The Kaleberg Journal - March 2026

03/26 - Cherry Blossoms at UW

We took a special trip into Seattle just to see the cherry blossoms at The Quad at the University of Washington. It's always something special. We had been watching the webcam, because that's the only way to tell when the blossoms are near their peak.

It was a quick trip with plenty of time to wander among the trees with their flowers and enjoy the energy of the crowd. Everyone was there to see the arrival of spring. People dressed up and photographers abounded. People posed in kimonos, pushed strollers full of children and had picnics on the grass. There was even a quinceañera party in formal dress.
























Keywords: flowers, seattle, spring

The Kaleberg Journal - February 2026

02/27 - Elwha to Altair with Skunk Cabbage

Spring is coming soon, so we decided to see how things were progressing along the Elwha. We didn't expect much. The mules weren't coming back for at least a month, and it's early for most spring flowers. To be honest, we were hoping for skunk cabbage and not much more.

We made it all the way up to the Altair Bridge, and we got to see and smell a lot of skunk cabbage along the road a bit south of the ranger station. We also saw that the river had had a wild winter. Huge logs had been tossed about and new channels cut. A section of the trail was under water.

It was too early for trilliums, fawn lilies or the little violets, but the trail was in good shape. We're hoping to get back soon as spring progresses.
























Keywords: elwha, spring

02/03 - Flying to Seattle

We flew to Seattle in the afternoon and had amazing views of the mountains and waters. We're off on an adventure.

The Olympic Mountains





Puget Sound


Mount Rainier - the ghost mountain

Seattle

Keywords: flying, seattle

02/02 - Dinner in Seattle

We stayed and ate dinner near the Pike Place Market. We had an early flight - this time on a big airplane - the next morning.





Keywords: seattle

02/01 - Flying Into Charleston

There aren't a lot of good flights to the southeast from Seattle. Usually, one has to change planes in Atlanta, but Alaska Air has a lone daily non-stop flight that leaves in the morning and arrives in the evening. This time of year, that meant we caught the sunset. We didn't see any mountains as we approached the city. The land was flat and the rivers meandered.









Keywords: flying, seattle

The Kaleberg Journal - January 2026

01/31 - Guale Preserve

One of our favorite places to wander on Big St. Simons Island is the Guale Preserve. Coming from the Northwest, it's exotic country with its flat terrain, gnarled trees, sandy soil and palmettos. The first part of our walk had a bit of up and down though not enough to qualify as terrain. It was old sand dunes now covered with organic matter, forest and palmetto. We headed back on the old telephone line trail which was completely flat. Welcome to the Southeast.























Keywords: georgia

01/30 - The Beach at Sea Island

We took a walk along the beach looking for birds and sea life. There were some sand dollars, some peeps and some pelicans flying. There were also a few machines moving around sand at low tide.











Keywords: georgia

01/29 - Fort Frederica

We also stopped by Fort Frederica, now long abandoned. There was a whole town here along with the army base. Now, there are old trees and a few old fortifications. The British were worried about the Spanish heading north and invading back then. Now, it's a historical park and a very nice one.





















Keywords: georgia

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