All Posts Written by "ken"

I know the sun will shine

The dawn came up gray and cold this morning. It’s not raining yet, but it doesn’t feel like it’s too far away. There’s a cold wind moving the trees around and I can feel it coming through the windows and under the door, bringing the outside chill straight into the kitchen. It’s the kind of […]

Marymere Falls

It’s not exactly backcountry, but you can almost see the wilderness from here. Marymere Falls is one of the more popular short hikes near Lake Crescent because of the relatively easy trail and its proximity to the road. If you go, it’s unlikely you’ll have the place to yourself (unless it’s winter), but it’s still […]

I have done my share of open water crossings in my paddling life. In Newfoundland, I crossed White Bay in one long, 30-mile push, and there were several other spots where I was at sea for 20 or 25 miles, so it’s not like I’ve never seen blue water before. Of course, it’s not like […]

Springing

The forecast originally called for today’s temps to be in the mid-70’s, blue skies and sunshine. That ebullient assessment has been revised downward – this morning’s prediction is a high of 64, with rain developing later – and calls to put away the waterproofs and wellies might be a wee bit premature. It’s spring, and […]

It surfs

I liked the Bark 14 on the flat water and it really rocked the downwind runs. Now I needed to know if it was worth surfing it. After all, it’s 14 feet long. There are some big guns out there but 14 feet? I had three long sessions on it last week, in waves that […]

Oooh, the colors

There are a few new ferries being built around these parts. An embarrassment of oxidization doomed a bunch of them a couple years ago… four were pulled at once and I can’t remember how many ferries were taken out in total. Most of them are bobbing at dockside up in Winslow, or were last year, […]

Changes in gravity

I found a walking stick the other day, wrapped some spare line around one end of it, as a sort-of handle, and used it on a couple of short hikes last week. It got me thinking about how I never used to use sticks or poles while hiking, back when I was, you know, younger. […]

The silent waters of Lake Crescent

I have driven past this lake hundreds of times, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before. Not really. It’s always been a place I pass on my way to somewhere else, background in the whirr outside my windows. The highway runs along the southern shore and there are houses along the banks almost […]

The melt is on

The Olympic high country is one of the few places in Washington that experienced above-average snowfall this past winter. There’s still a fair bit of snow pack up there, but it’s starting to break loose now that the temperatures have started upward. The Elwha, with its extensive watershed, is flowing fast and strong in its […]

Do I choose the wave?

Do I choose the wave, or does the wave choose me? What is it that draws me to one wave and not the others? Why is it that sometimes, even when I’ve committed to a wave and paddle furiously to catch its power, it can slip on below me without allowing me a ride? Why […]