2013 in photos

I take so many trips it's hard to keep track of them all. I try to be good about organizing my photos and writing in my journal, but it doesn't always happen. Sometimes I write about my trips for magazines. That's a good thing because then they don't feel so ephemeral.

Where have I been in 2013? As usual, most of my travel is in the northwest, but what a place to explore! I've ridden horses on a southwest Washington beach, climbed a 200-foot Douglas fir tree in central Oregon, mountain biked in the jungle on Oahu and the deserts of Tucson, and explored the Greenwater River and Skookum Falls in Washington. Let's not forget ski trips to Lake Chelan and Mount Rainier! Most of the time with my usually-smiling husband Dave, but sometimes with other adventurous friends.

While this has been one of the saddest years of my life, it has been happy in many ways. As you can see from the photos below, which are just a very few snapshots from this busy and bittersweet year.

Oahu in March

Washington in May

Washington in May

Suntop Lookout, WA in March

Mt Rainier in April

Greenwater River, WA in June 

Greenwater River, Wa, in June

Tree climbing in OR, May 

Winter and spring adventures around the northwest

Besides getting a new day job, taking (and teaching) writing classes, walking Snuffy the spirited senior pug, and planning a wedding that is happening in only 86 DAYS FROM NOW, I have been bopping about the northwest on a series of mini-adventures and writing about them. Here are a few highlights.

Badger Mt trail in Richland

Tri-Cities, Washington
I was a Tri Cities virgin until a couple weeks ago and now I know all about the glories of this desert area with a river running through it. Hiking, biking, kayaking - it's all there. Plus sun. Oh, the sun.

Scooting about Seattle (not)
Despite my brave smile, I was too scared to ride this sporty scooter out of the parking lot! However I did write an article about renting scooters from Scoot  About Scooters and how much fun that can be. Article to be out in the summer issue of Harbors Magazine .

On the Catherine Creek trail

Columbia River Gorge
Whoa! This area is beautiful. Like seriously beautiful. We did some amazing hiking and biking here. Plus we got one of the best photos of us ever taken (that's the Columbia River behind us). Article to be out in July in Outdoors NW Magazine.

iFLY 
 For the sake of journalism, I donned a red jumpsuit and goggles and flew in a wind tunnel at iFLY Seattle.  I didn't even take any Xanax! (thereby making up for my wimpiness on the scooter). The article will be out this summer in Harbors Magazine.


Tokeland
I had never heard of Tokeland before I got assigned this story. But I had a grand time staying in the (supposedly haunted) Tokeland Hotel and exploring the many peaceful beaches nearby. Even if I did have a nasty cold at the time.

Wenatchee and Chelan
We dubbed this trip to Wenatchee and then Chelan the Cholesterol Tour for all the globules of fat we consumed. But boy was it all delicious! Especially the apple butter milkshake at the Cashmere Cider Mill. Mmm. We also skied the lovely (and nearly empty) trails at the Echo Ridge Nordic area in Chelan and saw some beautiful parks along the Columbia.

Skiing near Paradise Meadows

Mount Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier is one of my favorite places. The view at left speaks for itself. Staying at the comfy, quiet National Park Inn is a great way to explore "The Mountain."

Eugene, Oregon
On this fab trip we biked the newly designated Covered Bridges Scenic Bikeway for an article about Oregon's designated scenic bikeways. Luckily we got a perfect autumn day for our ride rather than a downpour.

Alaska, Eugene, and Other Fall Adventures

 Dave and Snuffy

Hello everyone and happy fall! This is my favorite season. There have been many beautiful autumn days here in October and November and while I haven't gotten up into the mountains to see the larch trees (grr) I have taken many nice bike rides.

Mom in Juneau, Alaska

One of those great bike rides was in Eugene, Oregon, where I was on assignment for a story about Oregon's designated scenic bikeways. Dave and I lived it up in the lap of luxury at the Campbell House Bed and Breakfast, then thoroughly enjoyed ourselves amidst fall splendor on a bike trail variously referred to as the Lake Dorena trail, the Covered Bridges trail, and the Row River Trail.

 It's the newest of Oregon's designated scenic bikeways - so new that it's not even on the website yet but it will be soon. And it's well worth riding!

You'll get to read all about it when I write the article for OutdoorNW's special cycling edition in the spring. Speaking of OutdoorsNW, I recently took a part-time job there as an assistant editor, and it's an absolute blast. Check out the blog post I wrote for them about my August backpacking trip to the Cascades.

As for other fall adventures, there was the  ill-fated Alaska cruise that I went on with my mom in September. The cruise (which started in Anchorage and went to Vancouver) got delayed for two days because of the weather, and the seas were so rough that we had to skip most of our ports of call. However, on the positive side we got to see some great fall colors there too when we weren't being tossed around on stormy seas and getting seasick. Above is a photo of my mom taking in the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, the one port that we did get to vist.