Washington DC, May 20-25, 2021

June 16, 2021June 16, 2021 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

Last spring (2020) we cancelled a trip to Washington, DC, due to Covid. Our daughter has been working there for two years, and we hadn’t seen her since the 2019 winter holidays. Fully vaccinated, heeding all CDC precautions, and despite predicted high temperatures and a cicada invasion, we finally got to visit her!

May 20 – Flying, Georgetown

We were able to take the five hour nonstop flight from Portland, Oregon, to National Airport, where our daughter met us.

National Mall from the airplane window.

We stopped in Georgetown for al fresco tacos and a walk along the canal and waterfront.

C & O Canal, Georgetown

Georgetown waterfront path, Kennedy Center in the distance.

Then we checked in to our AirB&B lodging in Logan Circle, near our daughter’s apartment.

May 21 – National Mall walk

It was ‘only’ supposed to be 80 degrees today. We went on an 8 mile walk, from Logan Circle, past the White House, the Washington Monument and the Tidal Basin, looking at the monuments along the way.

Walking toward the White House.

Looking north at Black Lives Matter Plaza.

Looking south at Black Lives Matter Plaza.

Approaching the north side of the White House.

Next stop: the Washington Monument on the National Mall.

Looking west across the mall toward the Lincoln memorial.

Our next stop: the Jefferson Memorial, under reconstruction, where we ate our picnic lunch in some nearby shade.

A blue heron flew across our view as we sat on the grass, admiring reflections in the tidal basin.

Two official helicopters flew past, as well. According to our daughter, two helicopters means it is the Vice President’s entourage, three for the President. So that might have been Kamala Harris in one of them.

Inside the Jefferson memorial.

Looking back as we continued walking around the Tidal Basin.

The Capitol in the distance, Jefferson’s profile in the monument.

Our next stop was a series of exhibits documenting the legacy of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

FDR, lifesized, in wheelchair.

Tributes to the hardships of the Great Depression in the 1930s.

Panels representing the New Deal Programs that revived the economy.

FDR and his dog, Fala.

The amazing First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt also gets an alcove.

Our next stop was the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, new since my only other visit to the capitol in 2008.

The large granite sculpture of Martin Luther King, Jr. was much larger than I expected, a very fitting tribute to his legacy.

By now we were feeling the heat, and I had seen most of the memorials in this area on my previous visit, so we continued toward the Lincoln Memorial, which I wanted to see again.

After crossing Independence Avenue again, we passed by the Korean War Memorial.

The Lincoln Memorial:

That airplane is probably on the same flight path we were on the previous day.

President Lincoln

The Gettysburg Address

View north from the steps

Columns

We still had a couple of miles to walk back to our lodging.

We visited the Viet Nam War Memorial.

We saw the Federal Reserve building on Constitution Avenue.

We sipped cold drinks while walking north toward Dupont Circle.

We caught another glimpse of our Vice President!

After resting from our long walk we enjoyed a takeout Ethiopian dinner.

May 22 – Great Falls National Park

A hot day – into the 90s! We drove about an hour to Great Falls National Park, VA, to see the falls. It was too hot for a serious hike, but we enjoyed the views and some wildlife.

The very calm Potomac River, above the falls.

First viewpoint of the Great Falls of the Potomac River

Downstream from the falls, and a kayaker

Park map

We walked downstream to a few of the viewpoints:

We turned around after looking at Mather Gorge:

Upstream, Mather Gorge

Downstream, Mather Gorge

As we walked back, keeping to shady paths where possible, we spotted some wildlife:

Broad-headed skink, sitting on a log near the trail.

I was very excited to see cardinals for the first time, bathing in the nearby creek while we were eating lunch in the shade. They are very hard to photograph!

Male cardinal

Female cardinal

Despite the heat, we enjoyed our visit to the natural world so near our nation’s capitol.

May 23 – Cicadas of Baltimore

We saw these everywhere, though they were not particularly dense in DC proper. On Sunday, we were invited to visit cousins who live in a green suburb on the northside of Baltimore. Just opening the car door upon arrival, we got the full impact of the sound of cicadas. This short video by my husband captures the sound.

I added in my few other cicada photos here.

Cicada carcasses, Lafayette Square

Cicada ground holes, Great Falls NP

Pharaoh cicada, National Arboretum

May 24 – Smithsonian National History Museum

We were lucky to get reservations for this newly reopened museum. We looked at inspiring exhibits of American innovation and history for a couple of hours.

Arriving at the museum entrance after a slightly rainy walk. Good day to be inside.

Interior views:

Inventions:

Treadle sewing machine

Hair curling device

So many different plastic cup lids!

Pop culture:

Dorothy’s ruby slippers

Julia Child’s Kitchen

Bob Ross

Yankee ticket booth

History of politics and everyday life:

George Washington’s chair

Political signs

Ballot box

An exhibit on the changing house through time illustrated the rigors of laundry.

Helen Keller’s watch

I was surprised to find my own neighborhood depicted in the Transportation exhibit.

I am always on the lookout for interesting textiles, and I found many to admire throughout the exhibits:

Old quilt top in the lobby

First Lady dresses:

So many beads!

Michelle Obama’s dress

Some other old textiles,

and a couple of items that reminded me of my own youth:

We enjoyed our time in the museum, but after while I could not take in any more. I love knowing this representation of our material life is preserved, and I hope to visit again someday.

May 25 – National Arboretum, flying home

Our last day. We drove to the Union Market for lunch.

The Union Market is a converted warehouse, now a food court and entertainment center.

The queen!

The rooftop has lots of room for dining,

and views over the city.

We then wandered around a bit at the National Arboretum.

Repurposed columns from the U.S. Capitol building stand out on a hill in the center of the arboretum.

The National herb garden had some pretty blooms:

It was too hot to go far, but we enjoyed our last day with our daughter.

Our flight home was mostly above clouds until we saw Mt Hood peeking through.

This was a wonderful trip, reuniting with our daughter and getting a flavor for her life in DC. And testing the waters for traveling again in the post-vaccination world. We are looking forward to more adventures as the world opens up, however slowly.

Eastern Gorge Trip, April 2021

May 1, 2021May 19, 2021 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

We spent a few days hiking east of the Cascade crest and the rain. We stayed in a small hotel in the small town of Moro, and explored two Oregon State Parks for the first time, then visited the Columbia Hills in Washington on our way home.

Driving south of the Columbia River to White River Falls State Park – low hills and agricultural buildings our new scenery.

April 13th, White River Falls State Park, Oregon

We admired the White River Falls from the overlook, then walked downstream to see the lower tiers of the falls. We were about 2 miles upstream from the confluence with the Deschutes River, and about 50 miles from the source, the White River Glacier on Mt Hood, near a favorite winter snowshoe location. Here, the White River tumbles over cliffs, past the ruins of a hydropower plant that was abandoned in 1963, when a giant dam on the nearby Columbia River was built.

White River Falls

Abandoned power plant.

This is a beautiful falls, though the surrounds are a bit of a wasteland – cement and disconnected pipes, wire grids, a broken building with roof gaps, graffiti, tumble weeds and leaves blown in, plants growing out of the cracks, moss in the crevices.

Bright yellow balsamroot and parsley were blooming around the canyon, and gold fiddle neck striped the edges of the rocky path.

Balsamroot, parsley

fiddleneck

Down by the river we had a bit of a wind shelter. Quiet today, but in summer people come to swim. We walked a ways down stream to see the third tier of the falls, the smoothed rocky shelves with potholes, now exposed, and smooth, sandy banks.

Sandy beach above the lower falls.

Lower falls; upper falls visible to the upper right.

Downstream along the White River.

We walked back up to the rim, past the ruins of the powerhouse and almost post-apocalyptic scenery.

Return hike.

More of the ruins of the old power plant.

From White River Falls, we drove east across the Deschutes River on our way to Moro, along a long, smoothly curved road on the Warm Springs Reservation. Balsamrooot blooms were sprinkled on cliffs above the canyon.

We passed sagebrush uplands and cultivated green fields, a 360 degree horizon punctuated by white windmills gleaming in the afternoon light.

Many white wind turbines on the horizon.

April 14th, Cottonwood Canyon State Park, Oregon

We drove across the uplands between the John Day and Deschutes Rivers on a beautiful clear blue morning. Mt Hood, Mt Adams and Mt Rainier were on the horizon, and more windmills.

Mt Hood

Mt Adams and Mt Rainier

Mt Adams, windmills

Mt Rainier and the Goat Rocks, windmills

The Lost Coral Trail in Cottonwood Canyon State Park is 9.6 miles out and back. The trail follows an old road along the John Day River, sometimes beneath river-cut cliffs, sometimes across the point bars, as the wide blue river sweeps down stream.

Trailhead

Under the cliffs

Balsamroot above

Bicolored cluster lilies

Desert parsley and lichen

Balsamroot and parsley

milk vetch

Cottonwood Canyon campground across the river.

Continuing along the river, the slopes were speckled with wildflowers; willows on the bars and a few trees were beginning to leaf out.

Flowering alluvial fan across the river.

Cliffs and reflections, serviceberry in bloom.

Sagebrush

A welcome bench for rest and contemplation.

Lovely desert colors in the rocks, river, plantlife.

At our turnaround point, we found a phlox-covered slope and beautiful views of the river. We saw three equestrians – our only other people on the trail today.

Three equestrians in our downstream lunch view

Upstream lunch view.

phlox

We retraced our steps upstream after lunch, admiring the views along the river in the changing light.

Walking upstream.

Many colors along the river.

Grassy tufts in the river.

Larkspur

Back under the cliffs near the trailhead.

Parsley

I don’t know if I still love the desert as much as I used to. The rocky, prickly, isolation of it has caught up with my age. Dust and wind, and there must be snakes around somewhere …I just don’t know…

April 15th, Dalles Mountain Ranch, Columbia Hills State Park, WA

We drove back across the windmilled uplands, in view of the three mountains on the skyline, all the while watching the painted slopes of the cliffs and hills on the north side of the Columbia River. Distinct patches of yellow, white, and purple across the green and brown indicate the slopes are blooming with the wildflowers that we are going to see.

Looking at the Columbia Hills in Washington from Oregon.

We hiked the Ranch Loop clockwise from the Dalles Mountain Ranch Trailhead – we have been here before, most recently in February, when only the early flowers were on view. Today there were so many flowers out – gold balsamroot, purple lupine, pale pink phlox, and always the yellow parsley and pink filagree creating a pastel underglaze on almost every slope.

Mt Hood and ranch buildings from near the trailhead.

The “one tree”, still no leaves, with a flowery background

Balsamroot all the way down to the Columbia River.

Lower east-most view.

Lupine and western view from the high point on the lower trail.

Large head clover

Fleabane

Lunch view – in February this area was covered in purple grass widows.

Back up Eight Mile Creek to the ranch.

We finally spotted the old car that is so often photographed among the flowers at the ranch.

We enjoyed this hiking trip, a chance to get out of town and enjoy the spring flowers at a couple of new locations.

Hiking in February 2021

March 1, 2021 / margaretquilts / 2 Comments

Despite the mid-month ice storm, we managed three hikes in February – all in the eastern Columbia River Gorge of Washington.

Lyle Cherry Orchard / Lower Catherine Creek – Feb. 2nd

We were hoping for good weather east of the mountains, but were foiled by a squall.

Starting up the Lyle Cherry Orchard trail, we could see nothing but blue sky from the Convict Road…

But there are clouds over the Columbia River to the east,

and west.

We saw our first Columbia Desert Parsley of the season,

and scattered grass widows.

As we continued up the tiers of basalt,

we noticed more ominous clouds to the west.

We continued up,

to about this point, when we encountered wind and driving rain on the unsheltered slope

We sheltered briefly under one of the oak trees, then headed down.

By the time we reached the car, the skies were blue again, so we decided to stop at Catherine Creek before going home.

We walked the Lower Loop, with views of the waterfall,

and of our Ponderosa guide tree, up on the slopes above the Labyrinth.

We saw a few early wildflowers, and finished just in time for another squall to blow through.

Blue jay

Bitterroot foliage

Rain in a vernal pool.

We saw rainbows in our rear view mirror as we drove back to rainy Portland.

Coyote Wall – Labyrinth Loop – Feb. 9th

We started cold and overcast, but hiked into a bluer, warmer day.

Looking up at the wall from the trailhead – we would soon be looking down from there….

View to the east from the lower slopes.

Ice on the trail.

First yellow parsley of the season,

and first prairie stars, with salt and pepper.

A bald eagle below us, watching the river.

Continuing up the Little Moab trail to the edge of the cliff…

Heralded by this raven the whole way.

Looking down at the trailhead,

and up the edge of Coyote Wall toward our lunch stop.

Trail continuing up the slope…

to the rocky edge where we took our lunch break.

The clouds began to part after lunch.

We headed east toward the Labyrinth across the upper slopes,

into a bluer sky.

Icicles in the upper Hidden Creek crossing.

Eastward view from our Ponderosa guide tree viewpoint on the Upper Labyrinth Trail.

Continuing down, we could see Mt Hood on the skyline peeking out from the clouds.

Through my favorite oak grove,

Past the columnar basalt buttes,

Following the waterfalls of Hidden Creek down the Labyrinth,

beneath the blue sky.

These falls were nearly dry in November,

now the pool is overflowing.

Goodbye to the ghost tree.

And back to the trailhead beneath the wall. A successful day!

Dalles Mountain Ranch – Vista Loop – Feb. 24

After two weeks of snow and ice storms, we were finally able to find a blue sky day at Columbia Hills State Park, an hour and a half east of Portland. A beautiful day, edged by snow on the skyline. Take a peek here if you want to see this trail in full spring bloom!

View south and west from Dalles Mountain Ranch trailhead – Mt Hood in Oregon, far across the Columbia River. We are heading downhill toward the river.

Looking back to the ranch as we hike down Eight Mile Creek.

Creek crossing.

Our lunch stop along the Missoula Floods scoured lower bench. Mt Hood, Columbia River, The Dalles and Horsethief Butte. Lots of purple grass widows in the foreground.

Eastward lower viewpoint.

Salt and pepper, grass widows.

Yellow bells

Gold stars

Another desert parsley

Looking back up to the ranch on the return hike.

One tree to rule them all.

NZ2020: Days 9 and 10, Deluge in Doubtful Sound

February 6, 2021 / margaretquilts / 2 Comments

February 2nd and 3rd, 2020: Overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound, Fiordland, NZ

After our day off in Queenstown, we began the second part of our tour by meeting three new tour members, and an additional tour guide, in our hotel restaurant. We drove south and west, from Queenstown to Manapouri, in a steady rain, with two stops along the way.

Our first break was in the town of Garston – a small inland village with a speciality in honey production. We sampled some honey, then resumed our journey. Mountains, clouds, green fields full of sheep, elk and deer whizzed by, through the rain.

We next took a short leg stretching break at a wilderness reserve that demonstrated the native plant communities that are typical of this cold, mountainous inland area before European settling and agriculture. We took in what we could, but the rain and clouds obscured mountain views and much exploring.

View to the Southern Alps.

Closer view of some of the plants.

Off we went again, this time to our final tour bus destination – Pearl Harbor in Manapouri, where we began our overnight in Doubtful Sound adventure. We said goodbye to one of our guides for the moment, as he was staying with the bus. To get to Doubtful Sound, deep in the mountains of the Southern Alps, one must take a ferry boat across Lake Manapouri, to the far shore.

Crossing Lake Manapouri by ferry.

Next we boarded a bus that took us over the steep, 13 mile long Wilmot Pass Road, then down to Deep Cove Dock at Doubtful Sound. There, we boarded the Fiordland Navigator, our home for the next 24 hours.

Fiordland Navigator, from the bus window, in the pouring rain.

The Navigator was a very comfortable ship with an experienced, multitasking crew that choreographed our time on board with a well crafted schedule. The 42 passengers were shown into the main cabin/dining salon. We received our safety briefings, and were assigned our sleeping accommodations – for us, a private cabin, but for most, four bed bunk rooms.

Then we were free to explore and wander, and hopefully see all the views, while the naturalist pointed out various features of interest. Steep glaciated gneiss walls rose up on both sides of the fiord, draped in brilliant green foliage, and streaked with tumbling white waterfalls in every direction. Our naturalist told us that they usually see a lot of waterfalls, but because of the steady downpour, we were seeing more than usual, and more volume than usual. We could see fairly well from the large windows in the dining salon and forward viewing cabin, and even from under covered walkways on the lower deck. How lovely it would have been to stand or sit on the upper deck as we passed through the fiord, but the drenching rain made that uncomfortable. We did go out for short forays, and longer moments during rain breaks, but really, it did rain most of the time this first day. We made the best of it, constantly, not always successfully, trying to keep water off camera lenses. We assumed that this much rain was typical. Later, we learned that this was a particularly wet stretch of weather – more so than usual, and that it would affect the next few days of our tour. Our intrepid naturalist spent most of her time out on the deck, narrating the landscape, seemingly unphased by the drenching.

Waterfall after waterfall…

Our intrepid naturalist…

A rain pause as we continue west toward the Tasman Sea.

We travelled all the way to the entrance of the fiord with the Tasman Sea. We stopped to watch fur seals basking on the rocky islands in the sound entrance – also unphased by the constant rain. But of course, they are creatures of water and cold.

Fur seals on rocky islands near the mouth of Doubtful Sound.

We turned back inland, still watching the waterfall-striped walls of the fiord go by. We reached the “activities” location and weighed anchor for a while. Here, most of the crew switched to guide mode. Most of the passengers, despite the rain, opted to go out in kayaks or rafts, to get a closer view of the walls and waters of the fiord. I might have joined in better weather, but it was still rainy and cold. I felt that just being where I was, in the middle of a fiord in the wilderness was a fairly extreme adventure for me. We watched the kayakers and boaters from the deck.

After they all returned safely, the crew changed roles again, and became ushers/servers for a delicious, many options, buffet dinner. It was all run like clockwork, yet not pressured or uncomfortable. Our little group sat in a booth with windows and enjoyed getting to know each better as the beautiful landscape drifted past. Later, we retired to our tiny stateroom and slept very comfortably in crisp white sheets. I peeked out our window occasionally, to see rain and dark and gray.

Dining salon.

Sleeping cabin.

The next morning, breakfast was run again in buffet fashion, extremely efficiently, and we packed up, ready to enjoy another morning of viewing in Doubtful Sound.

Morning waterfall viewing.

We traveled into the Hall Arm of the Sound, where we experienced a quiet moment – engine off, passengers in a preselected spot, five minutes of complete silence, during a break in the continuous rain.

Afterward, the boat motored up again, dipped its snout into a flowing waterfall, and we eventually made our way back to Deep Cove.

Return to Deep Cove.

During both journeys across Wilmot Pass by bus, the drivers expressed concern about the river ford being washed out. Both times we made it across, but there was plenty of heavy equipment at the crossing keeping the road clear. We reboarded the ferry to Manapouri, ready for our next adventure.

Waterfall from the bus windows on Wilmot Pass.

Wilmot Pass river crossing, from the bus.

Pearl Harbor – return to Manapouri.

Our next stop was supposed to be Milford Sound – a place we really wanted to see. We were supposed to drive to Milford Sound via Hwy 94, with a hike up Key Summit on the Routeburn Track enroute, and a short cruise on Milford Sound the next morning. Over the past 24 hours there had been over a half meter of rain in the area and more than a meter of rain during the four day deluge. All roads to Milford Sound were flooded. People there were stranded and moving to higher ground – no one could get in or out by land. It was several days before they were finally able to open the roads. Meanwhile, our guides and tour company had formulated a new plan for our tour. They found lodging in nearby Te Anau, accommodations that were open because the people with those reservations were trapped in Milford Sound, or because so many of the usual tourists from Asia this time of year were beginning to cancel travel due to a spreading coronavirus in that part of the world. (I am finally writing this account about a year later, after almost a year of global pandemic. That was one of the early signs of it, though we didn’t really think too much of it in the moment.) Meanwhile, we had a new agenda for our tour, starting with a rainy walk on the Kepler Track near Te Anau.

We loved our Doubtful Sound experience. I might have liked it more had we had sun, but we had soo many waterfalls – I don’t imagine I will ever see more in such a short time. We got to experience an extreme rain event – a different sort of bucket list item, I guess. I am very glad we were with an experienced tour company for this time, because they very swiftly arranged new plans. I had been expecting a more rustic experience on the boat, but it was actually fairly luxurious – delicious hot meals, a dry viewing cabin, extremely comfortable bed with privacy, and amazing scenery. It was a beautiful immersive adventure!

Hiking in November, 2020

December 27, 2020 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

A gathering of late reports….

Monday, November 2nd, The Labyrinth

My favorite, often visited, eastern Gorge trail on a windless day with beautiful low autumn light. (Hike #69 for 2020, 4.4 miles, 1000 feet)

Trailhead, Rowland Lake, perfectly calm and reflective. Our destination is the tall Ponderosa Pine, left of center.

The Old Hwy 8 waterfall is completely dry.

Mt Hood on view to the west across the Columbia River.

The labyrinth waterfall is almost dry…

A few drips in the mossy wall,

and some still pools below in the streambed.

We wind around columnar basalts surrounded by golden grass,

Through the oak grove.

Mt Hood still on view in the glare, as the sun moves west

We pass a favorite trailside oak tree,

Almost to our destination Ponderosa…

The eastern Gorge beyond

Rowland Wall and the Catherine Creek area slopes.

Zoom in on Lyle and Memaloose Island

Tom McCall Point and the orchards of Mosier on the descent.

The haunted oak tree bids us farewell.

Monday November 9th, Dry Creek Falls

We spotted the winter swans in Mirror Lake at the base of Crown Point as we made our way through The Gorge to Cascade Locks.

Dry Creek Falls, which we have hiked many times, is one of the closest waterfall hikes, most of the trails still being closed since the 2017 fire. Today we walked through falling Big Leaf Maple leaves lighting up the partially burned forest. (Hike #70, 4.9 miles, 1050 feet)

Bridge over Dry Creek on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Dry Creek Falls

Monday, November 16th, Finley Wildlife Refuge

Our first visit to this refuge, on a day when the Willamette Valley to the south was the only partly dry place within a two hour drive from home. Recovered farm land is a winter sanctuary for migratory birds. (Hike #71, 2.5 miles, 150 feet)

Our first stop, the Prairie Overlook:

Miles of Willamette Valley grasslands.

From there, we walked the Homer Campbell Boardwalk through a wetter terrain.

Canadian Geese near the trailhead

The boardwalk…

Marshy forests

A bird blind at the end of the winter trail.

Back through the mossy and lichen covered trees.

Another hiker told us we would see swans in the McFadden Marsh, so we headed there for our lunch stop.

Swans, geese and other water fowl.

The weather had cleared a bit, so we hiked the Woodpecker Loop trail to stretch our legs a bit more.

Along the Woodpecker Loop trail.

High point – a shelter, and view of some of the high Cascade Mountain peaks to the east.

As we began our drive home, we found the best view of the Cascades was from a road pullout above some of the historic farm buildings.

Mt Jefferson

North, Middle and South Sisters.

We enjoyed our day at Finley Wildlife Refuge – anything to get out of the house for a few hours and walk in nature. I would like to visit in other seasons, but we usually have destinations closer to home…

We went to Mt Rainier in September –

November 19, 2020 / margaretquilts / 4 Comments

-on a midweek getaway, to a self-contained cabin in Packwood, Washington, with our own food, following all Covid-19 precautions. We have seen the stunning wildflower displays of summer a few times, and had long been wanting to see the the mountain in fall colors.

September 29, 2020 – Comet Falls/Van Trump Park

This trail, west of the Nisqually River and Paradise, follows Van Trump Creek all the way up to the stunning Comet Falls, then farther up the slopes to magnificent views of Mt Rainier from Van Trump park. (P.B. Van Trump was one of the first to stand on the summit of the mountain, in 1870). A very challenging and satisfying hike (7 miles, 2500 feet).

Smaller falls near the trailhead.

Trail through the woods.

I first thought this was our waterfall, then continued over the next ridge:

Comet Falls! About 400 feet, counting smaller tiers above and below the main falls. Snow bank on lower right.

With rainbows in the mist!

Our trail continues up, with better views of Comet Falls.

The trail continued upward steeply, into Van Trump Park.

Above the waterfall, the mountain came into view.

Fall foliage on the slopes of Van Trump Park, glowing red!

Mount Rainier from our lunch stop in Van Trump Park.

Views of the glaciers from a new angle:

The trail down seemed steeper than the trail going up; that might just be my knees talking.

Mt Adams on view beyond the Tatoosh Range.

Glacial striations/polish and Mt Adams.

Uppermost tier of Comet Falls.

A particularly steep trail section.

A few late gentians in the upper meadows.

Vine maples just beginning to turn red.

We stopped at a couple of roadside viewpoints on our way out of the park.

Highway bridge over the Nisqually River canyon.

Nisqually River downstream.

We could not resist stopping to see the mirror image in Reflection Lakes.

September 30 – Naches Peak/Tipsoo Lake Loop, smoke haze at Sunrise, Silver Falls.

We hiked this loop trail (4 miles, 600 feet), with our views increasingly shrouded in haze. Wildfire smoke began drifting diffusely in, creating a grayish white sky that was so startlingly blue yesterday.

We were almost alone as we walked around Tipsoo Lake, admiring the beautiful reflections in its mirror-like surface.

Tipsoo Lake

Yakima Peak

Mt Rainier, slightly obscured by haze.

Mt Rainier reflected in Tipsoo Lake.

Yakima Peak – our trail rising along its base.

Pasque flower seed head

Meadow of huckleberry and aster seed heads.

Then we hiked the loop around Naches Peak – following the Pacific Crest Trail.

Crossing Hwy 410.

Hwy 410, headed down the canyon, to the east.

A new wilderness area for us!

Trail up over the shoulder of Naches Peak.

Naches Peak.

Looking back.

We passed a small lake with a friendly chipmunk.

Once over the shoulder of Naches Peak, we could see the Dewey Lakes to the southeast as the smoke haze increased.

One of the Dewey Lakes.

The trail circles back west, with stunning views of Mt Rainier when there is no haze, as it passes more small lakes.

Mt Rainier is ahead through the haze.

One of the trailside lakes.

More beautiful meadows!

Mt Rainier disappearing before our eyes!

We stopped to admire Upper Tipsoo Lake near the trailhead before finishing the hike.

Upper Tipsoo Lake.

After lunch we drove up to Sunrise, elevation 6400 feet, but the smoke haze obscured views, so we didn’t stay.

Dotted Blue line shows Mt Rainier skyline behind the smoke haze.

Instead we hiked to Silver Falls, on the Ohanapecosh River, through old and mossy forest, to see clear turquoise waters, and bright falling waters cutting through a slick rock gorge. All in all a lovely ‘recovery’ day from yesterday – the hikes being not so steep. We hope the smoke will blow out for tomorrow.

Small fairy falls in the mossy old growth forest.

Looking down on the blue waters in Ohanapecosh gorge.

Overlook at the top of Silver Falls.

Downstream view of the Ohanapecosh River below the bridge.

Silver Falls.

October 1 – Paradise, Golden Gate Trail, Panorama Point

The mountain was ‘out’ behind a thin veil of translucent haze! Smoke would gather throughout the day below us to the south on the flanks of the Tatoosh Range.

View from the parking lot at Paradise.

Iconic gateway to the trail system.

We hiked across Paradise Valley, and up the Golden Gate switchbacks and granite steps, to the High Skyline Trail that circles the valley (6 miles, 1700 feet).

Looking up toward the red huckleberry foliage on Alta Vista, which would be our return trail in the afternoon.

Looking toward the Skyline trail on the east side of Paradise Valley.

We saw a black bear foraging in the meadows below, and at least eight marmots foraging and nest building on our way up.

While looking across at the waterfall,

I noticed a moving black spot in the valley below.

Black bear.

Marmots along the trail.

The slopes were still green, and full of fading wildflowers with a few remaining blooms.

Switchbacks of the Golden Gate Trail ahead.

Up the last switchback to the Skyline Ridge.

Once to the ridge, stark, glaciated landscape dominated.

High Skyline Trail

A glimpse over the ridge to the east to the next glaciated valley.

Our destination is around the cirque and above the snowfield – there are tiny humans on that ridge.

Rocky trail.

A mountain goat was resting near one of the snow fields in the cirque.

This is the closest we would get to the mountain goat (to the right of the snow field).

Mountain goat, zoom lens.

Looking down on the mountain goat after we climbed higher.

Over the rocky top above Panorama Point, near Pebble Creek, we sat on the rocks and ate our lunch with a full mountain view: 7000 feet of vertical relief, glaciers and sculpted rocks. We heard an occasional boom as something up there, heeding gravity, fell.

Lunch view.

Chipmunk on the rock.

Glacier close-ups.

We made our way back down the steep granite steps, past Panorama Point and more glacier views.

Heading down to Panorama Point.

Panorama Point, with views in all directions:

East, where we have been.

South, toward our starting point, and the smoky Tatoosh Range.

West, to our downward trail and the Nisqually Valley.

Continuing down…

Rocky steps to Glacier View.

We saw one late pasque flower in the meadow.

The bear was still roaming in the valley below.

We crossed through the brilliant red huckleberry foliage on the flank of Alta Vista.

After a last stop at Edith Creek and Myrtle Falls, I was done walking for a while. My legs were tired, my cup full! I have to agree with the sentiment carved in the steps at the trailhead. This is one of the most beautiful places I have been. I feel so lucky to have seen it in the fall!

Myrtle Falls

Edith Creek

This hungry deer near the trailhead paid no attention to the people taking his photo!

Knitting update, neighborhood walks, an art exhibit, and waterfalls…October 2020

October 24, 2020 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Knitting

My fingers have been busy:

Stripey socks – finished!

Rio Calina Cowl – getting longer, and I might just make it into a long scarf instead of a cowl.

Dissent Socks, in honor of Ruth Bader Ginsberg – I’ve finished the ankles – on to the heels!

Walks around the neighborhood,

New signs, whimsy, architectural elements:

Mural

Gnome and spaceman

Rain chain and shadow

New sign

Window critters

New signs

Eave pig

Garden gate

Winding stairs with turret

Fall colors evolving…

I have been hunting witches and other Halloween displays, to be shared in a later post.

Portland Textile Month, Tiny Pricks Art Installation

We visited the exhibition window to see the stitchery, made by artists who embroider a quote onto a vintage textile as a form of protest. It is not how I want to spend my crafting time – but I was glad to get a chance to see a small sampling of the thousands of pieces that have been contributed to this crowd-sourced artwork.

Silver Falls State Park

October 19th – We hiked the 5 mile waterfall loop. It was hard to relax and enjoy the scenery – there were a fair number unmasked, seemingly Covid-protocol-oblivious hikers. We cut our day shorter than usual. The waterfalls are always beautiful, and the light streaming through the yellow big leaf maples enchanting.

South Falls

Lower South Falls

Double Falls

Middle North Falls

Rim trail.

NZ2020: Day 6, Franz Josef Glacier

May 20, 2020 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

January 30, 2020 –

After our rainy drive yesterday, we were delighted to see the mountains above Franz Josef this morning.

Blue sky and snow capped peaks, Franz Josef, New Zealand.

Franz Josef Glacier hike

We had an early start for our walk to the Franz Josef Glacier viewpoint. I remember thinking, as we walked up the Waiho Valley, that this was our best hike so far!

Waiho River Valley

The glacier is filling the valley on the left.

The trail emerges from the forest at an overlook that marks the advanced position of the glacier in 1908.

We still have a bit of a walk to get closer to the glacier.

Zooming in on the glacier from the 1908 overlook.

We continued walking up the glaciated Franz Valley on sediment eroded from the mountains above.

Haast Schists – beautiful metamorphic rocks!

We reached the river crossing, and continued walking up the valley.

A huge waterfall is gushing out of rocks below the glacier on the right – we can see the mist cloud from here.

Jagged glacier surface

We passed waterfalls and beautiful, glacially polished schists in the valley walls.

The last viewpoint is ahead, on the low hummocks.

We reached the end of the trail, the closest viewpoint, due to safety concerns.

From here we can see the waterfall mist cloud, but not the waterfall. Helicopter tours were landing in front of the dark rocky area on the left side – they looked like ants from here.

The bare scraped rocks and talus piles were covered in colorful lichens and mosses.

Turbulent water full of glacial dust in the outflow stream.

View down the Waiho Valley from the upper endpoint of the trail.

Last look back at the Franz Josef Glacier from the valley trail.

We continued walking on the local trail network to a couple of other viewpoints, first to Sentinal Rock.

Franz Josef Glacier from Sentinal Rock.

Winding Waiho River.

We continued on a short distance to Peter’s Pool.

Reflections in Peter’s Pool

By the time we were leaving the area, the clouds had moved in again among the peaks. I’m glad we got an early start to our day! (Hike#6, 5 miles, 400 feet)

Car park view: I love that this tour bus has kiwi-shaped grill openings.

Alpine Fault geology interlude. I loved learning about New Zealand geology on this trip. I didn’t research much before our travels. As the landscape unfurled before me, I enjoyed looking, learning and speculating. Now I am investigating in more detail as I process my photos and thoughts. I learned in Franz Josef that the giant, active Alpine Fault runs right through the center of town. The Alpine Fault is a major transcurrent fault and tectonic plate boundary between the Pacific and Australian plates. The Southern Alps are constantly rising along the fault zone that connects subduction zones to the north and south. The metamorphic rocks I saw along the Waiho River were deformed along the plate boundary.

On with our tour:

After our hike we continued south on Hwy 6, with much beautiful scenery ahead for the day. Our guide spotted and pointed out many recent land slips in the mountains, and we had several road repair delays. There had already been flooding this year, with more to come! But we didn’t know that yet.

Lake Matheson

We stopped for a walk around Lake Matheson.

Hike #7, 3 miles, 200 feet.

New Zealand pigeon (kereru) posing near the trailhead.

At this viewpoint, the Southern Alps may be seen reflected in the lake.

We were not so lucky today – the clouds had moved in.

It was a lovely hike, with beautiful lunchtime views of the lake, and interesting foliage to admire.

Kidney ferns

Lancewood

Knights Point

Farther south on Hwy 6, we stopped at this clifftop viewpoint over the Tasman Sea.

Treeferns, lancewood and flax covered the coastal cliffs to the north.

To the south we could see to a headland. When I zoomed in, I could see that some of the ‘rocks’ were actually Elephant seals.

Elephant seals

Ship Creek

The highway descended back to sea level. Our stop at Ship Creek was our last chance to walk on a West Coast beach before we turned east to cross the mountains at Haast Pass. We climbed up the Observation Tower for a wide view, then spent a little time on the beach.

View of the beach from the Observation Tower.

View inland from the tower.

Sand dunes

Beach boardwalk, going north.

Pebbly shingled beach – great skipping stones!

Onward! Our views were diminished by clouds as we headed east into the mountains.

Driving view as we cross over the Haast River on the longest one lane bridge in New Zealand .

In Haast Pass, where rivers change direction.

We made a brief stop in Mt Aspiring National Park to see Thunder Creek Falls.

Thunder Creek Falls

Our overnight destination was a lodge at Makarora.

Evening sky above Makarora.

We would be headed to Lake Wanaka tomorrow.

Note: The most difficult thing about these posts is paring down the photos. I love to remember every view!

NZ 2020: Day 3, Christchurch to Punakaiki

March 28, 2020April 7, 2020 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

January 27, 2020

Our guide picked us up in the morning in Christchurch to begin a two week guided hiking tour of the South Island of New Zealand. The agenda for the first day was to cross the Southern Alps at Arthur’s Pass, and to arrive in Punakaiki on the West Coast by the end of the day.

The South Island is about 500 miles long, and 150ish miles wide, with steep mountains along the west coast. The mountains create a rain shadow for the eastern part of the island. We were on our way to experience the rain forests and wetter climate of the west coast.

Castle Hill

Our first hiking stop was Castle Hill. We walked up the hill and through the maze of giant, weirdly eroded limestone boulders and knobs that standout in the landscape.

We learned early on that most of the wildflowers we would see are non-native, and considered weeds. (“If it’s pretty it’s a pest!”) The national effort to remove alien wildlife, both plants and animals, was an ongoing theme during our trip.

Wandering among the limestone boulders.

View back to the car park.

Hike #2 of 2020, 2.2 miles, 150 feet.

Arthur’s Pass National Park

We could see we were headed for clouds and rain as we continued west toward the mountains.

We stopped to look at the Waimakariri River, one of the largest of many broad, braided glacial outwash rivers that cross the eastern plains of the South Island.

Waimakariri River

We made a quick stop to view Devil’s Punchbowl Falls, 131 meters high.

Rain began as we drove through Arthur’s Pass.

One of many road preservation structures and roadworks we would see in this geologically active country.

Rata tree blooms – these are native!

Quintessential New Zealand green pastures with sheep and cows.

We reached the west coast near Kumara, then headed north to Punakaiki, admiring the beautiful beaches and lush green, misty slopes along the way. It had been a lovely first day of our tour.

Driving north along the west coast of the South Island of New Zealand.

West coast sun, clouds and beaches!

Trip note: Our tour was with the New Zealand company Active Adventures. I have only good things to say about our experience with them. Amazingly, because of some last minute changes, we were the only two people on the first five days of our tour. We had been expecting up to twelve people, and instead we had a private tour, with an entire small bus and guide to ourselves. This is the first time we have taken this type of tour, and we were not sure what to expect, but we soon became good friends with our guide. We appreciated being able to simply enjoy the adventure without worrying about the logistics of meals and lodging, or the left-sided driving. As the trip went on, there were challenges from the weather, and we were very glad that our local, experienced guides could nimbly create alternative itineraries – more about that later.

Tomorrow we would explore the landscape around Punakaiki.

Hamilton Mountain, WA, and first knit socks of 2020

January 16, 2020January 9, 2020 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

January 3, 2020 – Our first hike of the New Year was to Hamilton Mountain in Beacon Rock State Park on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. We’ve been many times, usually to see the cliffs become hanging gardens in the spring. Today we had perfect winter hiking conditions – not too cold, a bit muddy, full waterfalls, clear views from the top.

The first summit of Hamilton Mountain, as seen from the power line cut on the lower trail.

Approaching the upper cliffs, eastern gorge beyond.

Bonneville Dam, with Mt Hood appearing to the south.

First view from the summit- Mt Adams glowing in winter white beyond Table Mountain.

Wide view from the summit.

Mt Hood to the south, in low winter light.

After lunch at the summit we continued the trail to the northern saddle/plateau –

A last look back at Mt Hood.

Western gorge, filling with mist and a painterly sky.

Columbian lewisia foliage in the saddle.

Crossing over a very full Rodney Falls on the return hike.

Hike #1 for 2020, 8.2 miles, 2250 feet.

Knitting

First knit finish in 2020 – traveling socks that I started last May.