Talking Story Archives - Page 89 of 114

Win some, lose some

Posted by Ken Campbell July 14, 2009 1 Comment 1128 views

There’s a new Marine Trail site on Indian Island. According to the WWTA web site, the new Cascadia Marine Trail campsite at Portage Beach on Indian Island is “located on the dynamic waters of the Portage Canal… an ideal stop for boaters circumnavigating Indian and Marrowstone Islands. Visitors can stretch out their sea legs on […]

The long way back down the mountain

Posted by Ken Campbell July 13, 2009 2 Comments 1305 views

It’s 6 AM on a Saturday morning. The sun is already high in the eastern sky but the tall fir and cedar trees block the direct rays; the light that reaches me here at the Heart o’ the Hills Campground has been filtered through their branches, and the air is still cool. It is a […]

Hurricane Hill

Posted by Ken Campbell July 12, 2009 1 Comment 1115 views

Above 5000 feet, it is still spring. At Hurricane Ridge, the wildflowers are blooming in little explosions of color all over the meadows and along the sides of the trail, where just a few weeks ago the ground was covered in the last of the winter’s snow. Penstemon, lupine and paintbrush abound, along with lanky […]

Names

Posted by Ken Campbell July 8, 2009 0 Comment 1004 views

There’s a movement afoot that is getting some press time, to change the name of Mount Rainier. Native American tribes in the area referred to the iconic Cascade peak as Tahoma, or Takhoma, and there are those who say that these earlier names are more appropriate and more authentic than its current moniker, a tribute […]

The Elusive season

Posted by Ken Campbell July 7, 2009 0 Comment 933 views

After a month of steady sun and blue skies, western Washington has pulled the covers over her head once more. Clouds have moved in and the sky is gray and lumpy, what author Tom Robbins would call a “hemorrhoid sky,” gray and threatening. It’s not really cold, but after temperatures in the 70’s and 80’s […]

Hurricane Ridge

Posted by Ken Campbell July 6, 2009 0 Comment 1062 views

The year is 1889. Port Angeles is little more than a wide spot on the Straits, population: 40. A sawmill and a couple of other stores make up the entire business district and the whole affair is still very much in the process of being carved away from the surrounding forest. The interior of the […]

Off to the races

Posted by Ken Campbell July 5, 2009 0 Comment 905 views

Well, the first annual Freedom Fair Battle of the Paddle is in the books, or it would be if there were any books. On details, I feel I am woefully short, but then I wasn’t really watching the race, I was too busy being in it. There were 10 participants (9 men, 1 woman), the […]

Independence Day

Posted by Ken Campbell July 4, 2009 1 Comment 1041 views

First of all, a raising of the glass to our veterans and currently serving military members. For your continued service, in austere and often hostile environments, for standing in our place in some of the most difficult places on Earth, we thank you. Be safe and come home soon. For as long as it’s mattered, […]

Mr. Wood

Posted by Ken Campbell July 3, 2009 0 Comment 975 views

Many of Robert Wood’s best books are out-of-print now, which is a shame. I understand why the guide books might be discontinued, since they need to be revised and rewritten every now and then to keep them current. (Bob Wood doesn’t update his work much anymore on account of he died some years ago.) So, […]

A Progress report

Posted by Ken Campbell July 1, 2009 0 Comment 949 views

And, just like that… like snow melting, like the greening of the trees, like the breathy cheeps of the young birds in their nests. It’s over, just like that. Bears awaken from dark dens to the light of another season; birds manuever back north once again. The moments blur together into one long chunk of […]