Fidalgo Island Crossings

Winter here, in the classic sense, begins in December and runs through early to mid January.  This is when temperatures at or below freezing occur.  Since Christmas, we have been experiencing temperatures well below freezing accompanied by sunny, blue skies. That's about to come to an end now with rain forecast for this weekend.  I decided I better get one more hike in before this happens. Early yesterday morning I headed for Bowman Bay in Deception Pass State Park to hike the Bowman-Rosario Trail .  This is always a good choice for beautiful scenery. interesting nature and frequent wildlife encounters.  It also provides a little terrain for a bit of exercise.  It begins at sea level, rises to skirt the cliff edge over Bowman Bay, then returns to sea level at Rosario Bay. I love hiking in the winter.  I am not really a hot weather person.  Dressing for cold weather is easy, but undressing for hot weather can only be taken so far.  For ...

Back in March of 2015, I found these beautifully constructed cairns on the beach at Lighthouse Point in Deception Pass State Park .  Lighthouse and Lotte Points are the grassy stone outcrops that can be seen from the Deception Pass Bridge looking west.  The Lighthouse Point Trail runs from Bowman Bay to the shore of Deception Pass.  As I always say, when you go hiking, you never know what you might find. Humans have been piling stones for various reasons since prehistory.  The Vikings built stone altars called Hörgar.  The word cairn comes from Scots Gaelic càrn (plural càirn ).  The ancient Celts built cairns to mark important places or events or to commemorate the graves of loved ones and important people.  The Arabic word rujm ( رجم)  appears in place names and refers to piles of stones.  In the Sinai Desert, stone piles or altars are thought by some to mark the path of the ancient Israelites in their exodus from Egypt. In...

In a previous post , I spoke of the Red Rock Quarry next to the new John Tursi Trail as a source of stone for Causland Memorial Park.  This is Causland Memorial Park in Anacortes, Washington. Originally, the park was built as a memorial to World War I veterans from Anacortes.  Later memorials were added for World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.  The park is named for Harry Leon Causland, "one of the one hundred immortals D.S.C. 6795."  He received the Distinguished Service Cross for actions in France that resulted in his death.  Fourteen others from Fidalgo, Guemes, Decatur and Cypress Islands are also named in the memorial.  The park is listed in the National Register of Historic Places . On the day I visited, the flag was at half staff in recognition of the Orlando, Florida nightclub slayings. What makes Causland Park unique are the colored stone mosaics that decorate the bandstand and surrounding wall.  The source of the stone...

A brand new hiking trail is now open on Fidalgo Island.   The John Tursi Trail (.pdf) connects Campbell Lake with the Ginnett Hill summit in Deception Pass State Park.  I hiked this trail last week, and I have to say, it was a real adventure.  The new trail makes it possible to hike between Pass Lake in the park and Campbell Lake, about 2.5 miles/4 km altogether.  For this first hike, I just walked the 1.1 mile stretch from Donnell Road to Ginnett and back. Be aware and respectful that the Donnell Road trailhead is on private property.  Find it at the end of the road, on the right, just before the obvious "Private Property" signs.  Also, you may not park on Donnell Road.  Use the paved parking strip at the intersection of Campbell Lake Road, Heart Lake Road and Sharpe Road.  It will then be about a half mile walk to the trailhead. John Tursi in 2010, Skagit Land Trust photo, by permission The trail honors the legacy of John Tursi ....