These boys have spent the last two years together.  Some have played soccer together, some have gone to elementary school together, some have been in classes with each other.  Though the last two years they have been tight.  I call our house "The House of the Revolving Door" mostly because of these four boys soon to become men.  Sometimes they hang at our house even when Job isn't there.  Sometimes in the morning I will find one or all on the floor or various couches.  Sometimes they play video games and then leave to buy junk food.  But they make their way back to the house sooner or later.  This is their last hurrah after graduation.  Then they will be heading their separate ways.  One to WSU. One to BTC and Culinary School. One to California and Chapman U. And Job to the Coast Guard.  What will life bring for them? I am not sure.  Will they make it to their destinations? Will their paths cross again.  Who knows but for the last two years, it has been fun.

This year we had new neighbors move in.  Actually we've had bunnies before but not like this.  We see these tiny little guys all the time.  Sometimes they are skittish and book out of there lickety split and other times they sit quietly as still as possible and hope you don't notice them. I drop to my belly and slowly belly crawl towards the bunny with my lens.  Sometimes I can get some good shots and sometimes I get their tail end as they find their little hiding spots.  I am sure my neighbors are getting a kick out of watching me crawl across our front yard. 

Sometimes I forget about this walk in the woods.  That is what it is - a walk.  This reserve has about 4 miles of trails that weave through Douglas Fir and ferns. After winding our way through the forest trail, we were given the option to detour around the small pond or continue the loop. We choose the pond and within a quarter of a mile to go we were greeted by the sounds of mallard ducks and frogs making their presence known. At the far end of the pond a bench was placed perfectly to take in the scenery and I could imagine spending a morning and a cup of coffee in the quiet. Just as we had rounded the corner to this peaceful sunny spot we were buzzed by a low flying duck coming out of the woods, banking hard and to make a landing on the pond. Continuing on we made our way around the pond and joined the main loop trail. There were families with small kids and trail runners that wanted a quick run through the woods but it was far from being crowded which made it lovely for a  spring walk in the woods.

We live in such an amazing area.  I feel like I have to pinch myself to make sure that I am really not dreaming about living here.  A typical "let's go for an easy hike" weekend day had us out the door on our way to enjoy the beautiful Oyster Dome in the Chuckanut mountains.  We just wanted a relaxing hike that wasn't too strenuous and so chose the Samish Overlook trailhead.  Since this provides a beautiful view of Skagit County with outhouses and picnic areas we knew it was going to be busy.  We've come up a number of times but have never seen para jumpers or hang gliders take off from this area. Yet that is exactly what we found when we arrived.  We walked over to the launch site and realized that this gentleman was setting up to glide and so like everyone else we decided to stay and watch.  Turns out he's in his 80s and has been hang gliding for years and years and this is what he does when he retires.  Makes me rethink what I might want to do. He set up his wings and then attached a green mummy sack like bag to the underneath. He strapped himself in and waited and waited and waited.  He waited for the wind to kick up and come up the face of the overlook.  The wind sock would gust and then quiet down and gust again. The crowd grew bigger and soon people were talking and asking questions meanwhile the gentleman remained quiet and concentrated.  Another gentleman started answering questions and talking about the currents, turns out he's part of a hang glider, para jumper club here. Without warning the hang glider had launched and was heading towards the ground hundreds of feet below, just as he was about to hit the tops of the trees, the glider leveled out and he sailed over the river far below, slowly, making large loops and spirals as he glided ever closer to his destination of a farmers field far below in the valley.  We stayed and watched a few people with parachutes jump and then started on our hike to Oyster Dome, contemplating if we would be able to do something like that ourselves.  A new hobby? Something probably to consider and dismiss.

One night, two days

Thunder Knob Trail
Situated in the North Cascades it starts off at a campground and makes its way through deep moss, lush undergrowth, and the damp forest floor. After a bit, the scenery starts to change as it becomes more dry and arid like an eastern mountain climate. Mountain peaks with snow predominate the views higher up and the scrub brush springs up everywhere. The switchbacks are not steep but crisscross the mountainside. Once on top, there are a few well-placed benches to sit upon while enjoying lunch and the view of Lake Diablo, Mount Ross, and David's Peak. To the south is Colonial Peak.
Somethings I wish I would have brought:  hammocks because there are trees at the top perfectly placed for one or two hammocks and the sounds are peaceful.  Something more substantial to eat than cuties.  I'm thinking cheese and crackers would have fit the bill.  Also, the crackers might have tempted the yellow-throat-ed bird a bit closer for a photo.

Nehalem and the Dam
At the Nehalem, there is a very short walk called the Trail of Cedars along with Ladder Creek Falls just up the road behind the dam.  Both of these offered a nice place to stretch our legs and read up about the history of the area. The signs along the Trail of Cedars explained about the growth of trees and there were very clear examples of new growth and old growth.  We found ourselves looking around for each example and I felt like I was on a little bit of a treasure hunt. The marks left by a fire 50 years ago was evident.  This is the 75th anniversary of the story of Smokey the Bear. Granted that happened in California but still applicable to today.  Just down the road at the dam, we wandered behind it, climbed to the highest viewpoint for the ladder falls and had it almost to ourselves.  Unfortunately, the footbridge across was closed to renovations otherwise we would have done a little loop.  Beautiful moss covered rocks, logs, and cement structures giving it an abandoned and old world feel to it.







Winthrop was the quintessential western town.  A couple of blocks and we covered the main street. It had cute antique and home shops, saloons and restaurants, clothing stores and mini golf.  Our hotel was on the other side of town across the bridge along the river. The next morning, I grabbed some coffee and made my way down towards the Adirondack chairs facing the river for some quiet. With my journal, my camera and a blanket in hand I spent the next 45 minutes thinking and writing. Eventually John joined me and we made our way to breakfast and then back to town to take in a few more shops.  Being on vacation I needed ice cream as well and wasn't disappointed at all. Pretty soon it was time to make our way back home. There were a few more trails and look outs that I wanted to stop at before getting over the pass.  The first trail was Cutthroat Lake.  We started off in a snow filled parking lot and made our way along the trail, following the tracks in some areas and walking on bare trail in others.  The lake was tucked away surrounded by peaks on all sides.  We were alone. It was incredible.  It wasn't difficult just out of the way and worth it. I just felt so small in that space. The shore of the lake was covered with snow so it made it difficult to tell if the snow made it out to the ice crusted lake or not.  The next stop on our way was the Washington Pass Overlook.  It was closed and we needed to walk about 1/2 mile.  So worth it. I could see the whole pass and the road winding its way to the top. Again we were alone and as we came around the corner and our view was no longer blocked by pines, we gasped when we saw it.  How could I not have been here before?  It only took 18 years to go.  I approached the barrier and barely leaning over I felt as if I could look straight down.  We wandered the area a bit, walking along the trails, checking out other sights with barriers but that first view was the best.  This is worth a spot, even when busy.