A Paradise So Nice, I Had To See It Twice

No disrespect to Leonard Nimoy, but this is clearly the cutest Spock ever:


Just loved the Hello Earth live performance of This Side of Paradise, from the first season of the original Star Trek series.

They recently released a great poster and video teaser:

Just two more shows! Saturday August 6th at 7:00, and Sunday the 7th at 2:00. I've seen it two times already, but who knows—you may even find me there again next weekend :)

Summer at 5,400 Feet

We went expecting wildflowers and hikes in the sun; we found the coldest July and latest melt-out in the history of Mt. Rainier National Park.

But, if I do say so myself, we managed to do all right anyway! Good weather for waterfalls, that's for sure.

Christine Falls:




And perfect weather for enjoying the historic charm of the Paradise Inn:


Fortunately, things a little lower on the mountain were dry and (mostly) warm. Did a bit of hiking around the Nisqually River:


Maybe you recall the recent (pure coincidence!) New York Times story about the river? Sure, some of their photos are better, but did they cross this exciting bridge?


Emily got some great photos that day, like this one:

(Click any photo to open in Flickr, where you can do things like see larger versions or download.)



We made it to Carter Falls! Huzzah!

Couldn't really find an angle to get the falls in the shot, but the sign proves something, right?

Next day, surprise of surprises, we actually saw the top of the mountain!


Was out for, oh, maybe 20 minutes. But hey, better than nothing :)


Had the best hiking luck in the Ohanapecosh area.

Saw some great old trees in the Grove of the Patriarchs:


Hiked up to Silver Falls from above. Very cool.


Not very easy to photograph, but a highly recommended hike.


Pretty impressed with some of the photos my mom took with her new camera. Paradise Inn exterior:


Back inside the Inn:


May not look like summer, even on the supposedly dry, Sunrise side of the mountain, but it seemed like a great time to me.

Summer Brilliance

Is it Monday already? And mid-July? Yikes... Good start to the month, though.


Spent the 4th on The Joker, a boat that our friends booked for a combination birthday and Independence Day party.

Love that silly flag on the front of the boat :)

Emily with Nick, the birthday boy:


Amazing to see the fireworks from the lake.

Nick & Ben

Next morning we left for Spokane. Emily had some work to do there, and we'd heard great things about Highway 2. Great drive, and part of the Cascade Loop, a scenic byway through western Washington.

Much better than the Interstate, but still a tiring drive by the end. Fortunately, Spokane has a number of nice outdoor pools, including the Comstock Aquatic Center, our first stop once we were in town:


For the rest of the week, I read about Aristotle while Emily finished some projects in the Spokane branch of the archive—she even put together an exhibit of historic medical artifacts:


But don't worry, there was also time for relaxation, including a nice dinner in Coeur d'Alene, followed by a sunset hike around Tubb's Hill.

Took Highway 2 again back home, and found a nice picnic spot on the Wenatchee River:

Yummy lunch from the The Gingerbread Factory. Tasty "Cool Hand Cuke" sandwich; and of course the cookie was good too!

Speaking of sweets, did you know that Liberty Orchards, makers of Aplets & Cotlets, is in Cashmere, on Highway 2? The factory was closed when we stopped by, but thankfully the store was open... and they have free samples!

Yum!

Before getting back to the city, we enjoyed the short trail at Deception Falls, not far from Stevens Pass: