Heather Lake 7-8-12

Heather Lake, beautiful at all times of year, is particularly striking in her spring colors.  Snow still hangs out in patches, but the boardwalks are mostly clear, wildflowers are starting their show, and wildlife is abundant for the watchful (not just mosquitos either!)  The trail itself is a pleasant, although consistently elevation gaining. There are interesting trees, and I have always loved fierce devil's clubs.

There are quite a few places that streams cross the trail, so be prepared to get your feet wet.  I suppose if you are a native of the Northwest though, you are always prepared to get your feet wet.  In the warmer months my preference is barefoot shoes, so I can get that cooling effect and then dry quickly. Here Adventure Dog demonstrates the proper method of partially crossing a stream and then looking back to make sure your human is fording it successfully before going on.

After toiling mostly uphill for a couple miles, it is breathtaking (if you have any left) to see through the trees the rugged cliffs that rise up above the lake.

Then you are out at the lake's edge, looking at its reflective surface, and the jagged, waterfall-covered rock cliffs that stand over it.

The boardwalks that go around a lot of the lake are a lot of fun.  They are bendy and warpy, but solid and more photogenic than a straight flat boardwalk would be.

Be careful at some times of year, when avalanche danger is high.  Even with most of the snow gone, there are remnants of some pretty powerful avalanches that I needed to scramble across.

And now I believe I mentioned wildflowers and wildlife!  Let's start with the wildflowers:

And now for the cute little critters.  Just before I got to the lake, this junco was hanging out on a rock and posed nice and still for me.

Going around the lake, there were a couple of frogs.  One was unabashedly skinny-dipping and the other was crouched down on a log hoping I wouldn't see him.  I don't think he likes wildlife paparazzi.

And lastly, can you see this baby trout?  I hope so because I had to hold very still and take many shots to get this, whilst mosquitos descended on me and I was defenseless against them as I tried to get one that didn't blur or have water glare.

Deception Pass Jetboat Tour 7-14-12

Using a Groupon, I went with Dave and friends Brian and Pam to tour Deception Pass for an hour in a jet boat!  It was totally worth it and the hour felt more like 20 minutes.  I can't believe I didn't take one of the boat itself!  It was 1000 hp and had a catamaran hull, so it was powerful and stable.

It was a beautiful day and the water looked alternately deep blue, and sea green.  In the pass, it was roiling and swirling as usual.

We learned some interesting local lore.  One was that the little island we passed on the way out, Ben Ure Island, used to belong to a smuggler who would throw his cargo over if he was about to get caught by the authorities....even if it was people, which he smuggled in in burlap bags.  The story goes the bodies washed ashore typically at a certain cove on San Juan Island, which came to be known as Dead Man's Cove.

Another thing I never knew was that there was a prison there built into a cliff!  It is now covered with a grate to prevent people from putting themselves at risk to explore, but apparently once it housed 40 prisoners who were forced to break up rock that was barged down to Seattle to build it up above sea level.

One of the biggest features of Deception Pass was the bridge that you can drive over.

 Although we saw no sea mammals, we did see a variety of sea birds and a few bald eagles as well.

It was a beautiful day to be on the water and be in the company of friends.  I highly recommend this trip! 

Around the Sound

I have been doing a little bit of everything lately and it's catch up time!  First of all, a little bit of awwwww.  This little guy was spotted on a ferry ride to the peninsula.

Another ferry ride to the peninsula, unfortunately not any of the dolphins Dave and I saw twice.  We were enjoying the cormorants, some vintage aircraft flying in formation and a blue heron when we noticed some scuba divers crossing the line into the Edmonds Ferry area.  This is a major no-no, so I figured something was wrong.  There were three of them, and one was being towed by another.  The ferry deployed its emergency response raft and took them to shore.  I went and asked what was wrong and the divers were just tired. 

One drive Dave and I did before we went to California was up to Spada lake.  I had never been there, and it was lovely.  An interesting dam, waterfalls around the lake and a lot of places to park and walk around and enjoy.  It is a really large lake!

Adventure Dog gave me a dirty look for taking his picture here.

We also made another trip out to the Spirit Island wetlands area.  Instead of being dead and muddy, the plants were all green and there were flowers. 

And it was still muddy.  Junior stepped through a thick layer of grass and plopped right into a mudhole face first.

Let's zoom in, shall we?  hahahaha!