Mt Pilchuck hike
Originally uploaded by alisuper.
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Mt. Pilchuck
Mt. Pilchuck Brian
Originally uploaded by alisuper.
Brian is very excited about making it to the top! The lookout cabin is in the clouds between the trees. It's white so it blends in with the fog.
First Red Sox Game in Seattle
Last night Alicia and I attended our first baseball game at Safeco field. It was a glorious summer night for baseball. The stadium is super modern, and you feel close to the field. We didn't eat, but the food looked great, especially the bbq sandwiches. The greatest novelty was getting a Fat Tire on draft at a baseball game.
Unfortunately, the Sox were horrible, many errors, no runs. Alicia became an instant Mariners fan. We watched most of the game standing along the third base line just behind the seats, which was a great view. Tickets are a bit more expensive, but the great field makes up for it.
After the game we went to the Triangle Pub for beers and met two funny Fidelity guys who were big Sox fans.
Last night Alicia and I attended our first baseball game at Safeco field. It was a glorious summer night for baseball. The stadium is super modern, and you feel close to the field. We didn't eat, but the food looked great, especially the bbq sandwiches. The greatest novelty was getting a Fat Tire on draft at a baseball game.
Unfortunately, the Sox were horrible, many errors, no runs. Alicia became an instant Mariners fan. We watched most of the game standing along the third base line just behind the seats, which was a great view. Tickets are a bit more expensive, but the great field makes up for it.
After the game we went to the Triangle Pub for beers and met two funny Fidelity guys who were big Sox fans.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Ok, so we're behind on blogging. But so much fun stuff has happened. Yesterday, Thurs. 8.24, since we finally didn't need to spend the day looking for apartments, we went on our first hike. We drove a little over an hour to Mt. Pilchuck in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. It was a 5.4 mile hike up 2,000 feet to a rocky peak at 5,324 feet.
Only one problem. There was dense fog, mist and occasionally very light rain starting from when we got out of the car. This might seem like it would ruin the hike. An though it was a bit disappointing, the fog, mist, and first time Cascades experience was actually outstanding. The fog gave everything a mystical, mysterious, errie feeling. It settled a deep peace and quiet on everything. We started out by hiking through old growth giant fir trees, with tons of blueberry bushes, ferns, and moss both hanging and on the ground. Next we came above forest level and hiked through granite bolders surrounded by valleys of small trees, grasses and bushes. It was a little like Maine, but more full and dynamic.
There was also an old ski area (there has been a trail to the top since 1909) which consisted of a pile of rotting boards, a few bolts in the rock and old pulley systems bolted into the rock.
When we finally reached the craggy top there was the coolest historic lookout tower. The building itself was larger than the small peak of granite that it was perched on. I was definitely nervous peeking off the void of whiteness down into precipitous valley below. However, it was a super cool place to have lunch after a good hike. On a clear day there are dozens of peaks visible, plus the Sound in the distance.
On the way down we stopped in this kind of rocky, alpine meadow with grass, boulders, bushes to watch these cute, furry animals eat grass, scurry around and talk to each other. We also ate some almost ready blueberrys.
Back at the car we watched a helicopter air lifting building materials to some remote site. It was really cool to watch them fly in with a long chain, and people on the ground attach huge piles of wood. On the drive home we stopped at an awesome local produce stand and bought our Washington fruits/veggies for the week. So that was our first hike.
Only one problem. There was dense fog, mist and occasionally very light rain starting from when we got out of the car. This might seem like it would ruin the hike. An though it was a bit disappointing, the fog, mist, and first time Cascades experience was actually outstanding. The fog gave everything a mystical, mysterious, errie feeling. It settled a deep peace and quiet on everything. We started out by hiking through old growth giant fir trees, with tons of blueberry bushes, ferns, and moss both hanging and on the ground. Next we came above forest level and hiked through granite bolders surrounded by valleys of small trees, grasses and bushes. It was a little like Maine, but more full and dynamic.
There was also an old ski area (there has been a trail to the top since 1909) which consisted of a pile of rotting boards, a few bolts in the rock and old pulley systems bolted into the rock.
When we finally reached the craggy top there was the coolest historic lookout tower. The building itself was larger than the small peak of granite that it was perched on. I was definitely nervous peeking off the void of whiteness down into precipitous valley below. However, it was a super cool place to have lunch after a good hike. On a clear day there are dozens of peaks visible, plus the Sound in the distance.
On the way down we stopped in this kind of rocky, alpine meadow with grass, boulders, bushes to watch these cute, furry animals eat grass, scurry around and talk to each other. We also ate some almost ready blueberrys.
Back at the car we watched a helicopter air lifting building materials to some remote site. It was really cool to watch them fly in with a long chain, and people on the ground attach huge piles of wood. On the drive home we stopped at an awesome local produce stand and bought our Washington fruits/veggies for the week. So that was our first hike.
We've already had many adventures in Seattle. The biggest trial was finding an apartment--a short but tortuous process. The front page headline of the Post Intelligencer today was "Rental housing turns in landlords' favor." This we learned after a stressful 4 days of searching.
We did get an amazing apartment. It is in a beautiful 1930s building, with a movie star view of the Sound, downtown Seattle and the surrounding neighborhoods in the hills. It has a private yard/garden that is imaculate, with every piece of super green grass cut the same length. You can still bbq though.
We've also been exploring the neighborhood near our new apartment and that of our awesome host Brennon. The Capital Hill/Broadway area of Seattle is super cool. The people watching alone is priceless, with hippsters, punk rockers, and total weirdos streaming by mingled with all kinds of people at all times. There are tons of quirky shops, lots of esspresso, and tons of amazing restaurants. The night we came in we ate at the Elysian Brewing Company. They make excellent beers, and have really good food . We also tried a local thai food place that was excellent. We bought a Seattle map at the local bookstore which is easy to spend hours in.
Earlier in the week I got a hair cut at the punk rock barber down on Pine St. where there are lots of cool clubs, bars and more boutique-type shops. After that Alicia and I visited an interesting park on the way home with a giant fountain that covers an old, tiny resevoir on Capital Hill. It was a big 10' hill of cascading water that ran into a wide rippling river. It was made of terraced dark, finished concrete, and little kids (and adults) can wade in the smooth-bottomed, ankle-deep water.
Of course we also took an evening (when the sun always comes out) trip to Volunteer Park where we climbed the water tower which over looks Seattle in 360 degrees. Volunteer is a beautiful old park designed by the Olmstead Brothers who also did Central Park. Bruce Lee is also buried here.
The neighborhoods here are really amazing. They are all small, comfortable, walkable with every service you need, and tons to look at. Apartment hunting we also visited Fremont. Fremont is an old working class neighborhood west of UW that became an artist community and has recently gentrified into a more yuppie, boutique area. There are a bunch of popular music venues here. We also saw two famous Seattle icons, the statue of Lenin with flames and guns around him, and the giant bridge troll sculpture in the act of crushing a real VW bug, under a real bridge. We also saw hops growing wild in this neighborhood.
Those are the highlights for now. It is fun to basically still be on vacation.
We did get an amazing apartment. It is in a beautiful 1930s building, with a movie star view of the Sound, downtown Seattle and the surrounding neighborhoods in the hills. It has a private yard/garden that is imaculate, with every piece of super green grass cut the same length. You can still bbq though.
We've also been exploring the neighborhood near our new apartment and that of our awesome host Brennon. The Capital Hill/Broadway area of Seattle is super cool. The people watching alone is priceless, with hippsters, punk rockers, and total weirdos streaming by mingled with all kinds of people at all times. There are tons of quirky shops, lots of esspresso, and tons of amazing restaurants. The night we came in we ate at the Elysian Brewing Company. They make excellent beers, and have really good food . We also tried a local thai food place that was excellent. We bought a Seattle map at the local bookstore which is easy to spend hours in.
Earlier in the week I got a hair cut at the punk rock barber down on Pine St. where there are lots of cool clubs, bars and more boutique-type shops. After that Alicia and I visited an interesting park on the way home with a giant fountain that covers an old, tiny resevoir on Capital Hill. It was a big 10' hill of cascading water that ran into a wide rippling river. It was made of terraced dark, finished concrete, and little kids (and adults) can wade in the smooth-bottomed, ankle-deep water.
Of course we also took an evening (when the sun always comes out) trip to Volunteer Park where we climbed the water tower which over looks Seattle in 360 degrees. Volunteer is a beautiful old park designed by the Olmstead Brothers who also did Central Park. Bruce Lee is also buried here.
The neighborhoods here are really amazing. They are all small, comfortable, walkable with every service you need, and tons to look at. Apartment hunting we also visited Fremont. Fremont is an old working class neighborhood west of UW that became an artist community and has recently gentrified into a more yuppie, boutique area. There are a bunch of popular music venues here. We also saw two famous Seattle icons, the statue of Lenin with flames and guns around him, and the giant bridge troll sculpture in the act of crushing a real VW bug, under a real bridge. We also saw hops growing wild in this neighborhood.
Those are the highlights for now. It is fun to basically still be on vacation.
Monday, August 21, 2006
We've finally made it to Seattle!It was a beautiful trip. We drove 3000 miles, broke down twice, witnessed the Sturgis rally, slept under the full moon, and saw my family.
We're now on Capital Hill looking for a place to live. Brian doesn't start school until mid-Sept and I've been interviewing and looking for jobs.
I'll add more pictures and stories from our trip soon!
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