Each year, by the time spring rolls around, I find myself struggling against a desperation to break out my backpacking gear, stashed away since the previous fall. After the darkness and rain of winter, I'm itching to spend the night camped out on some wild and peaceful trail. There are always many problems with this desire; spring is a busy time for me at work, and I have several family birthdays to celebrate, so a free weekend before summer is in full swing is a rare thing indeed. The past few years, I've even had a particular trail in mind when dreaming of my early-season backpacking trips — Ingalls Creek. While many other trails in the area are still heaped with a mess of rapidly melting snow, this meandering trail in Teanaway is typically snow free for at least the first several miles. In the spring, like many other trails in the area, Ingalls Creek is decorated with a colorful blanket of wildflowers.
Read moreLife: Week 24
Summer has arrived, and with it the long days of sunshine and hot weather. Halfway through June and already there have been an intolerable number of sweaty, restless nights where the temperature in our apartment doesn't seem to drop below 75. There are many things I love about summer, but I could do without the heat! With a vacation to get ready for, Andy and I spent our weekend close to home, although we did make time for another day trip to Whidbey Island to pick up more of our favorite coffee from Useless Bay in Langley. It wasn't until we were on our way home that we realized while we'd eaten lunch on their patio, we'd completely forgotten to pick up more coffee! Of course that just means that we'll need to make another trip to Whidbey. How unfortunate...
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