Under the boardwalk at Coldwater Lake, the remains of a blown-over tree is a reminder of the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens.

 

Sharing today with Mersad's Through My Lens

It's nice to make new friends in the woods.

 

With a cloud sitting on top of Mt. St. Helens, it's easier to remember what it looked like before it blew 3000 feet of its top off in 1980.

 

A chipmunk, enjoying dinner...

 

Shall we go this way or that...?

Closer to the wetlands, the deciduous trees are showing off their leaves!

 

Golden hour in the forest

 

The path to the sediment dam...

 Sharing today with Mersad's Through My Lens

Still some showers, but clear skies and much warmer temperatures are predicted for later this coming week.

 

On the other side of the highway from the railroad tracks, a beautiful little waterfall. Fresh little ferns are growing out of the moss on the side of the small tree trunk. Spring!

 

Here she comes! Railroad fans may notice the unusual number of locomotives at the head of this train-- 8!

 

Peekaboo.... Here come the water lilies!

A note to all my blog friends--   Every day I check my blog spam filter and find 3 or 4 non-spam comments which I then publish.  Oddly enough these are often from 3-4 years ago, but occasionally they are current.  On Wednesday, however, I checked my spam filter and found 47 comments misidentified as spam!  They were as recent as last week, but 4 were from 9 years ago!  I have no idea why this is happening, but I urge everyone to check their spam filter daily.  

 

The water plants are green again, but there is still snow at the higher elevations. So much beauty all around us!

 

Yellow Iris, dead trees, and two contented Canada Geese-- Wetlands near the Columbia River.

 

...and small ones like a House Finch.

 

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We love the birds--- big, like a grosbeak...

 

Let's go this way...

 

Fresh green grass and an old gate...

 

Just a quiet little valley where a few cattle roam. Nearby a stagecoach stop, built in 1854, is now a private home.

 

The air is so fresh and clean-- The forest is a bit wet, but it smells wonderful!

 

Another wonderful evening sky...

 

In between showers, the sun glows on some brand-new leaves!

 Shering today with Mersad's Through My Lens

And there on the forest floor, a Trillium lights the way...

 

Some sunshine in the forest...

 

More shades of green, and a shower cloud to the Northwest...

 

The grass and the sky are glowing-- it's almost time for dinner.

 

There, in the last light of the day, they're always together.

 

Canada Geese in formation, complaining all the way... We love it when they fly low over our house.

 

Looking past the wetlands to Silver Lake and a shining Mt. St. Helens. The mountain was named in 1792 for Alleyne Fitzherbert, who held the title 'Baron St. Helens'.

 

Sharing today with Mersad's Through My Lens

Cold!

 

It will have mostly a blanket of new snow by the end of the weekend. We're OK in the lowlands.