writer. photographer. drinker of coffee.
I can hear it before I even open my eyes for the morning. It’s like walking by a stadium; thousands of rowdy voices clamoring together. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I sit up on my knees in bed and peer through the dusty screen out across our cold, grey backyard. In the distance, I…
Whenever I peruse the woods and shore at Matthews Beach, just a few yards from the residential creek that so captured my attention several years ago, I hope to find something interesting and significant half-buried in the sand or nestled beneath the frothy fern fronds and ivy roots. Luckily, I have found many interesting items…
Sequim is the crown jewel of lavender in Washington state, and it's easy to see why!
I remember the first time I read the word “licorice fern.” It was stamped clearly into the stone wall of one of the staircases at Multnomah Falls. I had recently emigrated to the west side of Oregon from the high desert of the east side of the state, for school, so I was taking every…
Question: Why do people love backpacking so much? And why haven't I done it yet? Having grown up in the Pacific Northwest, it's more than a little silly that I haven't gone backpacking before. I've tent-camped a hundred places, hiked a hundred more, but never the two together. My encounters with backpacking have been purely…
Continue reading ➞ Olympic National Park: Shi Shi Beach Backpacking
In case you have never yet heard of Deception Pass State Park on Whidbey/Fidalgo island in NW Washington, let me enlighten you. It is one of the most engaging hikes I have ever been on, and I've now been there twice in a month! It's not difficult, only reaching about 500 or so feet of…
Wintergreen: Rambles in a Ravaged Land, by Robert Michael Pyle Challenge: A book based in your current town or region (Willapa Hills is close enough to Seattle, right?) Rating: 5/5 stars Review: This is a lovely book. I have now purchased a fine hardback copy for myself, and I suggest you do likewise. I feel…
Idaho came on fast! We bid the snowy bosoms farewell, going over an impressive mountain pass, then before we knew it we were in Idaho Falls. Bam. This time we learned, and called the Boise/Meridian KOA there first to make sure they were open. Then more of Idaho, until we reached Craters of the Moon…
Continue reading ➞ Approaching Home: Painted Hills & Craters
My mom is up for the weekend, and my sister and I both had today off (whoopee!) so we decided to go to Edmonds. We painted our own pottery there at Glazed and Amazed a couple years ago, so my sister suggested this time we make our own glass art! It was interesting. A very…
Explore Lewis River from a different perspective - cherish the little things. It's all about the falls and the hiking, until a salamander shows up!
Anna A. Snook 