Picture of the week ~ Bowman Bay

 

Rosario/Bowman Bay hike

 We enjoyed Friday's bright sunny day on Fidalgo Island. 

We started our hike at Rosario beach and headed towards Bowman bay.

Views from the trail (click on photos to enlarge):

Boat launch at Bowman Bay

Pedestrian pier, no longer accessible😥

Heading towards Lighthouse point.

Love this short sandy stretch of beach.

Madrona with the  Fir

View of Deception Pass bridge.

Yes Scoutina came along with us.

We continued on to the high point of the Lighthouse loop then sat for awhile and watched the Seals, Porpoise and birds in the water below. There must have been quite a large school of fish in the area because the Porpoise were really active.

We found a resting seat for Scoutina.

Heading back to Bowman Bay.

We continued past the Maiden of Deception Pass.

We walked the Rosario Head trail before heading to the car.

Looking towards Bowman Bay and where we had just been hiking. 

Great view from Rosario Head.

My Garmin said about 4 miles and 695 feet of elevation gain for the day.

A CCC built picnic shelter near the parking lot and our ending spot for the day.

Picture of the week ~ Fir Island Dahlias

 

Biking Skagit County

Thursday's weather at home wasn't great, overcast and predicted rain. My husband had the great idea that if I biked at Skagit County perhaps the weather would be better, he could take the dog and drive up and meet me here and there. Perfect.

I started riding in Mt. Vernon at the corner of Cleveland ave. and W Hazel st., I followed the road that parallels the Skagit river dike to the Fir Island road. I was hoping to see some Snow Geese on this section of the road as we had seen our first ones of the year last Wednesday along this route.

First Snow Geese sighting of the year, photo from Oct. 11.

I saw some Geese fly over and some excited dogs barked at me from their yards. If I'd had a bag with me I could've filled it with red Potatoes. They've been harvesting in the area and some must have bumped out of the trucks as they were driving along. There were quit a few along the shoulder of the road. That was about all of the excitement on that section of the road. There was a good wind against me for most of the days ride, so I got a good workout in.

When I got to the Fir Island road I turned right and crossed the bridge that crosses the Skagit river. I was now on Fir Island, the land of Snow Geese and Swans in the winter and Humongous ice cream cones at the Snow Goose produce in the Summer.

I turned right at Skagit City road and rode along the dike for this next section too.

Just at the intersection of my turn there is a beautiful Dahlia garden.

This side of the river is a favorite of mine. After turning right onto the Moore road, we enjoyed stopping at the The Bike Stop Farm. We like to go there this time of year to get some items to decorate the shelves by our front door. We also try to get some squashes for cooking. My "we" this time refers to my husband, he did the shopping while I continued on down the road. He did a great job picking out some good ones from their great variety on display. I think the orange ones look like Swans. 

Several large flocks of Snow Geese flew overhead as I rode along this section, but not one was on the ground. I continued on past the Best rd . junction and joined the Fir Island road for just a short ways before turning right onto the Rawlins road. A left turn of the Maupin rd. till it rejoined the Fir Island road again. I did see a flock of Snow Geese in a field on this section and a flock of decoys before making my right turn onto the Wylie rd. If you were to continue on the Wylie rd. it would lead you to the Skagit Wildlife area, a great birding stop. I however, turned left at the Mann rd. I love this road because it used to have a tree with Jell-O molds attached to it. It no longer has these, I'm so glad I took photos from that day. I made a collage of the wonderful sight from that day. Who decides that it's a good idea to do this?! I don't know what they were thinking but years ago, it brightened my day.

Click to enlarge to see them better in detail.

At the end of the Mann rd. I stopped to gaze across the fields. The sky was overcast like this most of the day with just sliver of sky showing. 

Then I crossed the Fir Island road again for my finish. My husband was waiting at the parking lot across from the spectacular Dahlia garden.

It was a cool, windy ride but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I did a point to point description of my route so that it could be reproduced by someone else that just might want to try it. My Garmin tracked it at just under 21 1/2 miles. 

Let me know if you try it, I'd love to hear what you enjoyed along the route.

Picture of the week ~ Eclipse

The eclipse as viewed through a Colander

 

Picture of the week ~ Lake Cassidy

 

If you're interested in enjoining some of the Centennial trail, here's the link to connect with it:

Directions to Centennial Trail Trailheads

You're welcome😊

Cascade trail (eastward)

Our walk today started at Lyman. We usually go west from here, but today we chose east. 

We parked in front of the infamous Lyman Tavern. Here's their Facebook page if your interested in going there: https://www.facebook.com/lymantav/

The Cascade trail goes through Lyman. 

My husband and Scoutina (our dog) are heading east from where we parked.

The leaves have definitely started changing colors and the fallen leaves covered the path for most of our journey.

The tree tunnel in the photo below was short but fun. I love these narrow corridors on a trail.

The cascade trail has many bridges over marsh areas and creeks.

Big Leaf Maple leaf

The bridges all have names.

Most of the creeks were dry today.

The trail goes through mostly farm country: lots of cows, horses, goats, and some corn and berry fields. The clouds were low today but it was still picturesque. 

Kindof a heart rock.

There were two big old trees in the middle of this blueberry field. Too sentimental to cut them down or just too much work, whatever the reason I'm glad they are still standing.

A bridge crossing near our turn around spot.

Our turnaround spot. My husband is patiently waiting at the gate.

After turning around we headed west on the trail.

A friend came up to greet us as we walked by.

Always a beautiful trail no matter the season.

A couple of trees near the trail were full of apples and many had dropped onto the trail. There is a local Elk herd in the area, I bet they are enjoying these tasty treats.

We stopped at a bridge and looked across the way, I noticed the roadway bridge that paralleled the trail in this section was dated 1954, it's held up well. It's the same age as me, I hope I'm holding up that well.

Looking down at the creek bed from the bridge, I don't think any Salmon will be spawning in this creek this year.

Almost to the tree tunnel. Scoutina thought there were lots of fun smells along this trail. I think she'd like to walk here again someday.

A view of our finish

Our distance: 4.15

*I've been plagued with Plantar fasciitis in my right foot, I've been mostly riding on our indoor bike for my fitness and to keep from going stir crazy. Every once in awhile we go on a walk so I can test it to see if there's any improvement. This time it didn't start aching until about 3 3/4 miles, a bit farther this time. 

Yay, at this point I'll take any improvement.