Pacific/Desert

Land of Enchantment

Published July 3, 2015

Extra day off work, 5 hour drive south on I-25 = happy 3-day marathon weekend (no airport 🙂 )

Not being a hot weather runner, struggled with the idea of where to run New Mexico – only 2 organized marathons [in New Mexico], Shiprock in Four Corners (May) & Duke City in Albuquerque (September). Then – out of nowhere received notice of a brand-new event coming to Angel Fire, a small northern New Mexico ski town. SCORE!

Wait – New Mexico in July? Marathoning at 8800ft? Yikes!

Amazing arid landscape – love New Mexico – but not a lotta in Angel Fire during the summer (same as many Colorado ski towns). Bib pick-up, stopped by Vietnam Veterans Memorial Park, then 45 minutes west thru Carson Nat’l Forest to Taos.

Shopping, open air markets, outdoor dining, large local artist community – day trip recommend. Fun, laid-back atmosphere.

Closest 4^th of July firework display? An hour east in Eagle Nest. Argh, would have to pass this year.

Early to bed, early to rise – tomorrow’s marathon day at 8800ft!

: holiday road trip to the Land of Enchantment

: Mexican Bush Sage

: adobe architecture reflects the heritage of New Mexico

: open air markets, art galleries, outdoor dining & whole lotta shopping

: 4th of July holiday weekend

Catch the Whale Plane

Published June 14, 2015

Early Sunday rise – pumped, excited – vacation highlight: downtown to Lake Union for an 8am seaplane departure to San Juan Island on the US-Canadian border. Prop plane loaded, looped Seattle’s city lake, speed increase & UP…on our way. 45 short minutes later, circled once, water landed in Friday Harbor WA. Awesome ride, super convenient.

Weather plays a HUGE role in life in the Northwest. Cool temps, dense fog, steady mist, drizzle. Our day? Sunshine, all day long. Couldn’t ask for better weather 🙂

Pier walk, short jot into town, breakfast at Cask & Schooner, tour check-in.

Boarded MV Sea Lion; charter advertised “over 90% whale sightings”. Sign me up! First Orca adventure – killer whales, wolves of the sea. These massive mammals hunt in packs, often toying with their prey before flesh tearing into dinner. Intelligent, majestic, SeaWorld giants – but don’t be fooled, these giants are meat-eaters. Social creatures migrating up-n-down the Pacific Coast – Washington, BC & Alaska (summers), Baja California (winter).

WHALE! Not one whale, but an entire pod. SPECTACULAR!

Trademark black-n-white markings – just out there in the wild – no words.

Our boat briefly crossed into Canada, following multiple family pods hugging the northern shoreline in search of seal. Stunning landscape, tree line, glacier-fed bays, ocean channels, snow-capped Mount Baker. Incredible scenic wonder.

Whatta day, whatta adventure. ‘Catch the Whale Plane’ – highly recommended.

Free Msg! Welcome to Canada. Dial +1 & 10-digit# to call US. Global Data: $2.05/MB. Turn data services off in device settings or use Wi-Fi to avoid charges. Sent from my iPhone

: downtown Seattle to San Juan Island in under an hour

: water landing in scenic Friday Harbor

: next stop, breakfast

: 3-hour whaling adventure

: family pod of orcas

: W-H-A-L-E

: Boundary Pass, between Gulf Islands Canada & San Juan Islands USA (background, Mount Baker)

Orca Adventure (clip 1)

Orca Adventure (clip 2)

Posted in Pacific/Desert | Tagged watercraft, whale | Leave a comment

Chihuly Garden & Seattle Space Needle

Published June 13, 2015

WaMu Theatre, great air-conditioned place to recover after marathon finish 32. Jurassic World, while not as good as the original – most sequels aren’t – still worth seeing for the special effects. Can never go wrong with dinosaurs 🙂

Already been a FULL marathon day – literally. Ran 26.2 miles, ate lunch, watched a sell-out movie – sadly, no shower. Bathroom flash bath as good as it’s gonna get this day. Space Needle. Can’t visit Seattle without riding up the Needle, right? Tickets weren’t good for 2 more hours – next up: Chihuly Garden…Ash’s idea.

Never imagined a botanical garden walk would have made the list after marathoning. Day highlight. Would have missed out on an AMAZING experience. Glass artwork juxtaposed within a botanical setting – SPECTACULAR. So unique, absolutely nothing like it.

Toured indoors, outdoors. Leg weary, watched short films ‘bout Dale Chihuly’s installations in Jerusalem & Finland – before realizing time had quickly expired…almost missed our Space Needle queue. Yikes!

Space Needle Observation Deck – great views of Seattle, something you’re supposed to do. Chihuly Garden & Glass – something you HAVE to do when visiting Seattle. Seriously recommended.

Whatta day – shower & bed couldn’t have come any sooner.

Tomorrow, another early vacation start – trip highlight: seaplane to San Juan Island, breakfast in Friday Harbor, followed by an orca (killer whale) adventure…sailing north in Canadian waters. WOW, WOW, WOW!