The Mountains of Washington
As we made our way into Washington, we realized that it was late enough in the spring that all three of the state’s National Parks (Mount Rainier, Olympic, North Cascades) were actually open. So we made it a goal to visit each of them, even if briefly. But first, birds!
Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge
Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument
I’m glad we got to see this incredible place, because a couple weeks after our visit a landslide wiped out the only road to the main observation area. We hiked a couple miles along the ridge from the observatory, which had a fair amount of snow on it but was still fun on a sunny day.
We were driving up to a viewpoint late in the day when the whole mountain turned pink. Whipped over on the side of the road to get this photo, I’m glad we did because in a couple minutes it was gone.
We took a risk and slept at one of the viewpoints back down the road. In most national parks this is not allowed, but there were no signs saying we couldn’t. Plus with it being early in the season, not a lot of rangers around. I’m so glad we did, because I was able to go out later in the evening and get this photo of the Milky Way lined up beautifully with the volcano.
I have an old Minolta lens that I rarely use, I got it for $20 on eBay after reading an article about using vintage lenses. I actually like the images it makes and should use it more. It’s a 50mm f1.8 lens, so I decided to try it out to get a closer composition of the volcano. Worth the $20!
Mount Rainier National Park
Overwhelming. Driving up the mountain, then climbing up the snowpack in shorts and t-shirts, seeing glaciers for the first time…I felt very fortunate and grateful that we are able to travel to these places. I’d love to come back to this park in the summer when we can hike more of it.
