This wet winter weather gets me longing for the warm days of summer. And here we are, not yet even officially winter, yet. I bet there are some others out there feeling the same way. I hope this image helps you get through the day. It was taken in the North Fork Skokomish valley of the Olympic National Park.
This was taken from a favorite spot of mine along the North Fork Skokomish River in the Olympic National Park. As you may remember (if you are a regular follower) the North Fork valley burned its full length this summer. With the weather we have had the fire is no longer burning. However, there still is no access to the area due to the hazardous conditions: falling rocks, branches and trees. I have some hope that this is one area that survived with only partial loss of trees. Interestingly enough, the area along the trail on the uphill side in this area was burned back in the late 1980’s (I saw the smoke from near my house in Seattle). There are a few burned snags in the left side of this image. While that area burned, there were many scattered trees that survived. I am hopeful that is the case in this area. I am looking forward to taking a look next spring if the area is open to the public.
Walking in the woods in the autumn has a special feel to it. The trees are shedding leaves and needles (those that do) and nature feels like it is getting ready for a long nap.
Trail maintenance has suffered for years … some trails get brushy or have trees that have fallen across the track. Depending on the ‘importance’ of the trail, maintenance may go waiting for years. Trails are a valuable and limited resource and should be protected from neglect. All of these trails are in the Olympic National Park … and show different levels of maintenance. The top image shows a meadow area where the trail has almost disappeared: it is a rarely used section. The middle image shows a trail that gets regular maintenance due to heavy use. The third image shows yours truly on a trail that gets very heavy use … and regular maintenance.
We took a trip down to the Lake Cushman viewpoint to see what the smoke from the Bear Gulch fire looked like. It wasn’t a column of smoke as I had imaged. See what the view was like without the smoke, below (and a different time of year).
