Some pictures from today

Took a short hike out by the North Fork of the Snoqualmie River. Nothing exciting out that way – some decent views, some decent hiking, but not nearly as exhilarating as the South Fork (along I-90). But we had fun, of course, including a picnic lunch on the tailgate of our car.

We caught a glimpse of a waterfall in the distance, one I’m pretty sure has no trail going to it (this is a couple miles north of Mount Si and don’t know of any falls that have been marked in that area with a trail map). This fall is about a mile away and we could hear it.

Now THAT was cool…

So I’m chillin’ on the back patio, enjoying a Black Pearl cigar, just put the kids to bed, its 9:30ish or so, a calm, breezy, cloudy evening in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. I am relaxed, kicked back in my favorite patio chair (the one Garrett always takes when we eat outside), feet up on the table, letting the stress leave my body a bit at a time.

It’s basically twilight at this time of night, and slowly but surely the clouds start to open up. A wee bit here, a little bit there. A star peeks through overhead, another peeks through to the west. Ooh, the big dipper emerges.

Over the time span of an hour, the sky just opened up, one small bit at a time. It was amazing just to sit and watch it happen. And I got some long needed star gazing in, something I haven’t been able to do since winter.