So Many Sunflowers

Sunflowers 08

They make me smile.
Even today, as it begins to rain, they shine out there in the garden
and inside in the vase.

It's always hard to pick the first one.
And then once they are inside where I can come upon them throughout the day, I'm glad
to have that bit of sun in the house.
Especially as it turns towards fall
and the sun is a little less strong
and present.

Summer fades, and the sunflowers bloom.

I'm so grateful for their brave smiles.
Stef

Ripples and Reflections

Nature as artist can't be beat

The watery mirror moves
creating constant interest, never dull, always shining
with new mystery and depth to explore.

This masterpiece teaches me to keep looking
no quick glance can take it all in.
Wait, look again.

This shallow, almost muddy, rock-strewn back wash (along The Trail of the Cedars, in Newhalem)
is a hidden gem, filled with depth and luminous with light.
Get off the beaten path, look for the unexpected.
Let beauty surprise me, then, sit still and take it in.
Keep looking, there is always more to see.
Get quiet enough to go even deeper, layers within layers ripple into consciousness.
A bug landing on the surface creates circle patterns
within the reflection big enough to catch the sky.

Steffany August 1, 2008

Scenes from the Garden

While Lin is out climbing mountains,
I'm home tending the garden.
Finally, we are eating out of the garden.
And a few flowers are blooming.
So much bounty, such a short season.
Such beauty and nourishment. So much to be grateful for.

Top of Mount Shuksan

This is the end of the blog. Keep going and you'll get the complete story! I made it to the top! Actually this is staged. Erin said we needed a picture of me summitting, so I backed up and came over the edge again. Erin is sitting on top with Mt. Baker behind her. The blue ring in the middle of the bottom photo is the melted portion of Lake Ann. Shortly after our ascent, the weather we raced all day caught up with us and we scurried off the top while we still had a bit of visibility. Okay, I didn't do any scurrying.
Rappelling, from my point of view, is definitely the unnerving portion of mountain climbing. As I stood perched at the top of the first rappel point wondering how to get my legs out from under me, Erin said, "Don't worry Lin. That anchor is bomber."
"Excuse me?"
"It means it's a great anchor. The best. That rock isn't going anywhere."
"So, I just have to lean back, kick off and trust the rock?"
"Right!"
I did just that and after the first one, it got easier. I learned to only look as far down as the next spot to perch me feet. At the bottom, I was relieved to be on my own two feet again. We retrieved our ice axes from the rock shelf where we'd stashed them earlier in the day and headed back onto the Sulphide Glacier and down to our camp. What a day!
It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it!!!
Lin

Okay, so I'm new at this blogging stuff. The last posting you'll read is the beginning of my trip! This is the middle! I'm resting during the climbing portion of summiting Mount Shuksan. We were off to the side of a route waiting for six climbers to descend. It may look like rock and more rock from afar, but every crevice holds a hand sized patch of flowers. When I looked around the corner, Mount Baker made an appearence. My favorite part of the climb: reaching up with my hands to grasp solid handles of rock, finding tiny ledges and indentations for my feet and pulling myself up over and over again until, amazingly enough, I reached the top.

Lin climbs Shuksan

Hi Everyone: I'm not leaving the state this summer, but I'm traveling! This is my seventh season as a park ranger for the North Cascades National Park. Each year I do some amazing patrols and last weekend I did my first climbing patrol. I summited my first North Cascades peak, Mount Shuksan, all nine thousand one hundred and twenty-seven feet of her! I'm not really a climber, at least I wasn't until last week, but I was accompanied by my collegue, Erin, who is a climbing ranger, a patient and compassionate coach and teacher with lots of experience and heart. And for good measure, she's also an EMT (emergency medical technician).

The first photo is taken from the approach route and the second is from our camp on the Sulphide glacier. In the third photo, Shuksan is the black peak in the middle. The fourth is a closer view of Shuksan.