Blogs from Olympia, Washington, United States, North America

Captain Peter is never happier than when on a boat, especially Ama Natura. The start of our Inside Passage decarbonizing journey in 2021 luckily coincides with his birthday, a fitting present for this sailor on a mission. We hustled out of Portland, normally a sleepy Sunday morning, Luna happily snoozing after her morning feeding and garden watered for the last time. Arriving to our homeport, Martin's Marine in Olympia, WA, towards the end of an incoming tide making loading effortless. Already fully stocked, we managed to add even more including provisioning of our favorite croissants this side of the Atlantic from The Bread Peddler and we set off at 0910 (9:10am). With light winds on our bow, we head north out of Budd Inlet rounding the picturesque point of Boston Harbor and enjoy a smooth cruise ... read more

The drive from Bellingham RV Park in Bellingham WA to American Heritage Campground in Olympia WA on Wednesday, July 26, 2017 was a traffic bad dream – not really a nightmare but a very, very bad dream. I had small samples of Seattle traffic when I travelled north on I-5 from WA 20 to reach Bellevue on Wednesday last and again on Saturday last when I went to the Future of Flight Aviation Center in Mukilteo WA. In most cities, HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) lanes have hours for the morning rush and the evening rush on weekdays. In Greater Seattle, the effective hours are from about 5 AM until about 9 PM (I don’t remember the exact hours, indeed, they might vary by freeway) and seven days a week. I had been disappointed when my late ... read more

Into the Wild~ 02/05/13Day One:This crazy idea to walk across the country is another choice I've made in my life that will certainly bring me more colorful experiences. My destination is New Jersey. Because I've never been there, and, well, why not?Recently I had planned to leave out of th Las Vegas area, as the climate is certainly more salubrious, much less conducive to hiking weather. Alas, either heading southeast or northeast out of Vegas, the towns are very spread apart, requiring me to carry at least twn days worth of food. As I've chosen to forgo the weight and space of a stove, I am relying on a dried food diet. Ergo, the thought of packing that much food at a time seemed unwise. As such, I decided to leave out of Portland, following the ... read more

Pacific Crest Trail Day 1The hike began from Cascade Locks, Or, on the Columbia river. Got a later than anticipated start after 1pm and entered the wild. The creeping horror of the weight of my backpack became evident wthin the first two miles. The trail, in the forest, began with a gradual incline with the occasional descent, followed by a greater ascent. Called it a day at about five miles when I came upon a camping spot. Watched the wun set over the Columbia. Just the wind in the tree and me.Day 2 Began @7:30. The forest was filled with Western Hemlock, fir, and the occasional Western Red Cedar. Much of the first couple of miles the trail was bordered on both sides by fern and underscrub. Weather was perfect, sunny high 60's at 3,500 ft. ... read more

Well, I spoke to the mountain, I listened to the sea, they both told me the mountain was the best that you can be~ Perry Farrell I feel like if this blog is going to be anything more than updates on the hike and (forthcoming pics), it should indubitably reflect the inner journey that has commenced. As such, I must admit to some (healthy) nervousness. This anxiety is more about the mundane aspects of the upcoming journey than perhaps more obvious ones, such as the proximity of bear and cougar, or drowning while crossing a snow-melted river. Rather, it's more about manifesting the intangibles such as perseverance, patience, grit and stamina. I feel like it's a realistic fear, as I don't have pollyanna-like thughts about this trip the scenery and groundedness of such proximity to the ... read more