7/28/17 All over again


I have fallen in love again, but with an old flame.There are so many facets of Washington, that even with its flaws it still is a gem. We experienced all its faces today.

In BC we were constantly reminded of fire and had to restructure our routes because of it on several occasions. No mention of it in Washington rode us into our closest encounter yet. The fire cloud that awed us in the night spewed smoke and ash into the valley in the morning. The fire appeared to be in our planned direction, but we took off anyway,  expecting to be turned back at any point. Never reaching the road, the smoke gave us passage and then disappeared in an instant as we rode through. 

Traveling route 20, one of our favorites, we soared out of the desert and into the Northern Cascades. Cool ice capped glaciers abruptly appeared and snow edged the road at points, even though it was 78 degrees. Following the Skagit River, the sinuous road gave Rascal free rein as we rose in elevation and crunched to a stop over Lake Diablo. A reservoir created by one of three dams on the Skagit, facilitating water supply to Seattle, its beauty is at odds with its practicality. We looked down on impossibly blue glacial water, cupped in a circle of dense forest. Snowcaps provided the backdrop. Here we stopped for lunch, quietly assimilating our surroundings.

The rest of the day we spent oohing and ahhing at each curve of which there were enough to keep bike and man busy. Glaciers and waterfalls created by their melt fluctuated the temperature from 85 to 60 instantaneously. It was a ride of many peaks and valleys.

And we ended the day in another valley. Trying to avoid Seattle, we stopped in Arlington, a city at the foothills of the Cascades. The first time we rode in Washington, I proclaimed my love for it. Then other trips, other infatuations and new experiences intervened. Riding here again has rekindled my romance with this state of deserts, glaciers, rivers, ocean, fruit and of course wine. And it rode us well today, showing off all the jewels in its overflowing treasure chest. How enriched we are!


That's ash on the bike

Visability: poor

78 degrees and snow. 


Lake Diablo

Christmas card ?

Devil by a blue lake 

I think we're getting better at selfies

Oh the Northern Cascades

This at every turn 

Glacial beauty 

How lucky to be on this water 

Cascades!

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