It's rare in life to get rewarded for very little effort, but the Bagley Lakes trail does just that. When recently camping with friends just 30 minutes from the recently plowed and open road to Artist Point, we couldn't resist the call of nearby Mt Baker. Along with a small crowd of other cars, we drove to the end of the road to explore the still snow covered Artist Point. Most of the crowd was content to park, play around in the snow, snap a few photos, then turn around and leave. We, however, also made a stop a little lower at the Bagley Lakes trailhead to stretch our legs on a short hike. While Artist Point was still heavily blanketed in snow, here there was more trail than snow - just barely. The three of us had visited once before, as part of a larger group during my bachelorette party two years ago. I've always loved returning to trails a different times of year to see the the dramatic changes the season make to familiar landscapes.
Read moreLife: Week 28
Another exhausting, wonderful week! Monday and Tuesday were spent in California, relaxing and soaking up the last of our visit with family. Flying in to SeaTac, especially in the evening, never fails remind me how lucky I am to live where I do. Who else gets such beautiful views descending to their city airport? Once we were home, most of our free time during the week was spent planning and preparing for the weekend. We had plans to finally go backpacking, but once again a forecast of a nearly state-wide chance of thunderstorms almost made us cancel again. Ultimately we decided that instead of hiking a nearby trail I had picked out the previous weekend, we would go to the Olympic Peninsula where there was a possibility of rain, but no thunderstorms.
Read moreLife: Week 27
It was another marvelous week, starting with our annual 4th of July on Whidbey. On the 4th, the tide was extremely low, and while there are no tidepools on our strip of beach, there were still all sorts of interesting things to see. My dad, a marine biologist, was with us which meant we were actually able to identify many of the creatures we found. Early in the morning, Andy set out the crab pots and managed to catch two crab, which we took home and ate on a delicious caesar salad. Midweek, we finally managed to squeeze in a short post-work hike in a nearby park neither of us had heard of - Soaring Eagle. The trails were lovely and well-maintained, and if I lived a little closer would make an excellent place for evening trail-running. Even with the 30 minute drive, I'm sure I'll be visiting the park again soon!
Friday morning, we were up bright and early for a flight to Oakland and a much needed visit with Andy's sister Erika and her family. Most of our weekend was spent relaxing at their house and playing with our niece, just the way I like our visits. The exception was our Sunday afternoon, spent at a Sonoma winery with a group of Erika's friends feeding the resident fish, playing games, sharing a picnic, and drinking some (almost certainly too much) excellent wine!
Read moreLife: Week 26
I'm trying to take advantage of every moment of these long, glorious days of summer. While the days feel long and slow, the weeks fly by! Soon Andy and I are going to have to take a weekend off, because for weeks we've been busy, busy, busy and I know we can't keep it up. The trouble is, every time I think of setting aside a day or weekend to relax at home, all the adventures we could have instead pop into my head, and getting them dislodged is not at all easy. For now, I'm thoroughly enjoying these jam-packed summer days. One evening this week, we met friends for a long, drawn out dinner on the patio of our favorite local beer shop. We stayed nearly until closing time, and between the good conversation, good beer, and late sunset, we hardly noticed the time passing. Saturday, with the holiday weekend, we got up early and headed for Whidbey. It's been too long since we've spent time at the cabin, and it was wonderful to be back. I had almost forgotten how peaceful it is there. There are never enough days in the summer, but hopefully we can make time for one more weekend on Whidbey!
Read moreLife: Week 25
Summer is most definitely here! This past weekend, I kicked it off right with a wonderful camping trip with two good friends. It was raining when we arrived at the campsite, but we came armed with half a dozen tarps. After setting up our assorted rain covers and setting up our site, we got down to some serious relaxation. This particular weekend, we lucked out. After Friday night, the weather was beautiful through the weekend, and having arrived in the rain, we had our pick of the best campsites. Between the three of us, we brought enough alcohol for five, enough seating for six, and probably enough food for eight. Needless to say, we had a fabulous time eating and drinking all kinds of delicious things, lounging by the river, and even a little hiking. If only every weekend could be as jam-packed with good times!
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