Tag: Explorations

Up To Whatcom For A Day

Carl Setzer

We spent the day in Bellingham. Our original plans went a bit awry, but not to worry. We opted to head out to the Nooksack (east of Bellingham near Deming, deep in Whatcom county) to check out the eagles. We saw about twenty or so birds, mostly bald eagles, but also some goodness, gobs of seagulls eating the eagle’s leftovers, plus a blue heron to round things out.

I talked to some of the other photographers out there. Man, I got some serious gear envy! I love those monster zoom lenses and definitely want to earn enough to get one. The guy with the best zoom also drove a Porsche, which tells you a story.

We had dinner at Boundary Bay Brewery in Bellingham (how’s that for alliteration?), which I’d been meaning to try. Had the French dip, which was quite lovely (I’m fond of that sandwich). I also want to try their Bahn Mi and a good ol’ fashioned cheeseburger, too. My wife had the fish tacos, which were excellent. My son had the mac and cheese, which is actually somewhat famous in those parts. He inhaled that, assuring me it was good.

You can see some pictures on my Instagram and Facebook pages. Take a look and let me know what you think. Are there other places I should check out? Let me know!

And so ends the weekend

Carl Setzer

They never seem long enough. So very much I wanted to do, and so very much of that left undone. A few highlights: 

  • I’ve been fighting some kind of bug the past week or so. I feel better now, but not 100%. Slept far more of today than expected. 
  • With that, today, for various reasons, I consumed way too much bad food. Felt queasy most of the evening. My bifocals didn’t help at all. Feeling better now, yet also exhausted. Yuck!
  • Yesterday I did finally replace my Samsung S5, which has been driving me batty. Got a S7. Quite happy so far, but I’m really only getting going with it. 
  • Saturday I went walking around Lynnwood. Up off of 40th between 188th and 196th, there’s a cleared play where a development of some stripe is going in. I’d passed by several times, so really wanted t take a closer look. The space they’re building out is HUGE! This will change the dynamic of that neighborhood. 
  • With that, I also explored the trails by the library and City Hall. I was delighted to find a plaque from Meadowdale (my high school) naming the trail “Mesika”. Seeing the connection filled me with pride. 
  • That makes me think of how the city has changed. It’s radically different than when I was a kid. Yet elements remain the same. I do expect Lynnwood will continue growing much more urban, for good and for ill. 
  • Anyway, I have photos and a little video. Once I feel better and more energized, I’ll pull together a vlog post. 

So, it was a satisfying enough weekend for me. Hopefully it was for you. Let me know in the comments! 

Christmas In Edmonds

Carl Setzer
Edmonds Ferry

Our Christmas was blessedly calm. Slept in, opened presents, made some breakfast, played with the new gear, then went down to one of our favorite spots: the Edmonds waterfront. A low-key day, which is particularly nice right now, providing a nice counter-balance to our lives. It’s been rather zany this December.

It was fun running into Thayer of Just Frogs (and Toads Too), and helping her decorate the Olympic Sculptures.

Whale Watchers statue in Edmonds
Whale Watchers statue in Edmonds

After these chaps were decorated, we had many folks stop by to be photographed with them. I delight in chatting with the wide variety of folks walking the boardwalk.

This slideshow features the highlights of our day.

 


Sunsets along the Sound are always lovely. Always a wonderful way to spend the evening. Though it was time for hot-cocoa afterwards.

I hope your holiday was just as lovely.

More images and the fun Google + format are here.

Riding the Snoqualmie Valley Trail

Carl Setzer

Friends texted us Friday evening. We’d discussed riding the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, part of my want-to-ride list for ages.

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We parked and set out from Loutsis Park in Carnation. One side note: Apple’s map/Siri got us near Loutsis, but to a different park .3 miles away. Google Maps was able to get us the rest of the way. The ride was, well, mostly half uphill, with the ride back being down. MapMyFitness does a create job of mapping out the ride, providing all the great geeky details like splits and elevation gain. Here are these details from this ride.

It’s really a nice trail for this kind of ride. Well packed gravel, and, though solidly up-hill, a gentle grade (to be expected from converted train tracks). For us, this was perfect: our group had a significant range of age and skill: ages 6 to early 50s. My son, with one of his friends, rode ahead with me while the rest of our crew adopted a more leisurely pace. I felt proud of my son’s pace and endurance. More good rides ahead for us!

Not much wildlife to be seen, but I’m certain that was mostly a function of the time of day. There are placards warning you how to react to bear and cougar sightings. I kept my eyes open as I’ve never seen either in the wild and would actually like to do so. As there weren’t too many other users, the likelihood of seeing something was a lot higher. Yet we didn’t see much. A hawk or turkey vulture, Stellar’s Jays, and not much else. I thought I saw a coyote, but it was far enough away that it might well have been a dog. Who knows?

My favorite “thing”. This quirky thing: a tsunami evacuation sign in the mountains?

Not what I was expecting to see.
Not what I was expecting to see.

If you look closely at the top of the sign, you’ll see the world “Tolt River Dam Failure”. This is the dam that had folks worried a few years back. The incongruity caught my attention, though.

Summing up: this is a trail I want to ride again.

Weekend

Carl Setzer

Easter weekend rarely comes with such copious amounts of sun. Spent a fair amount of time outdoors, as folks from west of the cascades are want to do.

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Easter itself had us driving to Bellingham. Didn’t get to hit Tony’s Coffee or Village Books. Still a good trip, though traffic bogged down though Everett to Marysville. Well, pretty much up into Arlington. Holiday weekends feature that, though.

Hope everyone had a safe journey through the gorgeous weekend.

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