Invisible Peaks

The northwest portion of Washington boasts some impressive mountains, Rainier, Hood, St Helens, Adams, Baker, most of them volcanic. My dad kept telling us that we should be seeing these snow capped peaks during the first few days of our trip but the weather and low ceilings kept them hidden. Tuesday evening we got our first real look at Rainier, all 14,000 plus feet of it. We were more than 60 miles away and still it dominated the skyline. This morning, however, was a time to enjoy the beauty of the Hood Canal and Walker Mountain. The Hood Canal is not really a canal because it is closed at one end. Still, it’s narrow enough so that you can enjoy the beauty of both shorelines in many places. A low fog bank helped to increase the early morning “moody” atmosphere for my camera. After leaving the canal, Adena transformed the car into a billy goat and we climbed up the narrow and steep four mile road to the overlook on Walker Mountain. From there we had a great view of Rainier to the south and Baker and Shuksan to the north. We arrived back in Bellingham just in time to visit the local microbrewery to sample the good stuff. Then it was back to my dad’s house to do some laundry and start packing. Thursday is a get away day for us.