I've been getting off work early during our slow season over the summer, which means time for long walks around Redmond. I haven't found any ripe blackberries yet, but any day now the city trails will be perfumed with the scent of ripe berries. I've also been making gradual progress on a sweater I started knitting a few months ago for a friend. So far it's very boring, straightforward knitting, but the yarn color is so gorgeous that it's still fun to work on! Saturday, Andy and I got an early start to meet my dad for a weekend in the mountains. My dad wanted to check out the fishing at a lake near their cabin, so that's where we were headed. The hike started off with a gentle 4.5 mile hike from the cabin, with a rather exciting stream crossing around the halfway point. After a junction signed "trail not maintained beyond this point" (beware these signs!) the last mile to the lake was a punishing climb of a little over 1000' straight up the basin wall - definitely Type II fun, bordering on Type III.
Read moreLife: Week 28
More weeks like this, please! We've had endless sunshine recently, but thankfully the temperatures have mostly stayed comfortable. Before Andy's sister and her family headed back to California, we spent a long evening on the patio of a nearby restaurant, sipping cocktails and eventually settling in around their fire pit after the sun went down. It was the perfect way to spend an evening - if only we could have more of them! I don't know about everyone else in the Seattle area, but on clear summer days, Mt. Rainier calls to me off in the distance. After so many cloudless days, I could no longer resist the call, and on a sunny Saturday morning this week, we joined the Alpine Trails Book Club for a phenomenal hike on the mountain. Seeing our neighboring volcano from a distance was nothing compared to hiking in the park itself, with clear up-close views of the glacier covered behemoth.
Read moreFremont Lookout
In the past, I haven't had much luck with the weather when hiking in Mt Rainier National Park, always finding the summit of Rainier shrouded in clouds for the duration of my trip. On one particularly memorable trip, Andy and I were practically chased off the mountain by an unexpected summer lightning storm. Needless to say, when we left home to clear skies, with a cloudless view of Rainier in the distance, I was hopeful my luck had finally changed. Maybe the mountain would reveal herself for the Alpine Trails Book Club! When our group hit the trail from Sunrise at 9 AM it was under a cloudless sky, but soon drifts of cloud began to gather around the summit, partially obscuring our view of the mountain. Even with the mountain hidden by clouds, the bloom-scented alpine meadows and panorama of surrounding peaks made this spectacular hike a new favorite of mine.
Read moreLife: Week 27
I always enjoy a good 3-day work week, and with the 4th of July on a Tuesday this year, that's exactly what I wound up with! I spent many years working as a contractor, and never had paid holidays or vacation, so the idea that I can have a day (or two!) off without stressing about the extra hours I'll have to work later in the week or a diminished paycheck is still novel and exciting to me. Since I had Monday off in addition to Tuesday, I joined my dad for a hike to Mirror & Cottonwood Lakes, which turned out to be surprisingly quiet for a short hike off I-90 on a holiday weekend! I'd almost forgotten how much I enjoy hiking with my dad, since our trips always involve several hours of relaxing by a lake while he fishes, while I catch up on some reading and generally enjoy the peace of the mountains.
Read moreLife: Week 26
Summer is off to a sweltering start! Thankfully when it gets hot outside, our gloomy, dark apartment stays cool. Since I've started working from home, our cool apartment has saved my sanity. I do miss working in an office with huge windows overlooking Lake Washington and air conditioning to keep the place cool, but I'll certainly take a cool workspace with no views over a stuffy one with lots of windows. Who knows, maybe soon I'll even manage to start taking walks in the chilly hours before my work day begins. I keep talking about it, but the coziness of my bed is almost impossible to escape - especially when there's a cat around to snuggle my face!
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