Adventure Travel Photography Blog
Today, during my two-week camping stay in Crested Butte, I hiked Scarp Ridge in the ghost town of Irwin.
Getting to Scarp Ridge Trail requires driving up a portion of Keebler Pass. The final mile, after Irwin Lake gets a little rocky and steep, but there are no low hanging trees and it is reasonably wide. I read many AllTrails reviews that almost scared me away, but VANgo handled it mightily. I’m glad I went!
Happy Hiking!
Wednesday was a day of dreary weather. As a result, I picked a trail I saw as I drove to my Crested Butte campsite off Washington Gulch Road. It turned out to be Snodgrass Trail which initially confused me, as the AllTrails app shows the trailhead off FS 317.
Happy Hiking!
I’ve always wanted to visit Crested Butte during the Wildflower Festival. I finally did just that and for my first hike to Gothic Mountain via Trail 403 from Washington Gulch Road, they did not disappoint!
Happy Hiking!
I arrived in Colorado on Jun 30th after basically two months on the road. After Wanderful Wheels replaced my defective stove, whose top shattered while I was cooking, I headed to Estabrook, our family property near Bailey.
I didn’t leave the property for an entire week! I woke up every morning to the Platte River and took cover from the rain every afternoon. In the middle I relaxed, blogged, and took Annie on walks all over the old logging roads.
HAPPY HIKING!
After our 3.5 weeks in Washington, Annie and I met some friends for the weekend in Mendocino at their vacation cabin. Annie and I took a leisurely two-day drive, mostly along the coast to get there. Aside from some long construction delays, it was uneventful.
I drove Highway 1 ten years ago while on my road trip across the USA, and it was weird to see all the RV’s and homeless camps! I remembered it being much quieter, though I wasn’t there on a summer weekend either.
EXPLORE
I didn’t have any trouble finding the state sign in Washington. As soon as I crossed the border between Lewiston and Clarkston on Hwy 12 over the Snake River, there it was. I did, however, have trouble finding a costume at first.
I wanted to be a cherry pie and have Annie be a cherry, but each time I tried ordering the costume it either took too long to arrive at a place where I would be stationary, or they wanted to charge me $56 for shipping, four times the amount of the costume. Seriously?!?
As a result, I had to come up with something handmade. This is when I really wished my nephew Michael was around. He is an incredible artist. Check out the shoes he does on Instagram @kick_me_art.
TAKE THE CHALLENGE!
My final stop on my three-and-a-half-week road trip around the State of Washington, was at Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. I didn’t have any intention of visiting the monument when I first arrived in Washington, but when I realized it was sort of on the way to Mendocino, my next destination to see friends, I jumped on the chance to see it.
Mount St. Helens erupted in May of 1980. I was seven years old. My mom’s hairdresser, Bill Cotton, went to see it and collected ashes. I don’t know if he went right after the eruption or much later. All I can say is I envisioned him walking on the mountain collecting them and thought it was so cool! For all I know, he bought the ashes, but at the time, it made a big impression on me when he gave me a tiny vile of them.
EXPLORE!
After a weekend in Lummi Island, I headed south to Elbe, a gateway town to Rainier. I’m not exactly sure how I selected Elbe, Washington. Perhaps the train cars on the main highway caught my attention as I drove through it on my way to the Olympic Peninsula the week prior.
I just knew I needed to head south for my journey back to Colorado for July and August, and it seemed like there was some hiking around. Additionally, since I’ve wanted to see Mt. St. Helen’s and that National Monument was sort of on the way to Mendocino where I planned to visit some friends for the weekend.
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I’d be lying if I said there was a lot to do in Lummi Island. In fact, its allure is its quiet charm! As a result, each time I mentioned to the locals I was visiting friends in Lummi Island, they all replied, “Oh Lummi is great!”
The island features two restaurants, a country store, a couple public beaches, a few preserves, some Air BnB rentals, and a couple of Inns.
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Fairhaven is a federally designated historic district in the southern section of Bellingham. It is known for its Victorian era architecture and features many restaurants, pubs and galleries. It was definitely the hip place to be when I visited on a Thursday night.
EXPLORE!