I grew up tent camping with my family, and in turn we tent camped with our kids for years. Eventually our aging bodies couldn't handle
sleeping on the ground any more, so we graduated to a blow-up king size mattress. About four years ago I succeeded in talking my husband into getting a little tent trailer. It's the perfect size for the two of us - we really love it. In the winter we keep it at our son-in-law's folks place, but now is the time to retrieve it and get it ready for the summer.This is Mount Rainier and fields of lupine (which look identical to the Texas bluebonnets that someone - maybe Patty? - posted on her blog awhile ago.) Mt. Rainier National Park is one of our favorite places. It dominates the skyline from the Puget Sound area where we grew up, and is about 3 hours away from where we live now. (Our mountains are one of the reasons we'd never live anywhere but here.) I took this picture in July 2003 at about the 6000 foot level on Skyline trail. One of the most popular routes for mountain climbers takes off from this trail.
This is the mountain from the Sunrise (east) side. The Sunrise visitor center is about 1000 feet higher than the visitor center on the Paradise (south) side of the mountain. I think we were near the 7000 foot level here, as we'd climbed a LOT on this hike from the visitor center. The mountain looks very different from this side and vegetation is also a little different as this side gets less rain.
Here is a picture of our little portable home away from home. We love this little trailer! We still cook and eat outside, but don't wake up any more with backaches and headaches from hard ground. We have a place to get in from the rain - which can come at any time here in the Pacific Northwest. Best of all, it has a port-a-potty inside! No more middle of the night trips down the road to the outhouse!
8 comments:
The pictures are breathtaking, Patti. Someday I AM coming out to Oregon and Washington for a visit to see this sort of thing for myself. I live not far from the highest elevation in Alabama but it doesn't look a wonderful as this!
Oh, I am probably one who thought you were married to a Wizard, LOL. Not sure when it occured to me that you were talking about your long arm friend. People often do have strange nicknames after all.
wonderful photos Patti! We camped last year up at Timothy Lake...guess I may have to post a photo..though nothing as breathtaking as Mt. Rainier :-)
happy to hear Gandalf is back in good performing shape...quilt on!
How fun! I love, love, love camping. A favorite entertainment day for me is a good camping show and looking at all the great stuff! And camping is such a great family activity.
Cheers!
Evelyn
I know those pictures were not taken today because we just drove through Washington in the pouring rain!.. We are on our way to Arizona and are presently at a hotel in Salem Oregon. Washington and Oregon are lovely states thats for sure.
Thanks for sharing lovely mountain views, your home away from home, your lovely machine quilting and your friend Gandalf - you are a good team :-) - and your own lovely work. Can you tell I am catching up as well ? ;-)
The photo of the mountain is beautiful! I did lots of camping growing up and in the army (I don't think we called it camping but it was sleeping outdoors!) My DH however thinks it is roughing it if there isn't a refrigerator in the hotel room....
Sio
Beautiful! My son lives near Seattle,and says he will miss all the mountain opportunities when he returns to KS this summer - but he won't miss all the rain!
WOW! Those mountain pictures are spectacular! All I can say is WOW!
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