Christine Falls. Mt. Rainier NP, Washington State.
What I most enjoy about photography is that it gives me that added incentive and an actual directive to get out the door, to travel, to explore wild nature. This summer was great for travel with several trips up to British Columbia, the Southwest here in the US, and six weeks traveling around Europe. But for September, as the early fall season emerged here in the Pacific Northwest, I was able to spend time close to home visiting areas that I have seen before, but not for many years and certainly not enough.
Mirror Lake. Mt. Rainier NP, Washington State.
A few weeks ago, my wife Stephanie and I had a good friend visiting from Paris. We traveled together on a short trip through the Cascade Range and down to Rainier National Park, Mt. Saint Helens National Monument, and several National Forests, Wildlife Refuges, and State Parks. It was a wonderful kick-back week filled with some of the best mountain, glacier, and volcano views in the nation. A family trip, we didn’t try to get up and into the park for sunrise, leaving us to sleep in, have breakfast and enjoy the drive to and among the parks.
PNW Essence! Clouds, Trees & Rock. Mt. Rainier NP, Washington State.
On most days, we had warm sunny weather, but you could actually feel and see the coming change in seasons. Crisp mornings, muted sunlight, and fall colors in the trees and brush. The hint of the umber, orange, yellow and red of fall. In the past, many of my trips to this area were during winter, with limited access and more challenging drives. This was just a leisurely drive through some of our country’s most spectacular scenery.
To break up our drive, we stopped at the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge which is always a great stop to stretch your legs, breath in some clean air, and look for wildlife. In the past, when lobbying for river and land protection for work, the Refuge was a must stop as we plied Route 5 from Bellingham to Olympia and back.
Alder Lake. Washington State.
Then we headed for the Nisqually Entrance to Mount Rainier. For me, this was a return to the site of my work many years ago to increase flows and push for other environmental improvements at Tacoma Power’s Alder Dam. Built in 1944, the dam had eliminated all flows down the river and sacrificed the natural river for a seven-mile reservoir. Alder Lake is named after the small town of Alder, which was flooded in 1945 by the impounded water of the reservoir and disappeared. While I am not a fan of reservoirs, we caught Alder Lake early in the morning and the light off the water was incredible. Almost everything in this area is beautiful regardless of its history and impact.
Ricksecker Point. Mt. Rainier NP, Washington State.
That first morning, and for most of the second, nature wasn’t kind to our friend as Tahoma, Takhoma, Tacoma, Ta-co-bet, Taqo ma, Tkobed, Taqo bid, Tkomen, Nutselip, and Pshwawanoapami-tahoma , all native names for 14,410 foot Mount Rainier, was lost among the clouds and fog. But even though the higher peaks were hidden, the lower elevation views were spectacular and definitely a long way from Paris for our friend.
Upper Myrtle Falls. Mt. Rainier NP, Washington State.
Rainier National Park lands are the ancestral home of the Cowlitz, Muckleshoot, Nisqually, Puyallup, Squaxin Island, Yakama, and Coast Salish people. The local Puyallup Tribe's name for the mountain is Tahoma, which means "the mother of waters" which is fitting as the mountain, the highest peak in the Cascade Range, is home to approximately twenty-six glaciers (more than five times the glacier area of all other Cascade volcanos combined). The sun was out below the peaks and crowds were manageable. A few days later, on the weekend, it was a two hour wait just to get into the park and another hour wait to drive up to Sunrise.
Spirit Lake. Mt. Saint Helens National Monument. Washington State.
After Rainier, the next morning found us 4,200 feet at Windy Ridge on the way to Mount Saint Helens, scene of the 1980 volcanic eruption. I had tried to get up there a few winters ago, which turned out to be a really bad decision with ice and snow (some roads still open, but generally impassible the higher you went). Before that a family trip a few years after the eruption. The hundreds of miles impacted by the explosion was impressive back then and remains so even today. Beautiful, stark and still desolate with hundreds of downed trees all facing the same direction from the blast, it is humbling to find yourself in the center of this and to see the power of nature, to stand at the scene of so much devastation, and to witness the re-birth and restoration of this magnificent mountain and surrounding area over the past four-plus decades.
As with exploring most of this country’s most stunning and dramatic areas, it is best to go early in the day, mid-week, and if possible in the early spring and late fall shoulder seasons (note that those seasons are getting shorter as more people are out, and that, at high elevations, shoulder season can quickly terminate in heavy snow, ice, and closed roads and parks). Watch the weather and be safe.
Mt. Rainier. Washington State.
But get out there! You don’t always need a huge road trip. Exploring locally is a great way to learn and research about where you live. And while it is exceedingly beautiful here in the Pacific Northwest, it can be equally fulfilling to get outdoors in the Maroon Bells, Wind Rivers, Smokies, Shenandoah, New England, and so many other areas. Anywhere you can get among the trees, breathe in that fresh air, and hear the water running and tumbling over rock helps you to clear your head, reboot, and refresh your soul.
Endnotes:
I can’t write about devastation and beautiful places without a comment on the recent flooding in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and parts of Virginia. My heart, prayers, and best wishes go out to all those affected and who are now faced with years of putting their lives and communities back together. At this point, over two-hundred and twenty seven (more than half in NC) people will never get that chance. I spent so many of my earlier years paddling and hiking in America’s Southeast, known for its tiny mountain towns and magnificent rivers. It is a prime destination for paddlers due to its whitewater abundance, beautiful creeks and rivers, and warm weather. The wonderful accumulation of blessings that makes this area so special turned into major destruction and loss of life as the Nolichucky, Watauga, French Broad, Pigeon and so many other rivers, creeks and tributaries faced historic flooding. Over three days in North Carolina, Hurricane Helene delivered between twelve and thirty inches of rain, in many places well over the one-in-a-thousand year total for rainfall. Special places including Blowing Rock, Chimney Rock, Brevard, Boone, and Asheville were hit hard, and some no longer exist.
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