in the POD - over the mountains (again) and through ......

Skagit River, North Cascades Mountains, WA.

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Two days and 566 miles later

 - ultimately not that far - 

but we have already gone through at least four distinct weather regions. 

We left Lummi Island early in the morning catching the first ferry of the day to the mainland. Rain and really cold temps followed as we began our climb into the North Cascades. 

But .... was it beautiful!!

We climbed higher and higher and the moss got deeper and deeper on the branches of the trees that hung leaden with the weight. 

Carved into the mountains the road was lined with towering Ponderosa Pines and winded its way ever so slowly into the snow capped horizon that we saw in the distance.

The Skagit River running below us was teal blue (!!!!) 

So clear and looking so COLD.

(There is no color filter or correction on the above photo! It was really that color!

North Cascades National Park, WA

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There were more shades of green than I could have imagined and it filled the vistas surrounding me. The green crept its way across the floor of the forest, up over rocks and trees. Dream like. 

Sensuous.

Timeless.

waterfalls at every turn

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 The forests were so heavy with dampness and the sound of the cascading falls was omnipresent. At every turn there were waterfalls - low, high... everywhere.

The drive was spectacular! Every turn - of which there were many - was a mouth agape "Oh My!" moment. 

At one stop along the way we even saw a herd of elk in the distance. One of them was obviously on watch. He was aware of our presence and stared directly at us while the others slowly moved into a tight group. We needed our binoculars to see them close up - but it was a siting none the less.
I have seen elk!

In the clouds

Ross Lake National Recreation Area, WA

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Close to the summit of the Cascades was Ross Lake, a reservoir created in the early 40's as part of the Ruby Dam built for hydro-electric power. Okay - not a natural lake .....but still spectacular.

Ross Lake National Recreation Area, WA

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Washington Pass, summit 

North Cascades Range, WA

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And then just a few miles up the road ..... snow. Lots of it! The banks on the side of the road were at least 6' high!! And, of course, it was snowing!!!!!!

and - it was kind of beautiful.

and then we headed back down the mountain into eastern Washington.

It was a different world.

Winthrop, WA

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Winthrop, WA. was dry, high desert. I felt like we were in Santa Fe, NM with lots more greenery and taller trees. And it was dry and warm! Truthfully, all the moss in the Pacific NW was beginning to make me jiggy - both my eyes and body needed to "dry out" for a spell.

high desert, Methow Valley, WA.

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containers for shipping 

apple, cherries, and pears

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Desert Yellow Daisy

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We camped for the night at Lake Roosevelt. The POD sat on the top of a bluff overlooking the lake and the surrounding mountains and we watched as the rain clouds skirted us to give us a glorious sunset.

We were the only campers there!

Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area

Spring Canyon Campground

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The morning rose early and as I looked up from my coffee cup I saw a family of three deer quietly enjoying their breakfast as they slowly made their way up the hill. 

Following close behind was a gaggle (?) of quail. Up close their coloring was quite beautiful and their quick pace and bobbing head were delightful to watch.

a family of white-tailed deer 

sharing breakfast with us at the campground

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Eastern Washington 

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After all the mountains, dampness, and did I say... moss? The landscape of eastern Washington was so different from what I ever expected. Washington state is the 3rd largest agricultural exporter in the nation. Who knew? The farm lands here on the eastern side are both irrigated and dry land farms growing

wheat, hops, apples, pears, and cherries. 

We climbed again, this time out of the eastern Washington valley and skirted up through the panhandle of northern Idaho; 

Lake Coeur d'Alene - OMG - huge, beautiful, and went on forever..

Wallace and Osborne - old silver mining towns nestled between the mountains.

Following the Coeur d'Alene River and its tributaries we wound our way up to another summit and immediately crossed into Montana, the Big Sky State, to meet up with more snow and a few 

snow squalls.

As I sit here tonite in the high desert of rolling hills of Montana outside of Missoula I am surrounded by snow capped mountains. I have no idea what the weather holds from this point out. 

I see from the web that only the northern access road in Yellowstone National Park is currently open....

Uggh - we are a week too early! 

Maybe that's okay.

Means we will have to come back.

Let's see what tomorrow holds.

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in the POD - Lummi Island, WA

Mt. Baker - snow capped in the distance

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We headed north again from Portland and this time to meet my childhood friend Mary-Ellen and her husband, Peter on Lummi Island.  Mary-Ellen and I met when we were 5 years old ...... and althou we have stayed in contact over the years we had not seen each other in 29 years! 

I was pregnant with Tyler when we last shared an afternoon on a beach in San Diego.

Obviously some catching up was needed.

View from Lummi Island

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The POD took it's first ferry ride - from Bellingham, WA to Lummi Island. A pretty simple 5 minute journey and yet suddenly we were "someplace else" - detached from the mainland, seemingly drifting in the sea. Lummi is a small island of approximately 24 sq miles and a population of around 800 people..... plus the various chickens, goats, cattle, llamas, etc. 

It truly was the quietest place we have been on this trip. 

Raw coastlines strewn with pale driftwood, buoys and small crafts and dense forests of sky reaching pines surrounded by ferns and mosses that cling to the forest floor. 

Shoreline, Lummi Island, WA

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The four of us walked and talked. And stopped and talked. Walked in twos and in fours .... spreading the time equally between us. So much ground to cover.

Finding a swing in the woods

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Mary-Ellen and I took a long hike together thru trails in the Otto Preserve, one of the island's conservancy sites. Peter volunteers for the Lummi Island Heritage Trust to acquire, manage and preserve over 1,000 acres on the island.  Otto Preserve is a wildlife refuge of native old growth forest. Dense, damp and oh so quiet - just the two of us exploring the woods ..... and the past 29 years. 

Perfect.

Otto Preserve, Lummi Island

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Along the coastline

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It has been so satisfying to have the opportunity to visit so many family members and friends along this journey and to find each and every one of them happy and content with their lives. Each one has carved out a place, a solitude, a life. And it is beautiful to see ... and share. 

Althou each may face a struggle, a change, or a new horizon - each one was looking straight ahead and meeting it with great dignity.

Self awareness + Self reliance = Power

Mary-Ellen and Peter

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Peter fed us very well - 3 meals a day (!) which was way more than we are used to ....

 We did not complain. 

Curried shrimp, chicken fajitas and delicious beer - I was a happy camper who, just so happened to not be, technically, camping.

Mary-Ellen's favorite fishing shack on the island

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It was a brilliant two days - like a jewel - so precious I don't even know how to catalogue it yet. It meant so much to me to be there , to share and to reaffirm that "yes!" - some friendships can actually be forever!!

Tim and I - Lummi Island

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It is special to have a friend in your life that has known you forever. I am so fortunate for that. 

No artiface

No hiding

No judgement

Just us ..... 5 years old and continuing to figure it out. 

With laughter.

A little reminder along the way....

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Thank you my friends - for being there...... Always!

in the POD - city fix: Portland

View from the apartment

NE Portland, OR

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Enough seascapes! Enough trees! Enough mountains majesty!!!

I need some city time!

Ahhhhhh - Portlandia........

Quirky, coffee-soaked, rainy, charming and oh so mellow, Portland was a real nice change from the road. We stayed at the apartment of my good friend (and college roommate) Julie. 

It was great to see each other on this coast and have her show us "her" city.

Julie and I downtown

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I can't put into words how wonderful it was to spend time together. So gratifying to still have deep connections, to easily follow the old rhythms and not miss a beat, understanding where we are, how we got there - sometimes with a look, a smile. 

It felt so normal - like in that first dorm room where we met. Two 18 year old girls holding on to each other for support, comfort, friendship - learning to grow up together.

It still feels exactly the same.

Julie and I

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Portland, and all of the Pacific NW, was awash in blooms! Tulips, lilacs, wisteria, dogwood, azaleas, rhodys, even the roses and peonies were popping. I was amazed by how far along spring was. Other than the cloudiness and the drizzle ....... it was actually kind of warm.

We wandered both the NW neighborhood and downtown over the course of our stay deciding where to go and what to  do based on the weather. At one point during some rain we headed into the Portland Museum of Art and saw the "Italian Style: Fashion Since 1945" exhibit. Excellent! 

Got to meet and hang out with Julie's new partner, Ken. He graciously had us over for a wonderful dinner of sautéed halibut and pesto pasta. Yum! Was fortunate also to meet up with Julie's oldest daughter, Kelly Bosworth, for dinner. Wow! Beautiful, poised and oh so talented!

Food trucks - EVERYWHERE

Portland, OR

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And just to make me feel older than I believe I am..... I had the good fortune to meet up with some ex-students of mine. Thank you Kriso for arranging this!!

They are all now closing in on 40 - with families, careers, kids - Ugh - this is harder to take than one's own son turning 29 and getting married. (Kriso and Rachel were once Tyler's babysitters.)

It was amazing to see them, hear about their lives, choices/changes, directions. So many years have passed but they, too, possess their same 20 year old self. 

Kriso - bright and shining, smiling, up beat and always on top of what is going on. 

Rachel - witty, strong, open and dynamic.

We don't really change. I guess we simply refine.

Coffee with ex-students from the College of Santa Fe

Kriso, Rachel, me, and Doug

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Ken cooking us dinner

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Friends. 

Time.

Always there.

Kind of amazing. 

It is.

A little yoga bondage 

Julie Lawrence Yoga Studio, Portland

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City - check!

Craft beer - check!

Fashion Exhibit - check!

I can now go back into the woods.

In the POD - part one

under the bridge 

Deception Pass, WA

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Everyone gets there. Some with personal loss, a brush with tragedy, 

or an actual face to face with destiny. 

But I'm thinking that you can also get there with time spent surrounded by nature. 

I know that the overwhelming beauty of nature makes me feel like the tiniest player. And the grandness of the scenery, let alone the ages of the trees, the rivers, the rocks........ 

We are but a tiny blip in the timeline.

Life goes on.

POD at rest - Ellen and Bob's

Banks, OR

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So - on this leg of the trip we are visiting family and friends. Most of them with many years in between the last visits. We arrived at Tim's sister Ellen's house in Banks, OR. in the afternoon. The clouds and mist that we found in the mountains followed us into the valley. This is the first time rain has occurred during the day for us this entire trip. 

I had not seen Ellen in over 15 years - thus never having met her husband of 14 years, Bob. I believe Tim had last seen his sister 13 years ago. 

It was time to get reacquainted. 

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The rain kept us in for most of the two days we were there, save for a brief break in the clouds when we attempted a short walk and were surprised by a sudden shower of hail! However, the weather provided the perfect backdrop for quiet conversation, lots of catching up, lots of questions  and delicious meals shared around the table. 

Curry soup, smoked game hens and Marionberry cobbler! 

This was my introduction to the Marionberry, an Oregon cultivar of a blackberry which is known as the "cabernet of blackberries". Their flavor is deep, rich and intense in flavor and yummy as can be. 

Ellen has quite a prolific garden and these berries had been frozen from last years crop. 

She was so gracious and even gave us a bag of them as we left to carry to our next hosts! 

Connecting with family: Larry, me & Tim, Emmie,

Tim & Ellen, Dana preparing breakfast.

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We next headed up to La Conner, WA to visit with Tim's cousin Dana, and her husband, Larry. We had last seen Dana..... maybe 2001? Once again ..... time to reconnect.

Dana and Larry had moved to this pristine spot 12 years ago. The view from their home was peacefully idyllic and yet in constant motion: tides rising and falling, birds passing by or swooping in for a catch, boats passing in the distance, the sun and moon on their daily journey across the sky. 

And amid this landscape we talked, reminisced, and.... yes, of course, made and shared meals together. Perfect.

View from the deck - Dana and Larry's

La Conner, WA

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The weather was beautiful in WA - and it allowed for a small excursion to Deception Pass and up to the top of a mountain (who's name I cannot for the life of me remember or find on a map......)

with a spectacular view of the many islands and bays that make up Puget Sound.

Deception Pass, WA

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It was both comforting and inspirational to get together with each family member and share time again. We are all older, and I do think we are all better for it.

In both company and place we were surrounded by beauty and goodness.

Marionberries from Ellen's garden and tulips in Dana's, 

Dungeness crab for dinner, and a herd of deer in the rain.

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Life is short.

We cannot waste a moment of it.

in the POD - the Oregon coast

somewhere along southern coast of Oregon

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 I am loosing track of the days. 

And my relative sense of time is all messed up. 

I look back at these pictures and think they happened a week (or more) ago - and yet.....

it's only been 3 days! 

So many new sights, people, and experiences that I think my brain is having a difficult time sorting, storing and cataloging. 

I'm not complaining - only observing.

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starting the day - coffee by the bay

near Coos Bay, Oregon

We have been getting into the habit of leaving whatever campground we have slept in early each morning and seeking out a quiet view to enjoy our coffee and breakfast. It has been rewarding to find off the beaten track (at least for us) spots and be totally alone.

Our drive up this majestic coast has been full of surprises. Back and forth we traverse the winding road at the edge of the cliffs, then suddenly down into valleys with tall evergreens separating us from the ocean views, and finally back again, this time at sea level, emerging out upon the beaches that stretch out before us. 

It is truly a grand and magical coast to explore. None of the coastline here is privately owned. Some time in the 30's (I believe) the coast itself was declared a highway -

Oregon Coast Highway No. 9

and thus the state became its steward. 

This highway was built over a period of many years and the bridges and tunnels that connect all the towns over waterways, into, up and around mountains is itself spectacular. Each deco style bridge we have crossed is beautifully designed and yet sit perfectly within their environs.

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the wild Oregon coastline

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We decided to stop at the Sea Lion Caves in Florence. SO happy we did!

Taking an elevator 200' down through the mountain we arrived in this cave ... filled with hundreds of sea lions. It is the largest sea cave in America and home to the Stellar Sea Lion. 

The sea lions lounged, slept and stretched on all the rocks that lined the cave and more sea lions congregated in the surf that crashed in. Between the sounds of the surf and the bellowing cries of the sea lions - it was a looping symphony of echos!

a pod of sea lions 

Sea Lion Caves

Florence, OR

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Heceta Head Lighthouse

Florence, OR

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sunset at the harbor

Newport, OR

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Our next stop was Newport. A quaint seaside town that is now the home of Tim's oldest friend, Rand Bishop. Walkable and filled with galleries, this fishing and crabbing town was comfortable and easy to explore. The beach was wide and we were lucky to have clear, sunny skies for the 2 days we were here. The weather patterns were totally in our favor with all the rain happening each night as we slept.

It was great to see Rand and we all got to catch up on the 3 years since we were last together. 

Rand, Tim and Milly (the beagle)

Agate Beach, Newport, OR

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"little sails"

Agate Neach, Newport 

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At the tide line on the beach there were all these blue glass like creatures - of all sizes, the largest was probably 2 1/2" long. Seems they are Velella, a free floating hydrozoan - yeah, they are related to the jellyfish. Also called "little sail", they are distinguished by the thin sail like appendage that sits on top of them. They are totally dependent on wind and currents and depending on certain conditions ..... end up stranded on beaches. Seems that these little creatures live in all the world's warm and temperate oceans - and this was the first time I had ever seen them!

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Oregon dunes

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Pacific oysters!

dinner in Newport, OR

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I could have walked on that beach at Newport every day and enjoyed it over and over. But, no... I am not moving there. But I would not mind revisiting this coast again - there are over 18 state parks  along the coast line alone and 196 overall. 

We did see an announcement at one of the parks looking for "hosts". Each state park has a volunteer host/host family. You get to park there for free and you oversee the park for the season........... mmmmm?

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We left Newport early in the morning and stopped at a rest area for coffee and showers. We had been parked on a slope while in Newport so showering in the POD was not possible. 

The ride north from Newport took us through even more diverse landscapes. At one point in Wheeler and the towns around Nahalam Bay we felt like we had left the state totally. Wide rolling farms of cows, cattle, sheep, donkeys (!!) - I felt like we were in the Alps.

I even had 2 bald eagle sitings! One was perched along a small river tearing into its morning meal. The other was at the very top of a pine hanging out over the ocean below. 

SO cool!

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a rest stop for lunch

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Just north of Cannon Beach we headed inland, and up over another mountain range (seemingly meager now at only 1800 feet) and into the NW reaches of the Willamette Valley to Banks, OR.

Here we will visit TIm’s sister, Ellen and her husband, Robert for 2 days. 

all is well. 

and really - why worry about time.

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in the POD - mountains, redwoods, and coast...oh my!

Breakfast overlook

Trinity Lake, WhiskeyTown, CA

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We left Yosemite midday and drove out of the valley, up over the mountains of the Stanislaus National Forest, back into the central valley of CA and then up, up again into the Shasta National Forest and then down again .... to the spectacular Pacific coast. I swear we encountered at least 4 different weathers in the 2 days on the road. Green and moist with clouds suspended between the mountains, dry and rich in the central valley, majestic snow caps in the Shasta Range, and then clear  blue and windy on the coast.

touching the clouds

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We passed through so many picture perfect towns nestled into the mountains. The Shasta Mountains was the home of many of the gold rush communities and there is still evidence of this past there. Weaverville -  the oldest of the CA gold towns once was the home of over 2,000 Chinese miners. The town is on the National Register of Historic Places and now has a new performing arts center - which was showing "The Sound of Music"! Seeing that the area is known as the Trinity Alps it seemed quite appropriate. Alas .. we did not stay to see the show.

After all the mountain climbing, the green and the deep ravines we finally descended to the Pacific. Wide, glorious, and the ever crashing waves welcomed us there.

Pacific Coast

North of Eureka, CA

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our campground

Redwoods National Park

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We headed back into the forests to the Redwoods National Park - totally on my bucket list. Needless to say they were everything I had hoped them to be..... 

WOW.

This is truly old growth forest. Dark, wet, low growth of ferns and mosses of all kinds on the floor of the forest and then - BOOM - trees that reach up like huge fingers into the sky. I have never seen trees that tall and that big around. There was a tree section at Yosemite that was probably 12' across. They had dated the rings on the tree ..... one not too far from the center was "The Battle of Hastings, 1066"!  Most of the trees in the redwoods were much wider than that one! Kind of beyond comprehension.

Among these giants I felt even smaller than I feel most of the time - both in the moment physically and in the general cosmic view. SO much history, so much time - oh, the stories that they could tell.

looking up!

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Tim making his entrance between two redwoods

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Everything was so lush and dreamy - kind of unreal and magical. Tim said he felt like we were living in Avatar. It was of another time, another place.

I make my first fire in a forest 

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 mosses of all varieties on the floor of the forest

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It was incredibly beautiful, tranquil and quiet. We will leave this dreamscape and head back to the coast again and then work our way up to Oregon.