Take a hike: Cedar Lake @ Chuckanut Mountain

So since I am living in the Pacific Northwest, I've decided to purchase a guidebook to the best hikes within 2 hours(driving) of Seattle. A great buy!



On Sunday I left the city around 10am and headed north to take my first hike. With the sun shining, and not a cloud in the sky, I decided to prove to myself that it's worth having a car for expeditions such as these. Heading north on I-5 towards Vancouver, BC, I headed towards Cedar Lake, near Bellingham. It's about 80 miles outside of Seattle.







I drove right up to the trailhead, parked and unloaded myself with my cameras. It was about 45 degrees Fahrenheit.


As soon as I started on the path I felt as though I had entered the pacific northwest "tropical land" that I had daydreamed of back in Chicago. Lush, moist, and (I cannot overemphasize this enough) GREEN forest, with enough oxygen supply for a city of millions. Beauty was in every direction I looked, even the oooey gooey rocky soil. Most branches, tree stumps and trunks were mossed over. My skin felt as though it was swimming through water, wet, wet wet.





(woodpecker holes)

The incline was steep, not very different from walking up the hills in the city(Seattle), except the incline did not end. It took me a little over an hour to reach Cedar lake. It was a small lake in a forested area. It lacked large spaces to get a good view. But I did manage to see the frozen, snow covered water. A tent was set up on the shore, I guess people are allowed to camp there, it would be considered "rustic".



On the outside of the lake, boards led in pathways, leading to views of the Cascades. I headed towards them, the small marker said: 0.4 mile to views. I thought that it couldn't take that long. It took me about 30 minutes longer to reach the point. Through a forest of redwoods, I reached a large boulder clearing. At the edge of the boulder I stood, looking at the miles of forests and in the distance the Cascades. What a sight.


(Cascade Range)



I feel that strenuous hikes are always worth the struggle.



You are able to catch your breath while the views take it away.












On my descent I was able to take more photographs becuase of the ease of having gravity on my side. I then got some photographs of this awesome staircase carved through a giant fallen redwood tree. Humans working WITH nature.








After about 30 minutes of descending, my knees started aching, it's rough on the knees and joints. I was happy to see the car and rest on level ground again, a great hike though.



Total Distance(roundtrip): 4.4 Miles

Elevation Gain: 1,300 feet

Happy Valentine's Day

First and foremost;
Happy Valentine's Day to all of you.

I hope you are eating chocolate/smelling beautiful flowers/singing sappy love songs or just spending time with people you love.

Greetings from the pacific northwest town of Seattle.
Including today, I have spent 31 days in this lush, green, moist climate and I must report on my findings.

18 days of partial/full sunshine! Yes EIGHTEEN!
58% of my days in Seattle thusfar have had sunshine....wierd.

I guess they(everyone who ever warned me) were wrong.
I have heard before, and believe it now;
the people who live here are trying to keep others out by telling them of constant overcast skies and gloomy weather.
I plan to continue recording the sunshine/lack thereof.

In other news, I am enjoying my new life in Seattle, working, making paintings, and playing music. My roomates have instruments that they don't know how to play, so I get to play them! Banjo, mandolin and guitar. I will soon teach them, so we can jam together.

Tommorrow I plan on recommitting to my running schedule. I had to take a break last week, becuase of an injury. My leg fell asleep, I stood up on it and fell over. I felt like an old lady.

When muscles fall asleep, legs cannot stand.(my words of wisdom!)

Muscles and heart stay awake, there is more to come...

Rain, showers...what's the difference?

Since looking at the weather reports for Seattle, or Chicago for that matter, I have began to wonder what the difference is between rain and showers and who distinguishes this difference?



If you're wondering, it's what we're getting here in the Northwest. The beautiful moss, evergreens and grass are being drenched in water. It's so plentiful here. People freak out about driving in it though. It seems as though they would be acclimated to the rain, nope. Cars slow down. I turn on the 4 wheel drive to get up the hill on Denny way. If I don't, as the light turns green and I let off the brake, the car will begin to slide backwards and the tires will spin, a scary feeling.



After eating dinner, playing the banjo in the kitchen with the roomates, I decided that I wanted to go running. I went out and faced the elements, wind and rain. It's so much warmer than Chicago in February. I did about 2/3rds of my normal run, it felt great. Despite all the donuts I've been making and EATING, I feel as though my body is adjusting to running hills. Soon I will be able to carry me and my bike up those steep inclines.



I am in the middle of my second week of work with a new family. They are super sweet and friendly and treat me very well. It's really all I could've asked for.



Super bowl sunday, I spent at the aquarium, observing the river otters tackle each other in the water. It's much more amusing than watching muscle-pumped guys in tight pants tackle each other.

Bis Spaeter!