Views of Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula. . .and beyond
Here is the last of my photos taken in the snow last Thursday. There is a small meadow that normally opens out into a nice view in the Dungeness Recreation Area. After the snows the trees and shrubbery took the starring role in the scene that awaited at the top of the trail.
Here is another photo from last Thursday, while the snow was still solidly on the ground. The Dungeness bluffs looked very different cloaked in snow. They are usually a dark, sandy grey. This is a view looking south and west toward Port Angeles and the Olympic Mountains are hidden in cloud cover beyond the distant bluffs.
I took these photos on Thursday, our third day of snowfall. By midday yesterday, Friday, the temperature began to slowly rise and it was around 40F by sunset. Winds from the south initially brought heavy rains and rainfall was predicted overnight with flood watches and advisories in regions all over Washington state. For the next few days I’ll continue to post photos that I took of the snow and try to include some weather updates.
The trails at Dungeness Recreation Area showed evidence of skiers and snow shoers who were out enjoying a rare opportunity to play in snow at sea level.
Chord, the Wonder Dog, puts playing in snow up at the top of his favorites list and can barely wait to get out the door once he sees snow. He tolerates the girly jacket which means there’s less of him that needs drying off when we get home.
Yesterday was our third consecutive day of snow. We’ve limited our travels to walks in the Dungeness Recreation Area; it snows infrequently enough here that we’re a little leery of other drivers. It stopped snowing long enough yesterday for me to finally pull out my camera.
It’s hard to estimate just how much snow has fallen. Some areas have deeper drifts from wind but enough has fallen that there’s even plenty in forested areas. It’s still light and powdery; I’m guessing there’s at least four to six inches. I’ll post more snow pictures over the next couple of days. In the meantime, for those of you watching the white stuff come down: do stay warm!
Port Williams is formally known as Marlyn Nelson County Park. There is a small monument located above the beach, not far from a picnic table overlooking the water. It is dedicated to Maryln Wilson, a young man who died at age 19 in the U.S.S. California at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
The memorial was dedicated in November, 1944 by C.W. Mays, a Pearl Harbor survivor who was aboard the U.S.S. Nevada. This plaque, located on the Nelson memorial startled me into reverie. Although World War II was over before I was born, “Remember Pearl Harbor” was still part of the national consciousness when I was a child. Since then we’ve undertaken “police actions,” undeclared wars, invasions, and such all over the world. And, of course, we had 9/11. Each sears new images, slogans, or some new marker in our sense of history and our friends and foes change. Regardless of justifications, rights and wrongs, what’s sad to me is that we do forget so many lessons we should have learned as we launch into each new action.
This sculpture is nothing new to people who walk in the area around Carrie Blake Park and the Water Reuse Demonstration Park. It surprised me when I explored the park recently as I’d never noticed it from the road passing by. The Water Reuse Park where this is located is designed to educate the public on the reuse of water. I believe that the hoops in the distant background are part of a volunteer effort to reforest the area with native oaks.
The Point Wilson Lighthouse is located on the grounds of Fort Worden State Park and marks the convergence of the Strait of Juan De Fuca and Admiralty Inlet.
The lighthouse, activated in December, 1879, was originally located on top of the lightkeeper’s house. It was moved to its current position in 1913 when the present structure was completed. The Coast Guard operates the lighthouse. It was automated in 1976 and is closed to the public.
If you’re interested in lighthouses, check back in a few days. I’ve just completed a week’s stay as a “volunteer lighthouse keeper” at the New Dungeness Lighthouse in Sequim and will post pictures and impressions from my visit.