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.
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?
My son has the greenest thumb EVER. I lovelove the Matilija poppy but have never been able to keep a single plant alive, and this beauty is more than six feet tall in its first year. He told me that everyone who walks by stops to take pics and a selfie in front of this incredible specimen.
This morning a fried egg appeared in the backyard,
a startling yellow ball floating
on a white round of wide petals.
Officially: Matilija Poppy.
It hovers,
this hint of perfection,
above mostly unadorned foliage. — Kari Wergeland’
Romneya coulteri: A shrubby perennial that grows to eight feet, found on dry slopes and sandy washes in coastal sage scrub and chaparral, generally away from the coast (mountain foothills and Santa Ana Mountains).
Like many others in this family this species is a fire follower. While it’s on the California Native Plant Society List 4.2, a watch list for species with limited distribution in California, it’s thriving in Washington state.
I guess I’ll keep trying until I achieve success.
As much as I love seashells, I love sea glass, too. Did you know it takes an ocean about thirty years to break down glass into these jewels?
The beaches in my area aren’t great for sea glass OR seashells, but we do have a lot of rocks, so I can always satisfy my obsession by picking up one special stone or a dozen sun-warmed rocky gems.
I’ve always wanted to visit Fort Bragg in Northern California but you’re not supposed to remove any glass from that beach, which would be so hard NOT to do.
Here are some other beaches that I’d love to visit and collect a treasure trove of sea glass:
🐚 Hanapepe Bay Glass Beach in Kauai.
🐚 Port Townsend Glass Beach, a two-hour ferry ride from Seattle.
🐚 Summerland Beach outside Santa Barbara.
🐚 Steklyashka Beach in Vladivostok, Russia is supposed to feature an amazing display of colorful glass, but I doubt I’ll ever get there. I found the photo on Pinterest, but I think that’s where it was taken.
Have you visited any of the seaglass beaches? Let me know in the comments!
Having a lazy afternoon looking through old photos of a sailing regatta on Shilshole Bay near Golden Gardens park in Seattle.
I love the shades of gray and blue with white sails. It wasn’t very windy, so these were slow moving boats.
A couple of my favorite pics taken at one of my favorite locations, Sunset Hill Park, overlooking the marina and Puget Sound.
I haven’t been lucky enough to spot whales here — not yet — but we did see a couple eagles in a pine tree. They flew away before I could snap a photo.
It’s a bit hazy, no snow on the Olympic Mountains, yet continually mesmerizing and so sparkly.
Not this time.
My son takes the greatest photos.
A couple weeks ago, Lady Debbie, a commercial fishing boat, ran aground south of Westport, Washington. Luckily, there were no injuries and all six crewmembers walked away.
I wonder why she’s still there, unsalvaged, because it looks like it’s already starting to deteriorate and is now a canvas for taggers.
I wasn’t with the fam on this surfing beach trip so I didn’t get to actually see the vessel, but the last time I was there, I discovered a treasure trove of sand dollars which made me VERY happy.
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.
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 