Short Trips
Unfortunately, trying to schedule my first-ever Amtrak train trip was a bit of a logistical nightmare. But in the end, train travel turned out to be just as pleasant and entertaining as train riders have described it to me over the years.
My goal was to travel by train from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C., and to Portland in relatively leisurely fashion in three days. Most importantly, as a novice I wanted to get in touch with the basics of train travel, especially with the busy holiday travel season here.
By Jeff Larsen | December 4, 2003
Hike of the Week
Hikers and naturalists will enjoy exploring Woodard Bay, one of the state's first natural resource conservation areas, situated in Thurston County, only 15 minutes from Olympia.
The 600-acre area was opened and dedicated in 2002. Taxpayers restored several trails and structures on the site, a major Puget Sound logging facility in the first half of the 20th century.
In addition to trails and interpretive signs, work included converting an old logging camp skid shack to a historical structure with fixtures from bygone logging days.
By Karen Sykes | December 4, 2003
Birders' Top Spots
Location: Off Chuckanut Drive, south of Bellingham.
Habitat: A 2,683-acre park with mountain lookouts, lakes, coniferous and deciduous forests, saltwater coves and rocky tidepools.
Best seasons for birding: Good year-round.
December 4, 2003
MOSES LAKE Birding isn't just about watching pretty winged creatures and figuring out what they are. It's also about observing little dramas in the field and wondering what they mean.
Such as dozens of common coots bouncing around a bay, bunched up in a tight little circle like bobblehead dolls having an anxiety attack which meant a huge and hungry bald eagle has just perched on a cottonwood tree 100 feet overhead.
By Greg Johnston | December 4, 2003
