Lime Kiln and Tulips 4-20-13

The day was dark and rainy, but you can't wait for a sunny day here in the Northwest, so I grabbed my backpack and Adventure Dog, and we went out to a nearby old favorite, the Lime Kiln Hike.  I was delighted to find some of the first wildflowers I've seen of the season... yellow violets, soggy trillium and rain-covered bleeding hearts could be found along the muddy trail.

Skunk cabbage was also blooming and fern fiddleheads were opening.  I love fiddleheads, and I'm not sure if it's because I enjoy spirals or if I just love being the witness to life unfurling.

There was water everywhere this morning, the sky, the air, the trees, the trail.  All the streams were full and rushing down to meet the Stillaguamish which was impressively huge and beautiful.

I like to watch where I'm walking so that I don't tread upon anyone crossing my path at a lower plane and slower speed.  ; )

Cedar and I checked out the rusty saw blades as usual.  He always seems interested in these things and runs ahead to check things out.

We only went as far as the Lime Kiln itself today.  With the Stilly that full, I was pretty sure our rocky beach was under water.  We instead ducked under the more open lime kiln on the side, and ate under the shelter of the mossy stones.

After our wet hike, we headed home, where I enjoyed a hot shower and left Cedar curled up in the recliner.  I decided to go check out the Skagit Tulip Festival.  Dogs aren't allowed in most of the fields, so I didn't feel bad about leaving him behind.  The rain had mostly stopped, so although it was cloudy, the tulips were stunning.  Look!

Franklin Ghost Town Revisited 3-31-13

Another gorgeous day and for Easter, both my sons agreed to go for a short hike with me!  Last spring Dave and I had done this one and it was very moving to me.  Also I noticed that there were daffodils in the abandoned cemetary and thought they would be in bloom this time.  We grabbed Adventure Dog and off we went!

 

First we went to the right past the mining cart, to view some old foundations.  I believe these were part of the mining process and building, as opposed to reseidences.  Bradley, Justus and Cedar had a good time climbing around.

 

After that, we went back the other way and came to the mine shaft.  This shaft is about 1300 ft deep and if you drop a rock it is several seconds before you hear it hit bottom.  This was the site of one of the worst mining disasters in U.S. history.  37 miners died of suffocation during a fire here.  I think it is pretty sad that there is no memorial with the names here. 

 

After that we headed down the narrow trail to the cemetary, stopping to look at things along the way.

 

 

 

The cemetary was sunny and peaceful with its vine-clad trees and daffodils blooming. 

 

 

It was really really cool that both boys could join me for this, and I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day!  So sunny and warm!  What a happy Easter!

 

Also, Mt Rainier was out and shining in snowy splendor.

 

Seattle and the Aquarium 3-30-13

It was a gorgeous day out, and while I might have been hiking, Justus was meeting a friend at the Seattle Art Museum, so Dave and I decided to drive him down and make the most of it.  Seattle, for a big city, is a really fun city to hang out in.  Once you have committed to driving down the freeway, meandering through the one-ways and finding parking, it's a nice destination. 
At first we just meandered around the water front, soaking in the sights...

And the sounds...

 

Then we ended up at the Seattle Aquarium!  I couldn't even remember when I'd been there last, and was super excited to see all the watery critters.  We were starving though, so first we ate outside on the balcony.  The food was pretty good for cafeteria style and the views were unbeatable! (well, maybe the Space Needle would beat these views)

Then we were off to explore the Aquarium.  There are quite a few touch tanks in the aquarium, so you can get up close and personal with some of the animals.  There were tanks with sea stars and tanks with urchins and anenomes, all with pretty colors and interesting textures.

 

Then there is this really cool psychedelic jelly fish display.  There are colored lights that change as the jellies float around through this glass donut that you can walk through.  I wanted to just stand in there all day and watch them as they floated past the light.

There are quite a few octopi here also.  Both the Giant Pacific and the smaller Red.  They are entertaining and graceful to watch, but hard to capture on camera with the lighting and aquarium walls.

Outside, they have river otters, sea otters, and fur seals among other things.  The absolutely cutest today though was the river otters.  They were both napping, and one was holding his tail and sucking on it like a thumb while he slept.  Awwwwww!

There was also a really cool room that Dave and I could have spent days in.  The viewing area is a sphere inside the aquarium and all around are the fish.  Some hang out in their particular spots, and others circle around.  There was quite a variety!

 

 

Wolf eel

The rat fish... terrible name for such a beautiful and graceful fish!  The Seattle Aquarium also has the 1st rat fish baby to ever be hatched and raised in captivity.

 

There was a great collection of sea pens in this aquarium.

And this tank had a great variety of colorful sea critters!  Anenome, urchin, scallop, etc. 

Wherever you are, get out there and enjoy it!