Orcas Island

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If you remember 2 years ago, Chrissy and I went to Lopez Island for honeymoon. It is part of the San Juan Islands that are northwest of us and just below Victoria B.C. It was absolutely beautiful there and we had the time of our lives. This year we decided to check out a different island, Orcas Island. We also brought Dick and Judy with us to join in the festivities.

After driving 2.5 hrs to the Anacortes ferry, we arrived over an hour early. We passed the time by playing Euchre in the car as we snacked on Utz mix and Sea salt chips. Yum! After the ferry ride, we arrived on the island. We bunked up in a cabin like apartment. It had a couple units together but had a central living room. It was a pretty neat setup. The next day we drove across the island to Mt. Defiance in Moran State Park (not pronounced moron, Chrissy). It had stunning views of the Puget Sound!

Everybody was enjoying the view!




We climbed up the watch tower to get an even better view.

Chrissy was being bad so we had to put her into the corner.

We drove down the mountain side and decided to go for a hike. We were greeted with the beautiful sights that the Pacific Northwest has to offer. There is nothing like the landscape and lush forest of the Temperate Rainforest.

As we hiked along we discovered the reason why the forest was so green. Plenty of water provided the nutrition the trees and moss need to thrive.

Water, like everything, is affected by gravity. Combine these together and you get one beautiful sight.

As we continued down the mountain after the hike, we began to realize why they call it Deer Harbor. The island is full of deer as we drove past many of them including a mother and her fawn prancing across the road.



Since we didn't want our hiking to end, we decided to walk around Cascade lake. It was so pristine as there was nothing around to taint the water. It was also such a beautiful day with sunny weather so we soaked in as much as we could.



What is a hike through the forest without out a little wildlife?




It was a fantastic time in a picturesque place. We are already excited to see what the rest of the islands have to offer. Stay tuned for the rest of the Meier family visit.

Memorial Day 2012

Memorial Day is the weekend in which we embark on the magical journey to central Washington. This is the 4th annual camping trip with some good friends for some fun times. This year we had 10 people in our group. My photographic challenge on this weekend was to get some astro-photographic shots. I definitely have a ways to go but some of these are by far my best shots. Including this time lapse:

Since we were within a couple miles of the Sasquatch music festival, we could see it's great lights from our camp site. They lit up the night like a city skyline.

While checking out the sunset, we were greeted by a low flying ultralight. They just flew by to say hi.

What is camping without friends, drinks and fires?









After staying up until the wee hours of the night we were awoken by the blistering sun. We decided to cool down by going for a swim. Vince had mentioned it was a little hike to get there, but we didn't know it was a 3 mile hike. Atleast we were great by some beautiful waterfalls.

We finally reached the water at the bottom of the basin. It was just inviting us to come sample it.

Although the water was cold, it was still every bit refreshing. There was a cliff jump that added to the festivities. I believe everyone even jumped in. Though I suppose why would you go that far without taking a dip in the refreshing agua.

Leslie brought her adorable dog Gilbert with us. The hike down to the lake was very treacherous, rocky and steep. So we had to take turns carrying Gilbert down the trail. I'm sure he didn't mind and just "hung" out while we totted him down the hill.