Third Time is the Charm~

 We were on a mission.  It was cold, damp & the sun had just burned through the clouds that produced an early morning rain.  By the time I got caught up at home & drove north, it was almost 1 p.m. before I was in the saddle.

Clouds burning off~

Neither the mare nor I had any particular plan for our ride, I just wanted to knock out enough distance to take us to 1,000-miles.  Victoria seemed a good place to go, but once I was there - I realized that with the trails now closed it would be a bit more interesting to find those miles without doubling back.

What is it?

On the way up the climb to the Monument - I saw this really pretty, blooming vine.  I've never seen it before & it's very pretty.  So interesting looking - probably some invasive, since I've never seen it in any of my native plant books...

Very delicate blooms~

Farah's main interest - when we're out on our own on the mountain is always getting to the Monument just as fast as we can!  After all, that's the designated lunch spot & today we both welcomed the warmth of the sun after the climb on the shadow/cold side of the mountain.

Farah having lunch~

She's always so good when we're here, just starts grazing & I can sit down & eat my snack too.  It was still very chilly though.  I wore my polar fleece vest for the first time this season & ended up putting my jacket over it when we left.

Usual, but never boring views of the Sound~

We were the only ones around, I saw bike tracks on one of the trails, but no hoof prints!  When we left, I jogged the downhill to the bottom & there had to back-track to find the road, I'd taken a wrong turn.

Heading back~

I was more than happy when we had enough distance to turn back into the late afternoon sunshine!  Strange how in just a couple days, it seems like the afternoons go so quickly now!  We made some time, I wanted to be back up in the vicinity of the parking area before it got too dark.

The view~

Mt. Rainier was behind a layer of clouds & haze, as the Olympics had been from the top.  The sun was dropping with the last of the rays shining through the trees.  We made it back with just enough light that I had to use my cell phone light to see the tumblers on the tack door lock.  Farah stood watching with concern, her cookies are in there!

We managed to get-it-done though!  For the third year in a row, we've topped 1,000-miles.  I remember what a big deal it felt like the first time & how happy I was.  Last year - we added another 500 to the total.  This year, it's taken us a couple months longer to reach the milestone - but still fun to roll those four digits over!   Many days I wish that Butch was retired, but since he isn't & I'm left to my own devices...  What to do but ride?  Farah came at a time in my life when I might otherwise be winding down just a little - but we both enjoy the partnership we've forged.  Still ornery, opinionated & bossy, I wouldn't have her any other way!

The Early Days~

I have our oldest daughter to blame for this post!  :-)  I was visiting this week on Grandson Mason's 14th birthday!  We were talking about how quickly the kids are growing up.  Courtney asked if next time they visit, I could pull out the old photo albums to show the kids how things were when their mother was their age.  Cassidy will be 12 in Oct.!  I seldom write about the past, or personal stuff - but those albums reminded me of how far we've come~

10/81 Grand Tetons, WY

When Butch & I found each other - lives changed.  He was happy & I was happiest I'd been since the girls were born.  That happiness was so big & wide - that it colored our world!  We decided to make a clean break & leave Colorado for Butch's home state of Washington.  He promised us both mountains & an ocean!  (The girls & I had never seen an Ocean!)  The above photo was taken on our drive out.  (Courtney was 12, Jentry 4)

July 82, Wallace Falls~

By the time we arrived, our funds were running out & we both were desperate for work!  Butch found a job as maintenance on a large apartment property, I found one working for Gloria Marshall Figure Salon, both in Lynnwood.  Luckily - an apartment came with Butch's position.  We were poor, but we had a roof over our heads, food on the table & it didn't cost anything but gas money to go out & enjoy the incredible state that we now called home!

October 82, LaPush, WA

We were oh so lucky in so many ways...  We both worked with some great people - who became life-long friends.  By October of 82, we married - to the great relief of our families :-)  Mom came out for the wedding & we had to take her to the coast!  She's in the red hat :-)

July, 83 The 59 Bel Air - a gift from Butch's grandparents :-)

We left our jobs to move to Bremerton, we both had job offers with a substantial increase in income, but they didn't pan out.  We loved living on the peninsula & were lucky enough to rent a cute little house from a couple who - we scared at first.  They stopped by to find us tearing apart the kitchen.  Soon though, they realized we were making improvements!  We are to this day, best of friends.

It wasn't long before word had traveled that we were again "In the market" for a building to manage.  We were offered a property in Bellevue.

February 84, at Bellepark East  (I'd made the "Holly Hobby" dress for Courtney years before, now it fit Jentry!)

Finally - we had our very own multi-family building to manage!  We took the ball & ran with it, never looking back!  We gained a reputation for turning around the most difficult properties & from that point on - worked at buildings owned by the management company that employed us.

Thanksgiving 89 - Harbor Point

A few years went by, we moved up from small properties to larger ones.  Butch left to work in commercial construction.  I continued my education & began managing a large condominium portfolio that included buildings in Mercer Island & Bellevue.  We purchased our own house in Marysville, to use as a rental - eventually turning the gains we made there into the purchase of the Homestead.

We'd written a list of goals, early on in our marriage.  The day we moved to the country, the top goal was crossed off that list.  Now, 34 years later, our two daughters have blessed us with five wonderful grand-kids, who are too busy to come as often as we'd like!   The world, has indeed, moved on~

P.S. I took all the photos with a tripod & the camera's timer :-)

Fall on the SVT~

Toward Duvall, on the SVT

Finally the stars aligned, Lynn & met-up at Taylor Landing for a ride on the SVT.  I do love this trail, looking back through my Garmin stats, it seems I end up riding here 3 or 4 times a year.  It was cool when we started out with dark clouds going by overhead.

Typical bridge on the trail~

With funding available to deck the bridges on the Whitehorse Trail, I'm trying now to find out who the contractor will be & what type of decking material they plan to use.  Both for ease of maintenance & non-slip footing in all weather - these pre-formed light weight concrete planks seem to be ideal.

Wetland - Green

The water in the wetland looked like something out of an impressionistic painting!  Swirls of green that moved oh so slowly.

A beautiful stretch of trail~

It was on this section of the trail - during our return that we saw the hunter, complete in his orange, with a shotgun broken open over his shoulder & his two black lab hunting dogs - off leash of course.   Duck hunting season must be open - there are ducks on the wetlands along the trail - but a shotgun with kids on bikes, horses, moms with babies etc.?

At the Tolt~

We rode to the Tolt River.  This was the longest ride that Lynn has taken Sophie on in a while, so she wanted to take it a little easy.  Sophie was fine with that - until we turned back!  Then, as usual - she started her little jog trot with determination!  Farah remembered & just walked along behind unless Sophie made any attempt to trot!  All bets were off at that!  :-)

New interpretative signage~

I was thrilled to see the new signage that describes the different native plants along the trail.  These were all on the section just before the bridge over the Tolt.  I'd hoped to make connection with the Duvall Grand-kids, after they were out of middle school, but the timing didn't work out, I'd forgotten that Cassidy has a music lesson on Wed. after school.  Next time!

Lynn & Sophie as we start back~

Besides the duck hunter...  There are a couple of road crossings that can curl your hair - if you want curly hair...  The highway crossing below at Hwy 203 west of Carnation is one.

New signage here too!

With the limited sight-lines, crossing either direction is very challenging.  The speed limit drops to 40, but the road is heavily traveled.  Just after we'd crossed going out - a logging truck flew by doing at least 60 mph.  Going back, we found a break where only one car was coming from the direction of Duvall.  She too was going way to fast, but while talking on her phone & talking to her passenger & paying absolutely no attention to the traffic coming up behind her - she did slow just enough for us to make it!  More signage out on the road - or a flashing light would be a godsend.

Flowers!

 There are several organic farms along the trail, this field full of flowers was a show stopper!  I hope to go back - again with those Duvall Grand-kids to do some pumpkin hunting again this year!

Snowberries

Another of our amazing native plants - the Snowberry is both unusual & beautiful.  One of the plants that I'd like to find a place for on the Homestead.

Novelty Hill & Hwy 203

 The second road crossing that's a little hairy - is the round-a-bout at the intersection of Hwy 203.  By the time we were coming back, traffic was already heavy & coming from all directions.  Finally - one car stopped & as the rest came pouring off the hill - we could see that they were slowing down.  With a slight break in traffic coming off 203, we trotted across.

Back near town, there were many more people out enjoying the trail.  It was a beautiful day & a beautiful ride!  Nothing finer!

Fun at the Fair!

As the sign says;  "Fun Games"!

We always try to go the first couple days that the Evergreen Fair opens.  Everything is fresh & new - the vendors are friendly, the food is outstanding & it's usually not overcrowded.  I left from up north, Butch from Ballard & Monroe was about in the middle - but Butch had the wait for the train.  Now parking is $10. We used to complain when it was $5.  Entry was free though if you brought 3 cans of food each - & we did.

Behind the scenes~

It's great touring the horse barns!  First to see all the 4-H Clubs with their stall decorations, informative posters, curtains, horses etc.  The kids are always so bright, courteous & friendly!  Every kid we saw asked if we had any questions!  We did & they were quick to answer :-)  There was even one poster on "Endurance Riding"!

In the draft horse area, we loved visiting with the owners of the Spotted Drafts!  Such beautiful animals!  The one above was a rescue from an Amish farm.  He would shake like a leaf when touched anyplace below his mid-line.  This made working with his feet, grooming etc. very difficult.  He was especially afraid of men.  Over time, he's now a much happier horse & enjoys his work without fear.

Prince

This photo does Not do Prince justice!  He has the most beautiful head, hands down of ANY draft I have ever seen!  Not only a handsome head, but nice eyes & the Look of Eagles - which is how he got his name!  To see him in harness at a full trot - is a thrill!

The six-horse hitches are the highlight of the show.  This year was no exception.   The work that goes into showing these large teams is immense in every way!

Harness shined & ready~

The harness for each horse weighs over 80lbs!  We entered the drawing for a free yearling!  :-)  Before the show, about 12 of the 4-H kids - rode into the arena bareback for a "Bucket Race".  Also, one guy on a Percheron!  When the music stopped, there was a dash to reach a bucket, dismount & stand on it!  Each round a bucket was eliminated - along with a rider.  Finally it was down to one bucket - a girl on a paint & the guy on the Percheron.  The music stopped - both horses were flying at the remaining bucket!  Seeing that huge horse coming at him head on - the paint wisely gave way & his rider retained her seat!  :-)  Guess who won?  :-)

Our favorite stop for food is Kaleenka's - where the stuffed bread is the best thing at the Fair, next to the Indian Fry Bread!  For many years we'd occasionally drive down to Seattle on a Friday night for dinner at the restaurant.  In/dinner/ back home all within just a couple hours.  Can't be done now with the traffic...

Carved Bench

As is the case every year, I plead my case for the wood carved horse bench :-)  It would look amazing in the entry of a huge house with high timber ceilings.  So maybe the house first?  :-)

We came home with new pillows & a Helios Heater.  I'm not really giving the product much of a plug - it does get hot & stay hot for quite a while, but to re-generate the crystal liquid inside - you have to boil the pad in a towel, in a pan of boiling water for 12-15 min.  That's pretty energy wasteful.  Even so - it's soft, pliable & makes my neck & shoulder feel good!  :-)

We had a great time, talked to some nice people & really enjoyed our visit.  If you don't mind the time in lines of traffic to get in - it's a great place to enjoy a late Summertime day!

On The Road Again~

Welcome to Wyoming

Wyoming has a new welcome sign since my last visit here!   I'm taking a road-trip.  It was unplanned but not completely unexpected.  I have family things to do in Colorado, so decided to drive, flying isn't my favorite thing.  Driving gives me time to reflect on the beauty of our great Country's wide open spaces, since I've been lucky enough to go through the width of Washington State, across the top of Idaho, through Montana & from the top to the bottom of Wyoming!  Finally - back to Colorado!

Peaks of Yellowstone~

Hot!  Have I said something about the heat yet?  Not the best time of year to travel & when the air-conditioning went out on the Bronco - I didn't think I'd make it!  Thanks to my husband calling ahead, he found a great little repair shop in Bozeman, where they took the Bronco in & replaced the blower.  Sweet relief.  Problem is though - that the heat is so intense during mid-day - that the blower just can't keep up with the cooling.  Every so often I have to shut it down, wait, then turn it on again.  Otherwise, the miles have been flying by.  I've made stops to visit friends north of Spokane the first night, then family in Sheridan - where I met my cousin's grandchildren for the first time!

Hydrangea's & Aspen

I haven't been posting - but have been taking pictures & enjoying a audio book along the way!  Have threatened to bring a wolf-hybrid home with me too :-)  Missing the Homestead though -  blooms on my hydrangea's, blueberry picking season & even the cool of the rain!