Yesterday was a grey and rainy day here in Seattle. Kelley and I were feeling a bit cooped up so we went to the park.

We go to Carkeek Park often. It’s right on Puget Sound, not far from our house. Here’s a map (click on the image to make it large enough to see the tiny red labels):

Our house is labelled A. We’re on the edge of a ravine that runs down to Pipers Creek. Here’s picture taken from point B, pointing east, upstream:

Usually at this time of year, the salmon are running. Volunteers hang coloured streamers to mark where salmon have laid eggs. (That orange strip is left over from last year.) Here’s a close-up of a salmon-friendly step in the stream:

After we’ve walked along the creek and gawped at the birds and trees, we get in the car and drive up to point C, a lookout over the sound. We often sit there for nearly an hour, talking quietly. Sometimes we don’t talk at all, just hold hands and watch the changing light. Here’s the view north up towards Edmonds, you can just see the ferry to the left:

And here’s the view straight across the sound to Bainbridge Island:

On a clear day you can see the Olympic Mountains on the Peninsula beyond. Today everything was like a ink wash, every shade of grey you could imagine.

We’ll be back at the park next week, looking for salmon–and the eagles and sea lions that follow. I’ll put these pictures up on our gallery, A View of One’s Own.