Breathing Space – May 24/13

The flora of Chuckanut Drive and Deception Pass State Park carry unique beauty. There were many colorful blooms to brighten my day.

Breathing Space – May 23/13 For the Birds!

Copyright, Sheri J. Kennedy

Be sure to also see HD video of goslings grazing HERE and HERE and red-winged blackbirds calling and eagles perching at wetlands HERE. The whole gallery is from my day trip last Saturday. The brown creeper was spotted by my ‘niece’ along Chuckanut Drive, and the close-up eagle shots were along the road in the Skagit Valley. The rest were in various parts of Deception Pass State Park. There is a saltwater passage, beach, rocky cliffs, sandy cliffs, a fresh water lake, wetlands and a dune area all within about a mile and a half. Teeming with life would be accurate. I hope you enjoy this bird’s eye view!

Bald eagle in classic pose

Bald eagles over wetlands

Brown creeper zipping along tree trunk

Geese with gosling

Geese family in peaceful setting

Goldfinch in wetlands area

Gosling siblings

Goslings grazing together

Goslings grazing

Goslings in unison

Goslings by canoes

Gosling solo

Gull near the dunes area

Gull with beach

Gulls on the wing

Gulls near the passage under the bridge

Pigeon Guillemot on open water near cut

Red-winged blackbird near lake

Red-winged blackbird over grass of wetlands

Red-winged blackbird showing his colors

rough-winged swallows, 3 perching

Rough-winged swallow at nest

Rough-winged swallow leaving nest

Rough-winged swallow perching from behind

Rough-winged swallows on the wing

Goose with her watchful gander

White-crowned sparrow near dunes

Breathing Space – May 22/13

A handsome Canadian goose and one of his new goslings graze peacefully by the lake.

Breathing Space – May 21/13

With tenacious beauty the wildflowers cling to the cliffside.

Breathing Space – May 20/13

Down by the water the grass gave way to layers of driftwood and the islands seemed to float off into the distance.

 

A Word a Week Photo Challenge – Face

A couple more photos from my visit to Deception Pass State Park yesterday fit the theme for this week’s photo challenge :

Rock Face

Cliff Face

850 year old Douglas Fir Tree – Twisted in the Dunes

At Deception Pass State Park yesterday, Brianna and I enjoyed the unique ecosystem of the dunes area. She is 5 feet tall which gives you the scale of this ancient tree. It has grown low and twisted due to the salt wind off the ocean. I felt privileged to sit within its arms.

Breathing Space – May 19/13 – Poetry Edition

 

Springing from the depths of time

Young leaves unfurl

verdant with the sun’s

newest light

arrived from an age gone by.

Roots mine the heights of mystery

Free in the cooling air

fresh with earthen decay’s

newest life

arrived to the birth of day.

Conifers shake their magic dust

in winds of tomorrow

Ground from the stone of ancient

fortitude.

Sifting across space and time

Reaching high to futures from pasts

unknown to all but the trees

They stand

inspiring silent awe, contented sighs

and a vibrant dance of life within

Still and flowing

A stream of refreshing stability and

ever-changing, everlasting breath.

 

-Sheri J. Kennedy

 

Breathing Space – May 18/13

A day filled with varied and wonderful sights like islands and cliffsides from the bird’s eye view of Deception Pass’ bridge.

Breathing Space – May 17/13

The dramatic weather played into gorgeous lighting on the peaks before sundown.

 

Breathing Space – May 16/13

I found a robin by its call, hardly visible perched on a rotting stump. Its song rang clear into the evening air.

Breathing Space – May 15/13

Tiny columbine blossoms are like bits of sunshine in the garden.

Breathing Space – May 14/13

New leaves and the rushing water…Spring green, so refreshing!

There and Back Again-Western & Eastern Washington State

Here’s a fun slideshow of the landscapes, art and happenstances on my recent journey to Spokane. I left the lush green of the West which you see often on Breathing Space and went over the  mountain pass to the more arid part of Washington State. It’s a 4 hour journey over diverse countryside, and Spokane–the most eastern city, was hosting Bloomsday, a world-class race. 

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