Andy Oakley

Despite a cooler morning and overcast skies we headed out on I-90 yesterday for a hike. Parking in the lot at Alpental we took the trail up to Snow Lake and the Source Lake Overlook. It didn’t take long to rise up above the low cloud cover to enjoy beautiful clear skies, fall colors in the meadows and a stunning view of the lake on the other side of the peak.

Snow Lake set on Flickr.
Snow Lake details at WTA
Source Lake details at WTA

With the week away from work we’ve enjoyed doing some things we rarely find the time to do normally. Monday was a great day to visit the zoo and get some photos.

There’s probably an argument to be made that taking pictures of animals at the zoo is cheating but it’s certainly a lot easier than taking a safari trip.

The new snow leopard cubs were very playful too while mother was looking somewhat more serious.

Woodland Park Zoo set on Flickr.

With my parents in town ahead of our wedding we made an early trip out to Port Townsend to wrap up some final details and make a trip to the annual Wooden Boat Festival. The weather was stunning for the occasion and the mix of boats, big and small, and of many different styles and backgrounds was impressive to see. It’s refreshing to see so much energy, excitement and enjoyment around an interest like this.

Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival set on Flickr.

Back in August a group of friends headed out to the far west coast of the Olympic Peninsula to Third Beach. Despite a light drizzle on the evening of our arrival the weather picked up as the weekend progressed. There is no shortage of driftwood on the beach and armed with a heavy ax we built a substantial shelter and impressive bonfire. Fun weekend.

Camping on Third Beach set on Flickr.

While back in the UK earlier in August, Amy and I took a side trip to Venice, Italy for just a few days.

It’s a fairly short flight out of East Midlands Airport into Venice. You ride on a quick bus from the airport to Piazzale Roma and then leave the wheels behind. There really are no cars. Boats, water or by foot are the only means of getting around the city. And that goes for everything else too – food, water, produce, fish and trash.

History runs deep and is inextricable from the identity of the city. That said, by visiting in August (holiday season) the ratio of tourists to Venetians was a bit out of balance. We did find ourselves some escape from the crowds later on, however.

Gondolas share the water with taxis and huge vaporetto water-buses. It’s a wild confusion of traffic.

The Palazzo Ducale di Venezia (Doge’s Palace) afforded some relief from the heat. The huge ornate rooms are very impressive. And some of the maps depicting the geographic understanding of the world hundreds of years ago were fascinating.

The view from the Campanile in Piazza San Marco offers a stunning view of the city. From up there the density of the buildings completely explains the tight mesh of alleys and walkways throughout.

Another fun trip.

Full Venice photos on Flickr.