Timelapse of clouds moving over Silver Lake

Wildflowers and Waterfalls in the Columbia Gorge

Published at seattlebackpackersmagazine.com

I’m an impatient hiker; I don’t care for the long wait till the snow melts and flowers bloom in the high country. When the first warm sunlight of spring breaks through the rain clouds of winter, I want to hit the trail, and not the dim forest paths to which I have been restricted throughout the winter. To get my fix of open air, wide views, flowers, falls and bright sunshine there is but one destination that beckons: the Columbia Gorge. Read More.........

Spring flowers

Maple Flowers

Spring is here! A joyful cry for all who have longed for the color rushing through the land in a tide of green leaves and rainbow blossoms. Though the height of the spring bloom has not yet showered us with its most spectacular display, the first flowers have risen from the mud like the vanguard of some sylvan army.

Saddle Mountain

Published at seattlebackpackersmagazine.com

Ascend to alpine prairies and far ranging views atop Saddle Mountain, the highest and most northerly summit of the Oregon Coast Range.

Read more at seattlebackpackersmagazine.com

What's in a name - Volcanoes of the Pacific Northwest

Mt. Rainier

A controversy that has swirled, mist-like, about the peaks and valleys from Oregon to Alaska is that of the names of the great mountains that stand like guardian angels over the forests and fields of the Pacific Northwest. Christened with the names of admirals, presidents, and close friends by European explorers, there have always been a few who have argued that these mountains should instead be referred to by their original monikers given to them by the local tribes that inhabited the region before the pioneers.

Silver Falls State Park

Published at Seattlebackpackersmagazine.com

This is the time of year when most residents of the Pacific Northwest turn their minds towards escape. The damp, dreary months of winter bring thoughts of trips to Hawaii to the minds of cabin fevered lovers of the great outdoors. But I say, rather than run from the precipitation exuding from the sky and the land all around us, it’s time to embrace it. Resist the tourist covered sunny beaches, and head for the solitude of the rain forest. Forget an afternoon sunset watching ocean waves, and slip behind the cascading sheets of a raging waterfall. Abandon the glamour of a glitzy, full service, wallet-draining hotel, and discover the joy of a rustic log cabin with reduced rates and a tiny electric heater that feels better than all the sunshine in Hawaii after a day spent hiking in the drenching rain.
Read More at Seattlebackpackersmagazine.com

Juneuary at Mt. St. Helens

The unseasonably good weather here in SW Washington proved to be just too tempting yesterday. Despite the oppressive weight of the studying I needed to do for an upcoming economics test, I couldn't resist taking a break for a quick afternoon jaunt to Mt. St. Helens. It's been a spectacularly warm January, but even with the record breaking winter temperatures, I was shocked at how little snow there was on Mt. St. Helens and the mountains surrounding it. Even the region’s highest peaks, Coldwater, Whittier, Margaret, and Potato, retain little more than a few scattered snowfields. St. Helens itself has fared little better, and vast bare streaks extend far up its flanks.