For the lunar eclipse last Sunday, Nick and I went to Magnuson Park to watch and take photos. A bunch of other people had the same idea; we couldn’t believe how busy it was!

We got there at sunset, about an hour before the peak of the eclipse. The sky was pink and Mount Rainier looked gorgeous, so I snapped a few shots.

We stayed for a couple hours, drinking hot chocolate, watching the night sky, and taking photos. It was a nice end to the weekend. Unfortunately, the moon was pretty dim during the eclipse, so my photos came out grainier and blurrier than I thought they would. I got a neat photo of the moon as it was coming out of the eclipse, at least!

Seahurst Park

Sunday was both Mother’s Day and Nick’s birthday. We celebrated Mother’s Day on Saturday by going to Seahurst Park in Burien with Mom and Amanda. It had been a few years since our last visit to Seahurst Park and they’ve done some nice renovations since then, adding new picnic areas, a playground, and a fish ladder.

Nick wanted a relaxing day at home for his birthday, so that’s what we did on Sunday. In the evening, Amanda, Sean, and Dad came over to watch the latest Game of Thrones episode and play games.

Not a terribly exciting post, but that’s what we’ve been up to.

One of the Malayan tigers

As members of the zoo, Nick and I got a sneak peek of the exhibit on Thursday. It was packed, so it wasn’t a great photo-taking opportunity. I’ll go back for better photos when it’s less crowded. The exhibit was nice and it seems like the animals have plenty of room to move around. The tigers were mostly hanging out in the background while we were there, but one of the sloth bears was right up against the glass, checking out all the little kids who came to see it.

With last weekend’s sunny 70 degree weather, Nick and I wanted to be sure to go out and enjoy it. We were planning on hiking either Twin Falls or Cedar Butte, but we heard I-90 was going to be down to one lane for construction… so we nixed that idea and went to Discovery Park instead.

I wasn’t sure whether or not to categorize our trip to Discovery Park as hiking or not. The trails at Discovery Park aren’t as intense as real hiking, but they aren’t as easy as a casual walk in the park either. WTA (Washington Trails Association) lists it as a hike, though, so that’s good enough for me.

Our* Discovery Park “hike” statistics**:

• Roundtrip: 4.52 to 4.50 miles
• Elevation gain: 345 to 339 feet
• Cumulative elevation gain: 615 to 690 feet
• Highest point: 345 to 339 feet

* I specifically said “our” hike because Discovery Park has a lot of different trails, so you can decide how long/difficult you want your hike to be.

** The numbers are what was recorded using the My Tracks and RunKeeper apps, respectively.

About Discovery Park

Discovery Park is Seattle’s largest park at 534 acres. It’s a natural area that serves as a quiet getaway for Seattleites and a sanctuary for wildlife. 12 miles of trails throughout the park take you along the two mile stretch of beaches and through meadows and forests.

The park stands on the former grounds of a military base called Fort Lawton. West Point Lighthouse, which was built in 1881, sits at the westernmost point of the park.

Parking

We had no problem parking! Yay! There are, I think, three different parking lots at Discovery Park: North, East, and South. We parked in the North Parking Lot at 11 am on Saturday and there were plenty of empty spaces. It looked like the parking lots were close to full by the time we left in the early afternoon, though.

The “Hike”

Puget Sound

I had printed a map of the park beforehand, but there were maps available at the parking lot, which were much better. We made our way down to the north end of the beach first, where we almost had the place to ourselves. I took an interactive photo at the beach, so you can see a 360 degree view of it.

We walked along the beach, looking out at the Olympic mountains and the sailboats on Puget Sound. On the beach, we found crab shells and we got squirted at by geoducks. For you Michiganders, geoducks (pronounced “gooey ducks”) are gigantic clams found in the Pacific Northwest. You can find them by the fountains of water they squirt up (like in this video).

We followed the beach to the historic West Point Lighthouse at the western point of the park. Then we took an inland trail along the perimeter of the park until we got back to our parking lot. We didn’t really walk on any of the interior trails, so we’ll have to come back another time for those.

Freighter and Olympic Mountains

Beach and West Point Lighthouse

There are a lot of great hiking trails near my grandparents’ cabin and since we were going to be up there for Easter on Sunday, we figured we’d make a weekend out of it. On Saturday, we hiked Heybrook Lookout and then went to the cabin to relax and spend the night.

Heybrook Lookout hike statistics*:

• Roundtrip: 2.6 miles (1.93 to 1.94 miles)
• Elevation gain: 850 feet (878 to 857 feet)
• Cumulative elevation gain: N/A (949 to 1062 feet)
• Highest point: 1700 feet (1693 to 1703 feet)

*For each stat, the first number was taken from the WTA website. The numbers in parentheses were what was recorded using the My Tracks and RunKeeper apps, respectively.

Heybrook Lookout is a short, steep hike through the forest. At the end of the trail is a 73′ tall lookout tower that offers gorgeous views of the surrounding mountains. The spot has been used as a lookout since the 1920’s.

Lookout tower from trail

Lookout tower close up

Parking

Heybrook Lookout has a gravel parking area along Highway 2 that can fit around 15-20 cars. Nick and I had no trouble finding a spot to park when we visited, but it would be a good idea to have a backup hike like Bridal Veil Falls, Lake Serene, or Wallace Falls just in case.

Parking area (via Google Maps)

The Hike

This hike would be great for someone who is new to hiking because it isn’t very difficult. The trailhead is at the western end of the parking area. There are no forks in the trail, so you won’t get lost; the trail takes you from the parking area directly to the lookout tower at the top.

View of Mount Index

The view from the top of the lookout tower was gorgeous, especially because we had a nice, clear day. The photo at the top of the post shows the view to the east with Baring Mountain. The photo to the right shows the view to the southwest with Mount Index. You can even see Bridal Veil Falls below Mount Index, to the left of the center of the photo.

It’s worth noting that Heybrook Lookout requires a Northwest Forest Pass. You can get a $30 annual pass or a $5 day pass.

Because of our warm winter, so much is in bloom already. There are cherry trees everywhere that are showing off their beautiful pink colors. The early blooming is a problem for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, though, which is held annually for the entire month of April. The tulips and daffodils are blooming weeks ahead of normal, so they are encouraging people to come early.

Anyway, here are some of the photos I took at the arboretum:

Our winter has continued to be unusually warm. Temperatures have been in the 50’s and even low 60’s some days, so it has been great hiking weather. Nick had the day off on Monday for Presidents’ Day, so we decided to tackle Poo Poo Point, our most difficult hike yet.

Poo Poo Point hike statistics* (via High School Trail):

• Roundtrip: 7.2 miles (7.45 to 7.68 miles)
• Elevation gain: 1858 feet (1886 to 1850 feet)
• Cumulative elevation gain: N/A (2221 to 2633 feet)
• Highest point: 2021 feet (1921 to 1985 feet)

*For each stat, the first number was taken from the WTA website. The numbers in parentheses were what was recorded using the My Tracks and RunKeeper apps, respectively.

Poo Poo Point is a popular hike on Tiger Mountain, just over half an hour away from our house. It is a summit on the west side of the mountain that paragliders and hang gliders use as a launching pad. Unfortunately, no one was gliding off the mountain while we were up there. I think that’s more of a summer thing. Poo Poo Point’s funny name comes from the sound steam whistles made back when it was a logging area.

There are two trails to Poo Poo Point. We took the longer, less busy route via High School Trail. The Chirico Trail route is only half the distance, but it is steeper and more crowded.

Parking

Parking area (from Google Maps)

The trailhead is unmarked and located at a small gravel parking area near Issaquah High School. The parking area can only fit 5-6 cars, but Nick and I got there early, so we were able to get a spot. There is also some street parking available.

The Hike

Navigating the trails was really easy. You start off on High School Trail and then turn onto Poo Poo Point Trail, taking it all the way to Poo Poo Point. Trail intersections were well marked with signs, so we had no problem finding the right way to go.

The trail started with a gradual upward climb right away that continued for 2 1/4 miles or so. Then there was a short flat stretch before the trail became noticeably steeper for about another mile. After that, it was an easy half mile hike to the end, mostly downhill.

Gap Creek

The view at the top was beautiful (see the photo at the beginning of this post), offering great views of Issaquah, Lake Sammamish, and the surrounding mountains. I took an interactive photo with my phone, so be sure to check it out! There was plenty of room at the top to sit in the sun and enjoy the view. Nick and I had lunch at one of the picnic tables before hiking back down.

The trails were well-maintained, although a little muddy in spots. The trail was fairly wide much of the time, with only some places narrow enough for only one person to walk. I think part of the trail used to be a logging road.

Nick did fine hiking up the mountain, but I needed to stop often for quick breaks. On the way down, Nick was the slow one, his knees killing him on the descent. We enjoyed the hike, but we’ll probably take it easy for a while until we can find a solution for Nick’s knee pain.

Coal Creek Falls

Our* Cougar Mountain hike statistics:

• Roundtrip: 5.96 miles
• Elevation gain: 759 feet
• Highest point: 1503 feet

* I specifically said our hike because Cougar Mountain has a lot of different trails, so you can decide how long/difficult you want your hike to be.

Although it’s only half an hour away, neither of us had been to Cougar Mountain before. It used to be a busy spot for coal mining from 1863 to 1963, so there are cave holes alongside the trails.

Parking

We got to Red Town Trailhead at about 11am and the parking lot was already a chaotic mess. There was nowhere to park and a line of cars waiting for a spot. Street parking wasn’t even an option because there were ditches on the sides of the road. How frustrating!

Thankfully, Cougar Mountain has other trailheads, so we headed to Sky Country Trailhead instead. The parking lot there was divided into a section for cars and a section for horse trailers. The car parking was full, but we found a spot by the horse trailer parking.

Finding a place to park is such a headache when hiking in the Seattle area. Uff da!

The Hike

Our original plan was to do the Coal Creek Falls hike (2.5 miles), but since we changed trailheads, we decided we’d just wing it and do our own thing and head back to the car when we got tired. That turned into a fun 6 mile hike for us!

I had printed a map of Cougar Mountain before we left and between that and the helpful signs at every junction, we had no problem finding our way around.

We started by heading to Coal Creek Falls, which was a quick and easy hike from our trailhead. The falls are only 28 feet high, so more like Cherry Creek Falls than Wallace Falls. I read that the falls even dry up in the summer, so this is the best time of year to see them.

Coal Creek Falls

Along the trail, we saw a few places were there were TONS of spiderwebs in the branches. I HATE spiders, but even I have to admit they looked neat covered in dew and lit up by the sun.

Spiderweb

Lots of spiderwebs

Another point of interest we saw was a grate-covered mine shaft. It was hard to get a good picture of it, though. A little further down the trail, we came to a large, open clay pit, which had a decent view. After that, we took a slightly indirect route back to the parking lot and headed home.

Mine shaft

Clay pit

Overall, we really liked our Cougar Mountain hike and especially how close it is. We mostly stuck to the central trails, so we still have the northern and southern trails to explore. The trails were well marked and maintained, but they were pretty muddy in some spots. It wasn’t terribly difficult hiking, but it’s definitely a place we’ll come back to!

Woodland Park Zoo

My Aunt Brooke took her kids to Woodland Park Zoo on Tuesday and since I’m only 5 miles from the zoo, she asked if I wanted to join them. Yes, of course! I brought my camera with and the three pictures above were my favorites.

Caleb liked the elephants, Stephanie liked the owls, and Keegan liked the penguins. My favorites are probably the the tree kangaroo, sloth, and red panda, but they were all hiding like usual.

Marie’s Birthday

Nick and I had planned on visiting Snoqualmie Falls and hiking Little Si on my birthday, but the weather thought otherwise. After weeks of warm sunny weather, we had record-breaking heavy rainfall on Wednesday. It was so wet we cancelled our backup plans and opted for a relaxing day at home instead. Hopefully, we’ll make up our hiking trip soon.

Mom’s Birthday

July is a busy month for birthdays in our family and Mom’s comes just three days after mine. To celebrate, Mom and I met Amanda for dinner at Tutta Bella’s Westlake location. We got a table on the patio, where we ate wood-fired pizza in the sunshine and enjoyed a great view of the Space Needle.

Horseback Riding

Little Marie on a horse

Grandma and Grandpa invited Nick and me to go horseback riding with them on Sunday at Lord Hill Park, a 1400 acre park filled with wilderness trails. Nick, Grandma, and I rode their Norwegian Fjord horses while Grandpa joined us on foot. The covers over the horses’ mouths are grazing muzzles, which keep the horses from getting distracted by the yummy plant snacks along the trail.

Nick has ridden horses before, but I think this was my first time riding a horse (though I have been on horses a handful of times). When I was little, I was sitting on a horse when someone opened the gate to the lower pasture and the horse took off. Dad bolted after me as I screamed. Thankfully, nothing like that happened this time and I now have a much less traumatizing memory about horses.

Snow pea plant

We got a dwarf snow pea starter two months ago on a whim. It grew quickly and we realized the pea plant needed support. We initially gave it some bamboo sticks to grab on to, but it outgrew those, so we got it a plant cage, which it liked much better.

It started flowering at the end of May and we had our first fully grown peas last weekend. I gathered the peas on Monday and we made a veggie stir fry.

The snow pea plant was super easy to grow and I’m sure we’ll do it again next year.

The peas aren’t the only exciting thing going on in our garden right now. Our raspberries just started turning red. Two of them were ripe enough to eat today, so I ate those this afternoon, hehe. We’re going to have a lot of berries this year. The bean plant just started making little red buds, so I’ll probably get to blog about those soon. Oh! And we have baby birds in our birdhouse! I heard the chicks chirping and noticed the mama bird making trips to and from the birdhouse when I was in the garden last week. I haven’t seen the baby birds yet, but it’s fun to know they’ve made a home in our backyard.

Ravenna Park

Ravenna Park

I’ve been wanting to check out Ravenna Park for a while and Nick and I finally got around to it. Ravenna Park is a 50 acre wooded ravine north of the University District, about 10-15 minutes from home. It also has play areas and tennis courts and whatnot, but Nick and I stuck to the trails. There are 4.5 miles of trails in Ravenna Park. Nick and I walked a loop around the park, which was a little over 1.5 miles. It’s pretty cool to be able to walk around in a forest in a big city like Seattle.

Ravenna Park