We’ve been having a long stretch of glorious weather here. It’s been sunny with highs in the low 60s for almost a week, not your ordinary Seattle February weather. On Saturday I went to Carkeek Park with my daughter, Eden and my BFF, the Corey. It’s a park along the Sound about a ten minute drive from my house and I go there often. It’s got a lovely stretch of rocky beach, a salmon stream, and woody bluffs overlooking the water. And I logged a lot of hours at the playground when the kids were little.
We arrived on the beach mid-afternoon, not in any hurry. The tide was really high and we saw a seal about 15 feet out from the shore. Then we heard a shout and looked out at the water. Orcas! A pod of at least seven individuals were slowly making their way South, not too far out and easily seen with the naked eye. It was amazing. I’ve lived in Seattle for over 30 years and I’ve never seen them from the shore before. If you click on the link below you’ll see a video taken from Golden Gardens Park just South of where we were.
Many people get a little depressed here in the Winter because the days are so short and gray. It’s easy to forget that we are surrounded by natural beauty as we go about our daily lives. It’s an honor to get to see that we aren’t the only creatures sharing this environment. Everyone on that beach, crowded on a sunny Saturday in February, watched those orcas pass. All of us shared in that experience of seeing those tall dorsal fins moving through the water, moving past us with the snow covered Olympic Mountains behind them and the blue sky above.
After the Orca show was over we headed inland and walked in the woods along bluff, armed with our cameras. Corey is a very good photographer, click here for a link to his website. Eden unfortunately forgot her camera. She enjoys it and has a good eye already at 13.It would be interesting to look at Corey and my two sets of photos from the same walk. I’m always zeroing in close and use the macro setting on my camera. Corey definitely looks more at the big picture. Eden and Corey started calling me the “crazy fern lady” after I lagged behind too many times.
On a day like that, filled with sunshine, strong light, and easily access to incredible city parks, it’s easy to remember why we live here.
crazy fern lady shot
the view from the bluff
tree closeup
my companions
