A Drive in the Countryside

Yesterday we took a little drive. 

We headed towards Issaquah, WA, ( pronounced Iss'-a-kwa ) tucked into the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. 

To get there we passed through some pretty farmland. 

Here we go......

We crossed the White River, so named from the white glacial silt coming down from Mt. Rainier. It is not flowing very high yet, but in a few weeks when the snow starts to melt, this will be a raging river. 

As you can see, the skies were very moody. You can see the snow field on the mountains in the background. 

The fields are very dry and brown. You can see some teasel growing in this field. The Mountains are a lovely purple against the colorless landscape. 

In this photo you can see an ancient barn settling into the landscape, surrounded by very tall Douglas Fir trees and nearly covered by blackberries. 

This barn looks like it is a well used roost, judging by the white streaks left behind! These are seagulls - many miles from salt water! There are plenty of slugs to eat in the surrounding fields, though! 

Need hay? 

As we leave the farmland behind, and travel along the base of the foothills, we come into a logging area replanted with small trees. 

Logging is a big industry here in Washington State, although it has been hit hard by the housing recession and many are out of work. 

After driving for over an hour through a narrow river valley, we come into signs of life once more. Issaquah is an old logging town that has been reinvented into a posh little enclave of high end shops and housing for tech workers from Microsoft and other high tech companies in Redmond, which is close by. 

This old Gas Station has been reinvented into a feed store and tourist destination. 

I have not come through town when it is open, but one of these days, I will get a chance to go inside. 

Even the car wash is fancy! This is a Brown Bear car wash with it's ferocious looking mascot. 

He has two companions to keep him company! 

We leave Issaquah and drive alongside Lake Sammamish. (pronounced Sa-Mam'-ish, named after the Sammamish Indian tribe).

The whole lake is surrounded by beautiful lakeside homes. 

At the far end, there is a walking trail. They are working on expanding this trail and we saw workers doing just that as we drove by. 

I made a mental note to come back this summer and walk the trail. 

Soon we arrive at our destination - to check on this handsome fellow while my son is out of town. 

He was very happy to see us and we stayed and played with him a while. 

This is the view out the window. Can you see the Space Needle rising above the tree line? 

It was a lovely drive, but now we must make the long journey back home as the sun begins to set. 

I hope you enjoyed taking this country drive with me! 

I hope you had a wonderful weekend. 

xoxo

Linking to: http://bluffareadaily.blogspot.com/2013/02/watery-wednesday.html

Linking to: http://www.theviewfromrighthere.com/blog/?p=9512