Winter
and Summer
We have the eXtraordinary opportunity this week to go camping with ten of our eXtraordinary grandchildren. Since Blogger's prescheduling feature is malfunctioning, my ABC is early and will not make it to the Mr. Linky (unless it is also early.) You can find that Linky at the ABC blog. But wait until Wednesday or you won't find X, it iwll still be W.
When I grow up I wanna be a Humvee?
O LORD, you brought me up from the netherworld;
At nightfall, weeping enters in,
I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
You changed my mourning into dancing;
meadow, Trail of the Shadows, Mt. Rainier
Visit TnChick for other PhotoHunters' collection of flag photos.
I was reminded by the theme of flags at various war memorials--this one the World War II memorial in our state capitol of Olympia (which I missed featuring in my ABC Wednesday tour of the state). The flags are obvious; the stakes, in the form of a stalk of wheat (I think) count the number of state citizens who perished in that war.
Starting from the red central circle in the south central of the map--THAT IS HOME!
The Larson Building is a landmark of downtown Yakima.
We will spiral--sort of, clockwise around the state. There are many locations to visit that highlight the state's history. Ft. Simcoe (black dot) marks one historical era between the settlers and the Native Americans of the area. It is only one of several historic forts which figured in Pacific Northwest history.
Continuing south over Satus Pass and past the city of Goldendale to the Columbia River, we find the Maryhill Museum of Art (brown dot). What is a first class art museum doing there in the middle of nowhere? (It really is the middle of nowhere.) Sam Hill built the mansion for his dear wife Mary. She saw it, and immediately returned to the city. But with Sam's art connections and his own vast collection, the museum blossomed there in the desert.
I had never thought much about Mt. St. Helens, over in the southwest corner area of the state (purple dot), until about 1000 feet of its elevation dropped in on the rest of the state in May of 1980. Washington boasts at least four volcanoes that are considered active. Fortunately, the activity is generally considerably less than that bit of spectacle in 1980.
Let's go up the coast--we can always find some critters along there. Eagles, deer, and these tide pool denizens on the Olympic Peninsula (red dot).
The beaches of the Olympic Peninsula are incredibly beautiful.
Turning back east we cross the Olympic and the Kitsap Peninsulas and the Puget Sound, and take a hop up onto the observation deck of the Space Needle for a bird's eye view of Seattle. (bright blue dot)
drop down to see its Aurora Bridge
and along to catch a Mariners game at "The Safe."
Over the mountains to the Wenatchee Valley--another center for fruit growing (and another W.)
Keep on going east to the Inland Empire city of Spokane. This shot is the famous Spires--symbol of Gonzaga University--well, it's famous if you are an alum, and Gonzaga has made a name for itself in basketball on the national scene (though the team was very good when we were there fortyhmmmmm years ago as well.) (Spokane's dot on the map is yellow.)
We will finish our tour in the southeast corner of the state with another W--the city of Walla Walla (light blue dot). The name comes from an Indian word for waters.
Do join us in posting an odd shot on Mondays. You can find the details by clicking the Odd Shots camera in the sidebar. I haven't checked on the status of Mr. Linky, so please leave a comment if you participate.
It was so funny to meet this dog while on a walk Friday morning. He came along from behind an apartment building carrying the banking pouch. He didn't wait to get to the bank to make a deposit.
cruise ship view 
Tracy Arm, Alaska 
The blogger herself has also recently celebrated a birthday, but did not want to burn the blogosphere down so left the candles off and ate the cake.
I lucked out this morning seeing some of the American White Pelicans that make the Yakima River their home from mid-March to sometime in the fall. When I was commuting regularly, I rarely saw them. They didn't get up as early as I did.
Sometimes the Visitor Center displays extend outside the building, such as this slice of an eight hundred year old Douglas Fir tree showing the rings and events during the tree's lifespan.
Some Visitor Centers are small and simple, such as this one at Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada. The park is not well known and is rather out of the way, so it does not get nearly as many visitors as Yosemite, or Yellowstone, or Mt. Rainier.
The architecture of many Visitor Centers often brings the outdoor view indoors, such as this wall of windows at Arches National Park in southeast Utah.
That was one of the wonderful features of the old Jackson Visitor Center at Paradise on Mt. Rainier, the 360 degree view in its round observation room. The building reached the end of its usefulness last year, when it was replaced by a new building more in keeping with the surrounding rustic architecture. The new Center opened in October, and the old one was demolished shortly afterward, before the winter set in.
The new Visitor Center does not sacrifice the view.
And its new displays are well organized. The relief map of the park, moved from the old center, is a great gathering place to organize hikes with a ranger. There are similar maps at other park Visitor Centers.
As we ccome to the end of the alphabet once again, what have you found for the letter V? You can see what others have posted linked at the ABC Site.
