Holiday Hmmmmm's

Now that Christmas is over, I am preparing for a camel ride into the New Year (photos to follow soon) and plenty of exercise at the new Sequim YMCA.

Maple Valley, WA

To get this energy moving, I had the good fortune to spend some time with my dear friend, CJB, and her husband Joe, near the Nooksack River (Bellingham area of WA) and as part of my Christmas gift, she took me down to the North Fork of the Nooksack to watch the eagles having their Christmas dinner of spawning salmon.

The day before it had snowed a lot so we had the added attraction of driving in rutted paths down back roads listening to the crunch and slush of the snow, depending on whether or not it was in full sun or shaded by tall evergreens.

Such fun to turn around one corner after another and find a vista of snow-covered mountains framed by a cool blue (cerulean ?) sky.

Last year I was here in January and between all the photographers with their space-deep reaching lenses and the eagles flying about, it was kind of crazy.

North Fork of the Nooksak River, near Maple Valley, WA.

This year it was quieter; mostly eagles calling out to each other in their lovely scree-ing tones and the crisp sound of snow under my feet as I tried to find a clear shot through the trees.

We sat for a long time just listening, occasionally snapping a shot, and watching as the eagles triangulated for their chance to have some fresh seagull meat.

It was peaceful. Far from the pre-Christmas scramble to get one last present and farther still from any world news of disruption or upheaval.

How many eagles do you see? When I took
the shot, there were at least eight; I may have
cropped a few out.

Anyone who says the world is black and white after a snowstorm has not tried to paint a winter landscape. It is not just shades of grey, either... it is 50 or more of lavender, blue, green and even orange or brown.

This bird was down at river's edge,
feeding on its catch.

Just as a crow is not really 'black,' but a variety of dark colors which, when viewed in some light, comes across as black. One of my favorite crow photos makes the bird look almost purple.

But I digress from the swarm of eagles on the Nooksack, where hapless salmon have been arriving to spawn and once done, they expire to feed a variety of critters.

Mt. Baker, I think, partially obscured by clouds, taken on the Mt. Baker Road.

All these photos were taken with my Sony which has a digital 30x zoom, but the challenge is holding it steady because it is small, the air is cold and I am breathing a little heavier with the excitement of seeing these majestic birds so near by. I tried the mono-pod for stabilizing, but I really needed the tripod.

There is a side road called Mosquito Lake Road off the Mt. Baker Road which has probably the best photo opportunities for these eagle shots. One of the residents has this funny front yard decoration.

Looks like the guy in the sleigh has been waiting a long time
for the cow to take flight...

One day I will bring my tripod and my lunch and just plan to spend the day taking photos, but for now it was good to have an hour or so watching and listening. These are all, to the best of my knowledge, different birds in different trees. The all-brown one appeared to be a youngster learning to land... it made several attempts to get itself on the branch.

And so ended my day-before-Christmas... joy, joy, joy!

My Ascent on Mt. Baker

When I was younger, but still older than most, I went on a mountain climbing expedition with the company where I was Executive Director for taking inner city kids to the wilderness.

I climbed to 11,203 feet in the Colorado Rockies, lost 17 pounds carrying a 55-lb. pack up and (it was lighter coming down, but not by much) dealt with a child having sickle-cell anemia, a young lady wanting to run away from home for good and a team leader who absolutely refused to take my EMT evaluation of the ill child seriously.

So, I left that company and did other things.

But climbing mountains must be in my blood... thinner at higher altitudes - LOL!

I have read lots of books about Everest and other major peaks, cringed to hear about the recent Nepal earthquake and all that it meant for all the folks involved, and still I risked my life once more to "get to the top, just because it was there..."

This is not me climbing... it was a group of folks learning
how to do this... I already have my own method.

The sky was a little hazy at the base, but the weather report said it would be clearer near the summit. I agreed with my pal, Carol Joy, and her partner, Earl, that it was going to have to be a pretty quick trip - no hanging around for too long once we got up there.

We packed a few essentials, especially plenty of water, and off we went.

As we approached the snow level, it was clear that lots of other folks were going to try for the top as well. You know it's crowded when you have to wait in line to get to the next level.

From a distance we could see there was still a lot of snow at
the top of Mt. Shuksan, east of Mt. Baker. 

Carol was the team leader; she'd gotten part way up once before and she wasn't sure if the route past the last huts (and where the ski lift for Black Diamond skiers starts) would be passable.

Although Earl has limited sight, he was a great motivator for us to keep going, and he seemed to know the route almost by heart.

You can see the mound of dirty snow that I was standing on
just to the lower right. This is the absolute peak of Mt. Baker
beyond that lovely evergreen tree. We just didn't have the
time, energy or resources to achieve that summit.

By the time we reached our destination, getting past the barriers that denied Carol's access in previous years, it was exactly noon.

Here I was, standing incredibly close to the very top of Mt. Baker, (it is 10,701 feet) and the sun broke through the clouds so I could actually see it clearly. It is possible for me to see this mountain from over in Sequim, so after today I would never look at it again in the same way.

I turned around and looked over my shoulder and this is what
I saw... all those other folks who were also vying for the top.

And now, we had to head back down, because sadly my weekend was over, and I had to catch the ferry back to Port Townsend.

The winding road down to the ski huts, with a view of the
Canadian mountains, also bereft of snow in May.

But what an awesome day! What fun we had! Our brief time at over 5,500 feet in elevation only left me breathless because of the views. I kinda wish I was still skiing because this must be an incredible place to enjoy whooshing down the mountain slopes. Hope you enjoyed the views, too...