Grande Ronde River – 4 Days by Packraft
Join us on a 4-day packrafting trip down the Wallowa and Grande Ronde Rivers in NE Oregon and SE Washington. The Grande Ronde is a National Wild and Scenic River, administered by the BLM, Oregon Parks and Recreation and the US Forest Service. Four of us paddled Alpacka packrafts. We put-in on the Wallowa River […]
John Day River – 5 Days by Packraft & Canoe
The John Day River in central Oregon made for a great 5-day paddle with friends last week. The John Day is a national Wild and Scenic River, an Oregon Scenic Waterway, and is the second longest free-flowing river in the continental United States. Three of us paddled Alpacka packrafts, and one a Clipper canoe. We […]
Frosty Morning in Snohomish River Estuary
It was a frosty early morning of bird watching on Spencer Island in the Snohomish River Estuary. An extremely high tide (12.0 feet) flooded through breaches in the dikes and into the estuary, providing great fishing habitat for great blue heron and bald eagles. The sun rose in a spectacle of color and began melting […]
Skyline Divide Trail – Washington North Cascades
If you the to do some hiking in Washington State’s North Cascade mountains, consider the Skyline Divide trail. This classic ridge hike is accessed from a 4400 foot altitude trailhead that quickly gets you up into flower-filled sub-alpine meadows. Mount Baker’s north face dominates the view to the south, while Mount Shuksan fills the eastern […]
Mountain Heather, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington Cascades
“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread.” — Edward Abbey
Seaplane Hanger, Petersburg, Alaska
“What if i fall? Oh, but my darling, what if you fly?” — Erin Hanson
Liberty Bell Mountain, Washington Pass, Washington
“In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.” — Thomas Jefferson
Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington State
“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” — Abraham Lincoln
Western Red Cedar, Cascade Mountains, Washington State
“It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men’s hearts, as for that subtle something – that quality of air, that emanation from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit.” — Robert Louis Stevenson
Snowshoeing in the North Cascades, Washington
“To appreciate the beauty of a snowflake it is necessary to stand out in the cold.” — Aristotle
Downey Creek Trail, Cascade Mountains, Washington State
“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.” — John Muir
Punchbowl Falls, Eagle Creek Recreation Area, Oregon
“Look at everything as if you were seeing it for the first or last time.” — Betty Smith
Fort Worden State Park, Port Townsend
“What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” — John Steinbeck
Snowshoeing Mount Baker National Recreation Area, Washington
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Scrambling in Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington State
“The gladdest moment in human life, me thinks, is a departure into unknown lands.” — Sir Richard Burton
Ponytail Falls, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” — Confucius
Snow on Liberty Bell Mountain, Washington Pass, Washington State
“Despite all I have seen and experienced, I still get the same simple thrill out of glimpsing a tiny patch of snow in a high mountain gully and feel the same urge to climb toward it.” — Edmund Hillary A classic view of Liberty Bell Mountain from the Washington Pass Overlook on a snowy early […]
Seattle Skyline Reflecting in Elliot Bay
“I often think that the night is more alive and richly colored than the day.” — Vincent Van Gogh
Lime Kiln Lighthouse, San Juan Island
“It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.” — Aristotle
Lonely Tree, Palouse, Washington
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” — Robert Louis Stevenson
Mystic Lake, Mount Rainier National Park
“There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” — Edith Wharton
Alpine Stream, Cascade Mountains
“Coming near the edge of the snowfield I find running water close to the surface, visible among the rocks. I stop to drink. The water is bitterly, brilliantly cold with particles of glacier silt — utterly delicious.” — Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire
