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08/25/22 - Obstruction Point Road - Part 2

This is a continuation of our post on our last visit of the season to Obstruction Point Road with a bit more focus on details.

Some late lupines

Some flowers

Harebells and others

Paintbrush

Juniper

Yarrow

We're not sure what this is, but it's a great composition.

More flowers

And more flowers

Some fall flowering phlox

Paintbrush

Another bouquet

And another

A blue grouse

One of her chicks

Grousing

More grousing

There were three or four grouse chicks.

Another chick, or perhaps the same one again

Bright flowers

Lithiculture

Amongst the rocks

Magenta

Keywords: high country, grouse, flowers, obstruction point


08/02/22 - Obstruction Point Revisited

We made another trip out to Obstruction Point. The season has been progressing. Most of the snow is gone, and more flowers are in bloom. The lakes have melted out from the snow. As usual, the scenery was magnificent. Our bonus sighting this trip was a bear down in one of the lakes.

On top of the world

The trail up there

Mountains and valleys

Another piece of the trail

Phlox - It's a pity we can't take a snapshot of its amazing scent.

More flowers

Plant life

Raven Rock, as we call it

Clouds in the distance

Still some snow in the mountains

Melting snow and a lake below

Growing from the stone

Another view down, melting snow

More clouds and a valley

Another mountain view

The trail again

Harebells

The bear sloshing around in a lake

The bear emerges - The photo is blurry. That bear was quite far away.

More flowers

A stone garden

Flowers and stone

Pink paintbrush

Keywords: flowers, obstruction point

Keywords: flowers, obstruction point


04/30/22 - Little River Trail - To The Waterfall

We've been hiking along the Little River Trail for years now, but we never went much beyond the second foot bridge. We walked out along the trail for about an hour, then turned around and headed back. This time, we kept going for another half hour and got to see the waterfall. We're probably going to do this again as soon as we can.

The trail along the river was beautiful. The trilliums are out in force and other flowers - little violets, violet orchids, colt's foot - were coming out as well. There were columbines in bloom along the trail as our reward for going on. They like open rocky surfaces. The river was flowing briskly, but not at full flood. After we crossed the second foot bridge, we headed upward along the valley wall with glimpses of the river below.

We heard the falls before we saw them. Then we saw a bit of white water through the brush. Then we saw the waterfall. We found a side path that let us get a better view of the falls. It was in rough shape, but passable. The photographs don't really do the falls justice. There are actually two falls where the river seems to divide and rejoin, and it's hard to fit them into a single picture. The photographs don't capture the roar of the water either.

Now we have a new goal, and, perhaps, some day we might head farther. The trail ends all the way up on Hurricane Ridge where it meets with the Hurricane Hill Trail. It's pretty snowy up there with seven feet of snow up on the ridge and trail leading up the north face. We are unlikely to ever follow the trail that far, but it's nice to know we can keep going and going, at least until our feet start to give out.


One of many trilliums

Another of many trilliums

Yet another of many trilliums

A stone wall

The trail

A columbine

More columbines

The trail along the valley wall

More of the trail

The falls far below us

More of the falls

More of the trail

Stone and moss

At our feet

Good grief, even more trilliums

A view of the river

Along a nurse log

Ferns and trilliums

A few last trilliums

Keywords: flowers, little river, trillium, waterfall


03/29/22 - Cherry Blossoms at the University of Washington

We try to see the cherry blossoms at the University of Washington every year. We missed a year because of COVID, and we almost missed this year because of the ferry staffing shortage. Usually, the ferries run frequently with waits less than an hour, but, this year, they are often and unpredictably running on half scheduling meaning that the time between ferries is nearly two hours.

We watched the schedule and the webcams carefully, and then we made our plans. We arrived early for the Kingston to Edmonds ferry and made our way to UW. The cherry blossoms were beautiful. There was the usual crowd of tourists, couples, friends and families taking in the scene. We made our circuit pausing to admire this view and that tree in the brilliant sunlight.

We had timed our ferries well, but we hadn't timed the weather. By the time we had finished our circuit the skies had darkened and a light rain had started. The crowds vanished leaving us and few other die hards. Raincoats are wonderful things. We wandered around some more. The trees and their flowers were as wonderful as ever.

Then, we headed off. We made a quick stop at Din Tai Fung at U Village to grab a load of dumplings and scooted down to the Bainbridge ferry which was running on full schedule. We made the first boat and ate our dumplings on the crossing. Our lightning trip had worked out perfectly. In this part of the world, one can't afford to let rain be a spoiler.


Our wake on the way over

The cherry blossoms

More cherry flowers

Another view of the cherry trees

A cloud of cherry - thesaurus, please - blooms

A view down the aisle

No caption needed here

It is sort of magical under the trees

More magic

Even more magic

Dark twisted old branches

Graying skies

See, the blossoms are still beautiful.

The quad starts to empty.

Looking upward

Looking across

Even emptier

A raindrop, captured on camera

The wet quad

Keywords: flowers, seattle, weather


08/02/21 - Klahane Ridge

We made it up to Klahane Ridge via the Switchback Trail. We got an early start, so the shadows were long. The flowers were blooming, and the hills were green. It's a hard climb, around 1450', and while there are switchbacks, it ascends briskly. We took a few breaks to catch our breath, but we knew that the only way to the ridge is to keep climbing.

A view while climbing

Another view

The trail again

The cliffs

Lingering snow to the north of the ridge

A view from the ridge

Another view with the Olympics

Flowers

More flowers

Looking up Mount Angeles

Paintbrush, in context

Larkspur

More paintbrush

A view on the way down, different light

Harebells

The umbrella forest, almost back at the trailhead

Water in motion

Bog orchid

More water, in context

Keywords: flowers, klahane ridge


06/23/21 - Hurricane Hill

We've been getting an early start on the hiking trail and heading out along the Hurricane Hill Trail. The snow along the trail has melted, but the climb is as steep as ever. The rewards are the wildflowers, the marmots and the amazing views.

The view of the mountains, as spectacular as ever

Morning clouds over the Elwha

One of the marmots

Another marmot

Yet another golden marmot

Melting snow

The start of the little lake

Pask flowers

Other flowers

Across the high country

Another mountain view

Glacier lilies

Avalanche lilies

Mountains and mountains

Western wallflower

More glacier lilies

More avalanche lilies

Lots of larkspur

Early lupines

Keywords: elwha, flowers, high country, hurricane hill, marmots


05/16/21 - Mount Taylor

Energized, the next day we climbed Mount Taylor. We drove a short way to Santa Rosa and started our ascent. This was quite different country from the redwoods. Everything was drier. The grass was already brown, and clusters of trees followed the drainage looking for water.

The lower part of the hike was dry grassland, but here and there the trail passed through wooded areas. We climbed the broad grassy hill to the stile and then passed into a shaded forest with short knotted trees. The shade was a welcome relief from the brilliant sky.

The trail turned, and we could see Pacific Ocean mist in the distance and the open land for miles around. Datura was in bloom in among the grasses, and there were ripe wild strawberries waiting for us in one of the shaded patches.

We made it to the cairn at the summit. It was a pretty view. It was dry, and we were glad we had brought water. The descent was easier. We just followed the land. We used to be regular visitors to Napa and Sonoma Counties, but it had been years since our last visit. We were rewarded for our return with familiar sights and familiar land.


Dry grasslands and clustered trees

Datura

More flowers

A distant mountain

A shaded area

More shade and twisted trees

The trail

The forest

Back in the sun

More flowers

Another open field

A more distant view

More dry grass

The trail goes on

Still a touch of green

A summit view

Seen on the way down

Wild strawberries, a real treat

A California poppy

Keywords: california, flowers


05/12/21 - West Ridge and Prairie Creek Trails

We woke up in Orick with elk in our front yard, as advertised. We were in the redwoods, so we did a forest hike, a loop combining two trails starting not far from our cabin. We took the high road out and went north on the West Ridge Trail and returned on the low road via the Prairie Creek Trail. We crossed a small stream, possibly Prairie Creek itself, then climbed into the redwood forest. We were surrounded by great trees, woodland flowers and enclosure of the forest itself.

The trail climbed quickly at first, then more slowly. Some of the trees were immense. There is no way to capture their size in a photograph. We have some big trees back home in Olympic National Park, but the scale here was different despite the familiar ferns and flowers.

We descended on the appropriately named Zig-Zag trail, then entered an overgrown section with high bushes and some swamp land. We headed back on the Prairie Creek Trail which followed the road at some distance. We crossed a few bridges, but one bridge was completely out. Luckily, the stream wasn't high, so we stepped from rock to rock and crossed dry shod.

The trail was busier as we neared the end. Since it followed the road, people could stop at one of the parking lots and head a short way to see some fantastic trees. There were several fallen trees as we neared the end of the trail, each carved with a tunnel high enough and wide enough for the trail to pass. It was a wonderful, exhausting hike.

Dinner was takeout, a pair of New York strip steaks from the The Larrupin Cafe. We started with a salad, roasted garlic, tapenade and toast points. Then there were the steaks with mushrooms and marsala and a blue cheese dressing. It was a great meal to celebrate a great hike.


One order of elk

Not shamrocks - Though, given the size of the redwoods, they are appropriately huge.

More undergrowth

False Solomon's seal

The dappled forest

More trilliums and their forest friends

One of the big trees

More forest

A banana slug

The swamplands

One of the bridges

Keywords: flowers, trails, california


05/10/21 - Cape Perpetua and Heceta Head

We drove down to Cape Perpetua just south of Yachats and climbed the St. Perpetua Trail for a fantastic view of the coast. There is a road to the summit, but we much preferred hiking. The trail started from the visitor center, followed a stream, then started ascending with a long series of switchbacks. It was a wonderful trail with trilliums, irises and other flowers in bloom. As we neared the summit, we started getting the views of the Pacific Ocean and the rocky coast.

We drove a bit farther south and explored Heceta Head with its beach and lighthouse nestled in the crags. There were roses in bloom, and the rocks were covered with gulls and cormorants.

Dinner was takeout from Ona's: excellent burgers and fries and a fried calamari appetizer. We had considered dining at Ona's, but their "outdoor" dining terrace was almost a greenhouse. It was much more fun dining in our room with its wide open view of the sea.


A bit of the St. Perpetua Trail

The little stream

An aging trillium

Our first bit of a view

A better view

An iris

More flowers

No tiarella

A peephole view

Looking down

A showy iris

Heceta Beach

Another view of the beach

Cormorants

Seagulls

A rose by the sea

A view south

The ocean at play

Another look

Keywords: flowers, oregon, trails, trillium


03/12/20 - Morse Creek West

When we are feeling lazy, we'll often take a walk along the Olympic Discovery Trail starting at the Morse Creek parking off route 101. It's a gentle popular trail, but it's nice and wide, so there is plenty of room for social distancing. It had been closed for a while after it was damaged by the wind and rain. We could see some of the damage at the east end of the dike, and the dike itself is in rough shape. One can follow the trail into Port Angeles and continue west, but our "just enough" walk is usually about a half an hour out and another half an hour back.

The pale area is where they had to rebuild the dike.

Trees along the trail

Along the dike

Looking east

Rough water

More along the trail

More salt water

Heading back

Little blue flowers, a sign of spring

Keywords: flowers, morse creek, port angeles, spring

Keywords: flowers, morse creek, port angeles, spring


02/19/20 - Seattle Winter

We took a short trip into Seattle for the SIFF Noir City Film Festival. We took our usual trip up to Ballard Locks where the water was running at full force. The fish ladder was closed for repairs as was one of the locks, but the winter and early spring flowers were already in bloom. As a bonus, there was a tree full of nesting herons. We've never seen them there before, but this time there were at least six and possibly more.

Seattle in the evening

Daphnes in bloom

Early crocuses

Water at full flow

A more distant view

Herons in the tree

More herons and their nests

Herons and nests from a distance

Frothing water

An empty lock

The view downstream

Edgeworthia chrysantha with a wonderful scent

Berries

Evening in Seattle

Another evening view

Post Alley at night

Pike Place Market at night

Another market view

Seattle streets

Keywords: flowers, seattle, spring, winter

Keywords: flowers, seattle, spring, winter


08/22/19 - Klahane Ridge - High Summer

Once again we put on our hiking boots, grabbed our hiking sticks and hauled ourselves up to Klahane Ridge by way of the Switchback Trail. We didn't set any speed records, but we made it. The climb was sunny with a blue sky, but by the time we made it to the ridge, clouds were rising from the sea and shrouding peaks and valleys. We rested a bit and watched the clouds rise with the warmth of the day. By the time we made it back to the parking lot, the sky was mostly blue again.

It was a late summer hike. The lupines and larkspur were long gone. Vegetation was thick, but only a handful of flowers remained, mainly in microclimates. Many plants had gone to seed, but the yarrow was near its peak.


Clouds and Mount Olympus

Brilliant sun

Another bright scene

Two butterflies

Those two again

A last bit of phlox

More clouds at the ridge

Clouds seeping in from the north

A view of the Olympic Mountains

Asters

Another spectacular view

Larkspur and paintbrush

Late summer blooms

A view from on the way down

A bit of the trail now that the sun had returned

Paintbrush

A hawk we had seen soaring earlier

A last few lupines

More paintbrush

Keywords: flowers, klahane ridge, summer


08/05/19 - Obstruction Point - Flowers and Criters

Here is that post full of flowers, marmots and a butterfly mentioned in the next post.

A happy marmot - Look at that smle.

Another happy marmot - Look at that banquet of lupines.

A resting butterfly

Late phlox

Pink paintbrush among others

Another assemblage of flowers

Some lupines, some snow

More phlox

Some asters among the rocks

Rock plants

Flowers and scenery

Dark headed grasses

Lupines and snow, again

Seen by the trail

Harebells

Keywords: flowers, marmots, obstruction point


07/20/19 - Obstruction Point, First Look

Obstruction Point Road has been open for a while now. We finally drove out and took our usual walk along Lilian Ridge to check out the wildflowers, the marmots, the snow melt fed lakes and the beautiful scenery. Most of the snow had melted, but there were still scraps of it around. We caught some of the last glacier lilies and first lupines. We weren't used to the altitude, so even the 200' or so initial climb from the parking area was a bit of a struggle, but we made it.

Clouds in the sky, color on the ground

Another look

Fields of red and green and melting snow

Distant mountains, descending the staircase

A last patch of snow on broken rock

Glacier lilies

Harebells

The trail

One of the lakes

Phlox

Ripples on a lake

Rock garden

Striking red paintbrush

Four little lakes

Lupines

The trail again

A bit of the view

Another field of color

One of the marmots

Keywords: flowers, marmots, obstruction point


07/02/19 - Klahane Ridge and More

Here are some more photos from our first climb up Klahane Ridge in 2019. The good news is that the alpine flowers are in bloom. The bad news is that there were goats still around. We met a ranger armed with a paint gun who went after them. Then, she had to race off to get to a meeting at headquarters on time. Being a ranger is a job. We walked down from the ridge in a more leisurely manner and took our time admiring the flowers.

The bowl to the north and the Strait of San Juan de Fuca

The goats heading towards the ridge

The goats scampering away after a warning paintball shot

Pasque flowers

Wall flowers

A green collage

Lingering phlox

Larkspur and wall flowers

Larkspur and paintbrush

Some lupines

An assemblage

A close up

Bog orchids by the stream near the trailhead

The little waterfall near the trailhead

A close up of some carnivorous plants

Keywords: flowers, klahane ridge


06/28/19 - To the Altair Bridge Again

We took another walk along the Elwha from Madison Falls south to the Altair Bridge. We actually went a bit past the bridge to take a look at the waterfall across the river. The roses are all gone, but the summer flowers have been coming in.

If you make it past the Altair bridge, watch for this little waterfall across the river. It is visible just a bit past the gate.

A waterfall closeup

Another closeup

Olympic Hot Springs Road where we turned around

Olympic Hot Springs Road towards the new branch of the Elwha

The Elwha below

Another Elwha view

Elderberries

Elderberry closeup

Fern forest

More fern forest

One of the summer flowers

Ocean spray

The detour

Tiger lilies

A butterfly

That butterfly again

That persistent butterfly

A bellflower

Keywords: elwha, flowers, summer, waterfall


06/26/19 - Hurricane Hill - Last Visit for a While

With the construction, Hurricane Hill is only open a few days this summer, but we managed to get up there one more time. We were pleased to see the lupines in bloom but a bit worried by the advanced state of the snow melt. Still, the flowers were beautiful. We are going to miss the corn lilies, but we could see them coming up. We are also going to miss the marmots, but they seem to be do fine without us. If we manage to synchronize our schedule and the construction schedule, we'll try for a visit later this summer, but it doesn't look promising.

An amazing sky

Two marmots

The same two marmots sparring

The Olympic Mountains

Another view of the mountains

Alpine flowers

That's the little seasonal lake in the background.

Field of corn lilies

One of the corn lilies

Another view, so very green

A view north and west

Soft skies

Blue and green

Another marmot amidst the dirty sock plant

A view through the trees

Avalanche lilies

We are sure we looked these up once.

A floral arrangement

Larkspur and wallflower - if your browser supports the SCENT tag you should smell the wallflowers.

Keywords: flowers, hurricane hill, marmots, summer


06/11/19 - Hurricane Hill - Up Close

We were so excited to be getting back to Hurricane Hill, that we took a lot of pictures, so many that we need a double post. This post has the close ups.

The setting

Golden marmot

A seasonal pond frequented by bears, but not today

Early stage corn lily

Pasque flower

Spot the chipmunk

Chipmunk posing

Phlox and some more drama

Avalanche lilies

Lupines

Wallflower

Yarrow

More lupines

More avalanche lilies

More phlox

A rock garden

Lupines up close, with beads of water

Keywords: hurricane hill, flowers


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