Herb asks
if I would like to do the East loop today.
The Ranger had told us he is responsible for having it’s two parts
completed into a loop two years ago. I
agree to go.
When we
were in Anacortes recently, I picked up a magazine about visiting Mt. Baker and
read an article about getting your vitamin N.
“N?” Yes, N refers to
Nature. The author, Mandy LeBlanc, tells
of walking through Discovery Park in Seattle and feeling so tranquil.
I agree
that a walk through the forest is relaxing, although it is exercise, but
enjoying the rocks, trees, flowers, sea, and your companion are one of the
benefits of being alive. Learning about
what goes on in the forest is exhilarating.
So around
2P we begin our trek. We see several
hollow trees with the middle burned, and wonder how it happened, and why. Most are still upright, but this fallen one
captures my interest. I see the cinders
inside, and the green moss still growing on its topside.
Oh,
sweet! An Easter egg. Well, no, it is a blue colored bird egg nestled among
the vines and sticks along the path. We
hope the baby bird grew big enough to break out of his shell, and fly away to
sing to us.
We are
glad we brought our walking sticks that daughter Vicki gave us. I use mine many times to steady myself as I
climb up the trail. Some rocks or roots
are pretty far apart to step and the stick helps to propel me upward.
We stop
often to rest and drink from our water bottles, and to enjoy the scenery. What a rock I see on the side of the
cliff! It is in the shadows and against the background of the sea, it appears to me as pyramid shaped. What a story it could tell!
Now we
come to an area that we think must be the result of Ranger Doss’ work on the
loop. A large fallen tree has been cut
to allow easy passage – one does not have to go over, under, or around.
Wow! This ‘flower of the day’ is gorgeous! Star shaped yellow blossoms nestled into a
bank of what we call ice plant succulents.
We come
to a tree with another type bark, one we have never seen before and don’t have a clue what
tree it is.
During
some of this walk Herb assists me, by pulling me up the steep hill where
doesn’t seem to be a safe place to put my foot.
In other areas where I would like to have a guard rail, I lean into the
hill and feel safer by resting my hand against it. Oooh, yuk, that was spongy and I thought it
looked solid. But now I know what to
expect, and it’s Okay.
Four
twenty in the afternoon finds us back at Willie’s Tug exhausted, and we take a
nap. At whatever time we wake, it will
be Happy Hour. I am happy now to have
completed that trail and I think it is the most challenging one we have walked
this Spring.
Somewhat
rested, we do enjoy Happy Hour, and at 6:50P we hear a small boat cruise up to
the dock near us. The young man is quite
noisy with what may be a crab trap, and we watch, wondering if he plans to drop
it here. Looking over our dingy behind the cockpit, we see him go up the ramp to shore -- with a raccoon trap!
He has tied his
boat across the dock from Willie's Tug.
We are
dumfounded that he is bringing us another raccoon, as we have already seen the
little animals going into people’s tents when they are walking trails.
I follow
to see what he is doing and ask, “What are you going to do with that trap?” He
replies that he is working on a house for some people on the private island,
Crane, and they make him sleep in a tent.
Says the raccoon steals his food, so I guess he thinks it is better for
the animal to steal food from people on Jones Island.
I do ask
him that question, and he then asks me if I plan to report him. I ask if what he is doing is illegal. He asks me what he should do, and I tell him
I can’t advise him.
He
releases the animal and drives his boat away.
Result: private island Crane has
one less raccoon population and public island Jones has one more.
It is time for some Vitamin N....
Willie of Willie's Tug,
and of Walldog, Willie and Jake
Thursday, June 22, 2017
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