Japanese Gulch 11-19-17

Not feeling a drive into the hills to slog through mud or a ferry fee/ride today, I decided to go somewhere close in that I have never visited before - Japanese Gulch in Mukilteo.  Surprisingly, although I lived in Mukilteo for years, I had never been there.

It was a cloudy and windy day, but not raining, still there were really not many people here either which was nice.  Cedar, Luna and I started out going to the right of the dog park and winding back through the trees.  Mostly deciduous, with plenty of ferns growing from the older more gnarly trees, it was a pretty walk.  Most of the autumn leaves were on the ground and blanketing the trail, which was pretty.  I could see a stream down below, and the sound of it and the wind drown out the sounds of humanity for the most part.

There is an unwritten law that dogs can't look back at you at the same time if you're trying to take their photo.

Some of the stairs have bicycle ramps built alongside, which the dogs liked better than steps.  There were a few mountain bikers on the trails, and Luna would probably have liked to chase them better than just walking.  As we went along the bank, the trail branched and hit a few muddy spots and circled back the other way.  This trail is supposed to be a loop, but other than the start of the trail, I saw no other markers.  After hitting a couple dead ends we worked our way back until we found our way down to the trail that runs along the stream.  We went uphill a ways and then turned around and headed back toward the parking lot.

The stream was quite pretty, with tiny waterfalls and spillways.

Alongside the natural attractions, there were some interesting man-made ones as well.  Boeing jets were coming in low toward the airport, and a train came slowly up the gulch while we were on the trail too.  I was glad to be up above when that went by as opposed to the trail between the tracks and the stream.

Can you see the plane?

At the parking lot is a dog park, and after a short hike Luna still had 99% of her energy left.  She spent about 20 minutes outrunning a German shepherd puppy before I could see she was slowing down a little.  I would like to come back and explore this gulch again the future.  Maybe I can figure out what parts of the trail actually are supposed to make up the loop next time.

Lime Kiln Trail 04-29-17

It was a gray day and rain was forecast for later, so I was hoping that the popular Lime Kiln Trail would be quiet despite my late start.  No such luck.  I got one of the last spots in the parking lot and it people just kept coming.  At least they were all nice, and Cedar enjoyed meeting their dogs.

Dealing with medical issues lately including anemia and arthritis in my toes, I am trying to work back up to steeper longer hikes.  Cedar and I have been doing 3 miles along a slough of the Snohomish a few times each week, but even this relatively level hike, being longer, felt like a challenge.  

Spring flowers were blooming along the trail and it was a lovely temperature.

Bleeding hearts above the Stillaguamish

This fun part of the trail has you walking under several logs like a little tunnel

Cedar checks out some old rusty saw blades

The lime kiln itself hides under moss, ferns, lichen, and other greenery and I never see it until I'm nearly on top of it. I wonder how much longer this monument to this areas history will stand?  A long time I hope, it is always interesting to think about how this area used to be bustling with trains, the lime kiln, small settlements, etc.

The moss here is super thick and many of the tree branches look like the arms of fuzzy green muppets. It covers logs, rocks and signs.

As we wound our way back up to the dirt road portion of the trail, I saw this banana slug in the entrance of a stump cave.

Happy hiking!

Franklin Ghost Town Hike 04-16-2017

I was saddened a couple weeks ago when I looked at my blog and realized it was time for the Franklin Ghost Town hike and I hadn't really done many other hikes.  I have re-dedicated myself to the outdoors and hiking, and hope to get back to my adventuring.  Cedar and I are practicing by hiking along a slough of the Snohomish at 3 miles roundtrip a few times a week.  

Last weekend found me back at Franklin.  I had a gorgeous view of Mt Rainier on the drive down, but once I started my hike clouds blocked any hope of a photo of it. At least it wasn't raining.

We surprised this robin which was building a nest.

The coal mine shaft, 1000 ft deep

While nothing remains of houses or stores, there are still foundations of the various mine buildings.

I think this part of the trail is permanently muddy

Cedar and I sat here to eat our lunch on the way back out

Bleeding hearts were starting to bloom

Here is a neat little snail.  I wonder if he's the same little guy I had in my blog from last year, haha.

The Franklin cemetery is beyond the mine shaft and through the deciduous woods.  The ground and trees are choked with thick old ivy vines and daffodils and wildflowers bloom.  Some of the people buried here were killed in the Franklin Mine Disaster, a fire which left 37 people dead in August of 1894.  You can read more about it here http://www.historylink.org/File/9165

I go to visit James and Romulus.  I am not sure if it is their names that draw me- I have Jameses in the family and love the name Romulus- or if it was because I have two boys myself, that I hope outlive me by a long long time.  Either way, I like to think that as a mother, I would be at peace to know that over a hundred years after the death of my children that they were not forgotten.  I'm not the only one either, as I saw the stems of daffodils and bleeding hearts on most of the graves there.

I didn't miss the daffodils completely, but there were just a few left.

At the end of my hike, this red breasted sapsucker was ratta-tatting loudly on this street sign. 

Othello, WA 04-08-2017

Although we missed the Othello Crane Festival, my mom and I decided to meet my sister in Othello for a fun day of exploring the area in hopes of seeing sandhill cranes that hadn't continued on their north migration.  I had never been to Othello before and was charmed by the busy little town and friendly people.

We met at the Old Hotel and Caboose Interpretive Center... complete with authentic tumbleweed.

The lady there told us where sandhill cranes might be found, and we headed out into the countryside.

I loved driving around the Othello area.  The country roads were so quiet and empty, wildflowers were blooming, and when we stepped out of the vehicle the wind whistled through the power lines and barbed wire fences.

We lucked out and found sandhills at one of the first areas we were told to check.  What amazing birds!  They are so tall, and that dove gray and red combo is very striking.  We could hear them too and their warbling cooing call was very distinctive and wonderful to hear.

The landscape included tall sweeping hills, little buttes, canyons and was dotted with lakes and canals.

There were also some interesting signs.

As we drove around birding we saw a lot of other birds as well.

Killdeer

Meadowlark

Curlew

Yellow headed blackbird.  I had never seen these before.

Apparently these guys thought they were invisible if they hunkered down in the reeds.

Great egret

It was a fantastic day out and one I would love to repeat.