes its own weather.
There was only 400 feet elevation gain on the trail to the lake but starting at 5,430 feet meant we were still high in alpine country, on this stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail, and so felt quite accomplished.
And that’s all for today.
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 