Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Taking a Break with the Birds
It’s a beautiful fall day and I’m inside doing paperwork.
Time for a break.
The birds had the same idea and were everywhere.
The Robins were most plentiful.
Handsome.
Friendly and inquisitive.
There for the watering holes.
There were other birds too, smaller and faster, I couldn’t catch them all.
Chickadees.
Wrens.
Sparrows.
And then they were gone, back to their birdy activities, and I back to mine.
We were all happy for the break.
~ Susanne
Favorite Fall Florals
Not this year’s garden. I didn’t plant any new fall flowers, and previous promised perennials don’t always come back; their high prices mean I sometimes hold a grudge.
Still, they live on in my archives, especially this favorite: Kismet Orange Coneflower.
I really should give it another chance.
If only for the bees.
Sharing for #Sunday Stills, Plant Life.
~ Susanne
The Salmon are back! Spawning in the Cedar River
It’s been a long, long journey for these sockeye salmon, but they have returned at last to their spawning grounds in the Cedar River.
Not the greatest video but stick it out to the end to see the female lay her eggs.
I love #Renton, where a river runs through it.
~ Susanne
Back by Popular Demand – Fall Color at Coulon Park
They come from far and wide to see the trees in glory.
At Gene Coulon Memorial Park in Renton.
~ Susanne
Playing in Light Room – Black and White in Hawaii
I’ve already shared a few times from our trip to Hawaii last month, but I thought I’d take another look for this week’s Sunday Stills Color Challenge, #Black & White.
There’s a lot of black to be found on the Big Island, because of the volcanic eruptions that created it; lava of all ages is everywhere.
There’s plenty of color too! I’ve used the slide show option in the next two sets of pictures from Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, so you can compare.
Here are a few more snaps from the Big Island, a gecko I found on a jungle walk to Akaka Falls,
and Liliuokalani Park in Hilo.
And how could I forget Punalu’u Black Sand Beach
and the gorgeous turtles resting there?
Moving on to Oahu, we found this spooky scene at Kualoa Ranch where dozens (hundreds?) of TV shows and movies have been filmed, this one, Kong: Skull-Island.
Finally, I’ll close this Hawaiian adventure in black and white with a beach scene from Waikiki.
Fyi, I recently subscribed (again) to Adobe, for Light Room Classic, as it makes it much easier to edit my pictures in fewer steps, than the free tools I’ve been using.
That’s all for now.
~ Susanne
Taking the Scenic Route – Turquoise and Gold in the North Cascades
“Is the Park open?”
(“You’re in it now,” I thought to myself, “just open your eyes.”)
But I understand. There’s a government shutdown, after all.
And North Cascades National Park is different from the others. No fanfare. Just mountains. And a river. And creeks. And falls. Take a hike if you like or stop at the overlooks and gawk.
The young man in the Visitor’s Center answered the couple in the affirmative, and they went on their way.
We were in the town of Newhalem, owned and operated by the City of Seattle and its municipal utility, Seattle City Light.
A true company town, established to house the workers who built the dams on the Skagit River over a hundred years ago, to harness hydro power for the growing city south.
I hope he told them to keep going and be sure and stop at the Diablo Lake Overlook.
It’s a must-see any time of year, a spectacular lake of indescribable color, formed when the Skagit River was dammed. The color is due to glacial flour reflecting in the water.
We stopped to admire the views then continued eastward on Highway 20 for another panorama, at the Washington Pass Overlook where the Larch are turning gold and the rock is gold, too.
And for a good look at 7,720 ft. Liberty Bell, a favorite of rock climbers.
We spent the night in Winthrop, a small Western-themed town, which was strangely quiet.
This was the view from our room, next to the Methow River.
The next morning we had a light breakfast – this was mine –
then hit the road again. The terrain changed dramatically as we followed the Columbia River.
We stopped for a walk at Beebe Springs Natural Area, on alert for rattlesnakes. We didn’t see any,
but we did see a beautiful sculpture.
We spent the night in Leavenworth, a small Bavarian-themed town, also strangely quiet; it will liven up this weekend, when Octoberfest kicks in.
The deep blue skies from the day before disappeared, due to smoke from the nearby Labor Mountain Fire, which started on September 1st, and is still burning. Some containment has been achieved but it will likely burn until a strong weather event puts it out.
The next day, we headed back home via Highway 2 and stopped by Tumwater Canyon and the Wenatchee River.
The views from the highway were gorgeous
as we headed up Stevens Pass and back over to the West side of the Cascade Mountains.
We stopped for a hike here and there throughout our few days away, but honestly this time, the best views were from the road. No wonder this scenic drive is called the Cascade Loop, Washington’s Ultimate Road Trip.
~ Susanne
Celebrating Animals in the Air, on Land, and Sea
Hooray for animals!
Terri at #Sunday Stills reminded me that October 4th was World Animal Day.
“World Animal Day is an International Day of Action for animal rights and welfare celebrated annually on October 4th, the feast day of Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.” Wikipedia
Okay, honestly, I’d never heard of it before, though it was established in 1925!
Even so, I thought I’d share a sampling of some of my favorite animals, starting with the tiniest birds in my backyard, the Anna’s Hummingbird. I never get tired of watching these flying jewels, with their changing colors. I took these photos over the weekend.
Yes, I love birds of all kinds including those migrating snow geese and eagles along the Pacific Flyway in Washington’s Skagit Valley! Almost time to go look for them!
For the sea, I’ll show you a group of whales we spotted in Alaska’s Inside Passage. They were fishing in a cooperative effort known as, “bubble-net feeding.”
“To bubble-net feed, whales dive deep below schools of fish and use bubbles blown from their blowholes to stun and trap fish closer to the surface. One whale generally leads the effort followed by the rest of the group. The leader will usually be responsible for blowing the bubbles and the other members will surround the fish, following them to the surface by swimming in spiral patterns to keep the fish trapped.
Humpback whales are known as “gulpers”, which means they feed by leaving their mouths open, swallowing everything in their paths before closing their mouths, pushing water out through their baleen plates and swallowing the critters (usually fish and small crustaceans) they caught. During bubble net feeding, the whales swimming toward the surface will have their mouths open and gulp fish from the school they have corralled.” https://marinesanctuary.org/blog/bubble-net-feeding-what-is-it/
Back on land, I love seeing herds of Roosevelt Elk on the Olympic Peninsula; these were at Dosewallips State Park on Hood Canal.
Finally, I’ll close with a more formidable animal – a Grizzly Bear, captured from a safe distance in Glacier National Park, the only one I’ve seen in the wild.
I’m thankful that all these beautiful creatures still have a place on this earth to call home.
“Uh, um, excuse me, Sue, aren’t you forgetting something?”
“Oh, Benji! Sorry! I sometimes forget that you’re an animal!”
“How about me, Sue?”
“Of course, Tiger! Make no mistake about it, you two are my favorite animals!”
And that will do for World Animal Day.
~ Susanne
Hey, Benji
“Yes, Sue?”
“Happy Caturday!”
~ Susanne and Benji
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 