| There have been some good low hiking tides at Dungeness Spit. There isn't much else to say. |
 Lots of sand means easy walking. |
 That load of lumber is still on the beach. |
 A view of the mountains. |
| March 2015 | April 2015 | May 2015 |
Keywords: dungeness spit, tides
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When Country Aire first moved into its new, larger space downtown, the store seemed rather empty, as if the old store had simply been spread out more. Over the past year or two it seems to have filled in a bit. There's a lot more on sale including meats from local farms, some pretty good cheese, Draper Valley chickens and fresh fish, some from Wild West. They've also upped the quality and variety of their produce. We love their packaged mushrooms which we can't find anywhere else in the area. We've been shopping there more and more often, and more often finding everything we need.
They aren't going to replace the Safeway, but the new Country Aire on First Street and Oak is a great new reason for heading downtown. |
 Frozen meats, much from Clark Farms |
 Mount Townsend cheese among others - We love the fresh feta. |
 It's hard to get a good photo of fish. |
Keywords: port angeles, shopping
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There's a new visitor to Port Angeles harbor, a rather controversial oil rig. We gather it is in town being outfitted after having spent some time in Malaysia and is now on its way to Arctic waters. Greenpeace was in town protesting, though it is likely that low oil prices will do what the protestors cannot, keep the rig from drilling up north.
The oil rig was big and gaudy, but there was also the Kayak Festival at Hollywood Beach with its tents, brightly colored kayaks and kayakers in wet suits. It was a perfect day for kayaking with lots of sun, mild winds and smooth water. We watched a bit of a kayaking class and a minor rescue with two other kayakers getting a third back into his kayak. This is trickier than it sounds. |
 Our visitor |
 The Kayak Festival |
 A kayaking class |
| Our local farmers are having a great spring at the Port Angeles Farmers' Market. This time we managed to snare some asparagus from Spring Rain Farms. Last time they had run out, so come early if you want some. Nash Huber has swiss chard, leeks and cauliflower. They also still have spring nettles. Johnston Farm has lots of potatoes, salad fixings and coriander. The Family Farm had their little white turnips. We slice them thinly and salt them lightly. We made it there early today and loaded up on goodies for the week. |
 Spring Rain rhubarb and horseradish |
 Spring Rain greens |
 Johnston Farm greens and sunchokes |
 Family Farm greens and turnips |
 Nash's swiss chard and cauliflower |
Keywords: farmers' market, farms, johnston farm, nash huber, spring, spring rain
| We've been getting out to the Marymere Falls a fair bit lately. This time we decided to head up Barnes Creek a bit and see how spring is progressing in the valley. The whole area is a riot of green with the trees, ferns, mosses and undergrowth all contributing to the wild forest scene. There were also trilliums in bloom, another sign of the season. If you do get out to the falls, consider following the creek a bit and checking out the spring scenery. |
 A trillium |
 A moss covered rock |
 The green scene |
 A little waterfall along the trail |
 That waterfall again |
 More green |
 Another trillium |
 Barnes Creek |
 Yet more trilliums |
 Another view of the creek |
 And another |
Keywords: barnes creek, marymere falls, spring, trillium
| The Lake Angeles Trail starts at about 1900' above sea level and it climbs and it climbs. We haven't made it up to the lake yet, but we are getting back into shape. There are no trilliums yet, but the early spring flowers, and a few mushrooms, are coming out in the lower reaches. |
 A sunny day on the trail |
 Little mushrooms |
 A violet orchid |
 A little yellow violet |
 A large mushroom emerging |
Keywords: lake angeles, spring
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04/07 - Mill Creek and Bennington Lake We were out in Walla Walla to celebrate the Cayuse spring release and a friend's birthday. With all the good food and wine, we really needed a bit of stretch. So, we drove out to Mill Creek and Bennington Lake at the eastern edge of town and explored a landscape we found quite exotic. For one thing, it is much drier out here than back home in the North Olympic Peninsula, and the mountains are much farther away.Mill Creek and Bennington Lake is an Army Corps of Engineers site, much like the Ballard Locks. The primary purpose of the site was water management, but there were picnic tables, bathrooms and lots of hiking trails. There was also the Mill Creek diversion dam, Mill Creek itself, and the Mill Creek storage dam itself, a large earthwork near the parking lot. This may sound awfully industrial what with all the dams, but like the Ballard Locks, it has a lot of charm. A short walk gave us a good sense of the prairie and at a high point across the diversion dam there some wonderful views of the distant snow capped mountains. So much of the area is agricultural and off limits. Either that, or it is a vineyard. It was nice to have a place to go and just wander. |
 A dry country |
 Coneflowers |
 Lake Bennington |
 Public works |
 More public works and more trails |
 The view from a high point |
 These flowers had an amazingly sweet scent. |
 Looking down at the diversion channel crossing |
 Another view - Those are big concrete blocks. |
Keywords: flowers, spring, trails, walla walla
| These were blooming on one of the trails behind Peninsula College. We saw a few just starting to bloom on Piedmont Road, and there are trilliums coming up along the Spruce Railroad Trail, but these were not even close to blooming yet. |
 Already! |
| March 2015 | April 2015 | May 2015 |