Category: Pt. Defiance Park

Most of the three-day weekend was devoted to family, so I had no time for reading or birding. I’m afraid you’ll have to settle for rhododendrons today. Debbie is a master gardener, so it was a no-brainer to take her, Jeff and Max for a long walk through the Pt. Defiance Rhododendron garden, even though I usually avoid going there when there are so many people.

I noticed that some early bloomers have already lost their flowers and a few others seemed past their prime, but I didn’t hear anyone complaining. There were even a few new rhodies blooming:

and several of those that were beginning to bloom when I was there a week ago are just now in their prime:

Since I’m heading to Colorado for a week this Friday, it might well have been the last chance I get to visit them this year.

I’d originally intended to include a couple more shots from yesterday’s trip to Nisqually because I didn’t plan on getting out today to take photographs. After two and half hours of exercise at the Y, I’m generally not up to going for a long nature walk.

However, it was sunny this afternoon despite the forecast of rain or snow for the next three or four days so I was tempted to head down to the Point Defiance boathouse. I was delighted to discover that my favorite Belted Kingfisher was sitting on his usual perch, just waiting to see me before flying off. But I sat around visiting with some fishermen long enough that he came back and stayed around long enough for me to get several good shots.

But he didn’t stay around nearly as long as this Red-Necked Grebe, or get nearly as close. I felt like I was having lunch with him as he came up with several delicious looking shrimp, larger than any I thought existed in Puget Sound. I found it fascinating watching him dive, particularly the way his feet propelled him as he dove and swam.

I also liked this picture of a Common Goldeneye, who wasn’t nearly as excited about sticking around to have its picture taken:

I know better, but I can’t help but believe that the weather is plotting against me. I finally got some camera gear I ordered over a month ago, and I’ve been trying to get out birding since Monday. Monday and Tuesday were so dark and drizzly I knew that I wouldn’t be able to get a decent picture even if I saw birds. I figured today would be a good day because I had to wait for the furnace repairman, but thought perhaps I could go birding after he finished. No such luck, it was still overcast and misty, and the latest forecast suddenly called for rain today.

About 1:30, though, the clouds split away and for a moment I thought I was back in Colorado. Of course, it was too late to go birding, which was what I really wanted to do, but at least I could try out the new equipment at Pt. Defiance.

I thought these fuchsias were as red as any I’ve ever seen:

This is a pompom dahlia, which generally aren’t my favorite variety, but this one certainly seemed to radiate the sunshine back today:

And finally I managed to get a decent shot of these fall crocuses that I’ve tried repeatedly to get a good shot of without little or no luck. They’re really more translucent than even this shot suggests, but I still love the colors:

Today was supposed to be the sunny day of the week, and I was planning to go to Nisqually since I haven’t been there for two weeks. It was clear when I woke up, though, that the sky was anything but clear, with dark, threatening clouds hanging barely above our rooftop.

So I decided to stay home, nursing my bronchitis and try to get caught up on some projects I promised to do but had to put off after yesterday’s web site problems. I managed to get quite a lot done and still take Skye for his morning walk. All in all, it was turning into a rather productive day.

Then at 1:30, too late to go to Nisqually, it turned beautifully sunny. So I did the only thing I could, head to Pt Defiance Rose Garden to take pictures of the Dahlias.

The first thing I saw when I arrived was the sun shining through this yellow and orange dahlia, glowing with translucence.

Then I walked around to the other side and was equally struck by the brilliant gold, yellow, and red colors, solid and steadfast.

When I got home, I couldn’t decide which shot best captured the brief but brilliant fall sunshine.

So I spent an hour or two with Photoshop, trying to discover a fresh way of conveying the joy I always feel here in the Pacific Northwest when sunshine bursts through days of clouds, and everything seems cleaner, brighter, and fresher than before the rain descended.