Lovely area to paddle. This is where the Penn Cove mussels are commercially grown and harvested. The commercial facility is just east of Coupeville along the southern area of Penn Cove. Coupeville is also a cute town to view from the water.
3 waterfall route at a brisk pace. Water gushing over the falls.
New Zealand stands out for some of the most gorgeous trekking terrain you could ever find (they call it 'tramping'!) combined with an amazing can-do attitude (they'll solve any challenge for you) and fantastic resources and support systems for trip planning and logistics. On this trip we did the Abel Tasman Coast Track, hiked amazing trails in Aoraki/Mount Cook park, did the Routeburn and Kepler Great Walks, took a bus and boat tour of Milford Sound, and hiked to the Aspiring Hut and tracks around it in Aspiring National Park. In between we really enjoyed the lovely towns of Queenstown, Te Anau, Nelson and Wanaka with lots of shopping and great food! However New Zealand also faces the same intense demand for limited spots on their most popular trekking trails and huts that we do in the PNW and elsewhere, so I had to improvise in terms of how to get approval for the trip and a list of participant names in time for a May-June booking period for huts but without committing to any specific set of huts or itinerary in advance of securing the huts. In the report below I'll describe each of the segments, what we did in between, and the unorthodox booking process I used.
One-way hike from Blyn to Sequim on the ODT!
Beautiful spring greens hike along the Coal Creek River/Natural Area to Newcastle Beach Park
We had a beautiful morning on Roaring Creek / Teneriffe Connector / Talus Loop and Teneriffe Falls trail segments, with a dozen bird species and 2 inches of fresh snow. Many thanks to my two hiking partners and Ajax for making some magical memories on a hike that almost got canceled!
Snowy hike up Mailbox Peak old trail with gusty winds but rewarding fresh snow.
A beautiful mountain lake at the end of a mile of dog sled trail, a mile of ski trail, and three miles of snowmobile trail.
Rain, snow, and blackberry vines, oh my! Today's completion of Off-trail Navigation at Raging River had it all. My favorite was experimenting with different nav techniques; my least favorite was getting tripped by nasty brambles that sent several of us flying. I wasn't expecting as much bushwacking and now I know why Gaia doesn't work on my phone, so that was helpful!
A reliable choice in the Snoqualmie I-90 corridor.
Changed from Rainier to Yodelin, no gate opening all weekend at Rainier
Jakob Two Trees, Bullitt Fireplace, Alpine Jelly Cones were today's treats. Trails on eastern slopes of Squak Mtn still not cleared. Route changed to stay west of Central Peak but still plenty of tree damage with most of it cleared from the trail.
Great group and good conditions for our 2025 After-hours kickoff hike.
Trail from Highpoint to Murat's Bridge was in reasonable good condition.
My dog and I enjoyed a lovely mid-morning stroll with 29 bird species including 5 Barrow's goldeneyes, an orange-crowned warbler, downy and pileated woodpeckers, and Hutton's vireos. Muddy in places, and lots of dogs, as well as a very long train made for an interesting outing.
Winter ascent of Copper, Pyramid, Iron linkup in MRNP (2 day trip).
Snowshoe trail maintenance weekend with WTA based out of snow camp at Sherman Pass, maintaining trail on the way up to the summit of Columbia Mountain.
Conditioner hike up to the top of Snoqualmie Valley's Mount Washington. Sunny conditions with fresh snow at the summit.