Here’s a tour of the dramatic, colorful state of Washington:
Check out the Northern Lights (My son took these pics of the Aurora Borealis, not me)
A spectacular sunset, no filters needed:
Leaves in full color; red…
…and yellow:
So very green, the rainforest of the Pacific Northwest:
Morning blues:
Evening; a kaleidoscope of colors during sundown on the Salish Sea:
Looking through old photos again, I recall this was my thrilling first actual sighting of a lenticular cloud phenomenon. I thought it was Mt. Rainier, but my son, the original Angel Boy, corrected me and said it was Mt. Adams.
It really does resemble alien spacecraft or could belong on an episode of Lost in Space, right?
Some other nicknames for lenticular clouds include “cloudships,” “clouds of heaven,” and “lennies.” They also have a fancy scientific name: Altocumulus lenticularis.
“Danger, Will Robinson!” Maybe the Robinson family stayed away long enough and they’re on their way back to planet Earth. The entire landscape looks otherworldly.
Although there is no significant weather produced by a lenticular, their presence often foretells snow in the next 24-48 hours. Regardless, they’re a good warning sign of an approaching weather front and sometimes a big snowstorm.
Whether it’s Mt. Rainier or Mt. Baker or Mt. Adams, it’s absolutely spectacular!
Yay for window seats!
I don’t know how it happened since I had all the vaccines; flu, pneumonia, and Covid – but I got sick!
Fever, chills, headache, congestion–all the worst symptoms. I’m feeling better after a few days of antibiotics. When I didn’t have much to do except look through old photos, I found some of my favorites from the Pacific Northwest. I sure wish I was there!
Sunrise through the trees.
Sunset on Shilshole Bay with the beautiful Olympic mountain range in silhouette.
Overlooking the marina.
It doesn’t ALWAYS rain, sometimes the weather is absolutely magnificent.
It looks to me like they’re just lazily going around and around in directionless circles on Puget Sound/Salish Sea in Seattle, but I guess there’s a purpose to it…
The Italian word regatta means “contention for mastery” and comes from the Latin word regattare, or “to compete, haggle, sell at retail.” Regatta came to specifically mean “boat race” — and the many social events related to it — in the late 1700s.
Off in the distance, it looks like there’s a container ship, but sadly, no whales…
Whatever it means, and whatever they’re doing, it makes for pretty photos, credit to my son, high above the marina on Shilshole Bay. The clouds over the snowless Olympic mountain range create a magnificent backdrop.
If we’re lucky enough to see it, alpenglow is the rosy light of the setting or rising sun on high mountains.
I don’t know how in the world my son was able to take this creative photo of alpenglow on the Olympic Mountains in Washington state, but it’s one of my favorite pics of his from a couple years ago.
Since we all seem to be stuck in a neverending heat wave, I thought this photo might help to cool us off; to evoke memories of crisp, snowy days.
How do YOU stay cool?
This poem by Mary Oliver makes me think of the Pacific Northwest where blackberries grow freely on every fence and in every alley and all along the path we take to walk to the Salish Sea.
The Angel kids, as they carefully pick blackberries to avoid thorns, their faces and hands stained purple, turn now and again to share, “Here’s a nice big one for you, Grandma!”
When the blackberries hang
swollen in the woods, in the brambles
nobody owns, I spend
all day among the high
branches, reaching
my ripped arms, thinking
of nothing, cramming
the black honey of summer
into my mouth; all day my body
accepts what it is. In the dark
creeks that run by there is
this thick paw of my life darting among
the black bells, the leaves; there is
this happy tongue.
Driving down the hill:
The view from Sunset Hill park overlooking the marina. How amazing to be in walking distance of this beauty.
Such a beautiful, warm picture perfect day!
I didn’t actually take these pics. My son did on his solo hike, but they’re so beautiful. He had multiple bear sightings, too.
Lake Mowich
#Mt.Rainier #PNW #WashingtonState #Seattle
What’s going on here? I dunno, you tell ME!
This is one of my favorite photos. It’s actually a sort of mistake but if you’d like to play along, tell me what it’s all about.
I like image-driven inspiration, don’t you?
Splash!
P.S. I’ll reveal in response to comments.
The eagle was sitting on that branch waiting for everyone to stop pointing at him so he could swoop down and take a better look at a huge dead fish that washed up on the shoreline.
My neck hurt because I couldn’t believe that I was actually in the presence of an eagle, my very first ever sighting, and I wouldn’t look away until he was gone.
Now I can cross that off my mental list….I’ve seen wolves and mountain lions and bears and of course, my favorite: coyotes.
Not all at the same time, but these are the special pearls in my necklace of life experiences, memories strung together since most of them happened so fast and were such brief encounters that I didn’t have time to take photos.
I wish I had brought my big lens in addition to my iPhone, but it’s good enough as it captured the special moment.
These are admittedly crappy photos, but it’s most definitely a Bald Eagle. I know they’re considered a nuisance in parts of Alaska, but this wasn’t a common occurrence at this location. I didn’t even try to look for an eagle feather because I’m aware that under the current language of the Eagle Feather Law, “unauthorized persons found with an eagle or its parts in their possession can be fined up to $250,000.”
“There’s a raccoon. Look at that!”
I thought he was joking because it was the middle of the day and we were on a sandy beach so I continued to keep my head down to look for seashells.
“LOOK!”
When I finally looked up, there he was.
He scampered up the bluff and was gone.
What an amazing day! An eagle and a raccoon.
Random.
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 