Thursday, July 16, 2015

A Country Drive with Good Fences


The fields are golden near the foothills
of the Cascade Mountains. 

It is has been very hot and dry 
with no measurable rain
since early May. 

This is very unusual. 




Fire danger is extremely high
and everyone is a little on edge.

With tall, dry timber framing parched 
fields, things can quickly 
get out of control. 



Many small brush fires have 
broken out in the Puget Sound region
(as we are called here on the western side 
of the Cascade mountains of Washington State), 
but thankfully they have been quickly 
extinguished by our brave firefighters. 

We are so grateful for them! 



With moody skies and tawny grasses, 
come along and we'll take a mid-summer's 
drive along the country roads
near my home. 

Here a circular exercise pen
for horses, is neatly 
framed with shrubs and fencing. 


A newly blacktopped stretch of road 
leads through open grassland 
towards the Cascades. 

White rail fencing underlines
the view. 


After the silo, the road 
bends sharply to the right. 

There is a large sign
preventing you from going left. 
It says,  'Absolutely No Trespassing!'
with a high locked gate and many 
stern warnings of consequence. 
I believe it is a natural gas pipeline. 


This beautiful farm sits just beyond 
with miles of white board fencing. 


Further along, a horse farm 
with four rails instead of three. 


The Cascade Mountains come into view 
once again. 
Normally, Mt. Rainier dominates
the skyline, but today it is 
hidden among the clouds. 


This is the route my Mr. takes back 
and forth to the office and 
is also the road to my eldest daughter's home. 

This is the 'back way'. 
Not a soul on the road but me! 

It's beautiful on a warm, summer day, 
but it is quite another story
on a cold, dark, rainy night! 


A few happy cows! 


Pumpkins and cornstalks growing at the local pumpkin patch. 


A patchwork road along the corn fields. 


A big new barn under construction
on this farm. 
Mt. Rainier is the usual view, 
but not today. 


A low, boggy area remains green. 


A pretty little cottage as we drive through town. 
(Sorry for the glare!)


A close-up of a beautiful garden 
back-lit by the late afternoon sunshine. 


Miniature Donkeys as we get closer to home. 


Almost home. 
Farm equipment and cattle in the field. 


All roads are dead ends. 

The main road ends at a rushing glacial river
half a mile ahead. 
This river is protected for salmon. 
Beyond that lies hundreds of miles of wilderness
all the way to Mt. Rainier and beyond. 


We turn right off the 'main' road, 
put my gray Ford Ranger in 
2nd gear, and climb to the top
of my little mountain. 

Large boulders,
 excavated when the road was built, 
 sit to the left. 

This road is impassable in snow
without 4 wheel drive and studded tires. 


Home Sweet Home. 


Thank you for coming along on this ride 
with me, Dear Friends! 


This journey just wouldn't be the same without you! 

xoxo

Today I am linking with:
Run*A*Round Ranch Report - Good Fences

Won't you join in? 

30 comments:

  1. Praying you get some much needed rain soon my Friend - that is a scary business!
    Those skies - just breath taking....like the most beautiful painting. And then put it with country roads, fences, barns and silos. Just pure country charm and beauty.

    And I LOVE your blue hydrangeas!!! Gorgeous!
    Blessings and sending rainy thoughts your way. xoxo

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  2. GORGEOUS skies!!! lovely territory you live in, but i hate the fire danger for your area. the grasses look pretty, but dry is scary!

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  3. We are feeling so blessed with our just right amount of rain here on the east coast. Oh how I wish we had great water pipelines under our land for shunting water from place to place. Impractical for the size of our nation, I guess, but something I've wished since I was little.

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  4. Hello, thank for taking me along on your journey. So many pretty sights to see. I love the critters and the pretty view of the Cascades. I hope you receive some much needed rain! Enjoy your day!

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  5. Oh I agree with Tex those skies wow those skies. Oh you live in such a beautiful place. I do hope you get your rain. My niece lives in Vancouver and another one in Whistler it is nasty dry. Whistler was surrounded by smoke for a long time it is very scary. Rain rain rain is what I say. Protecting the beauty you have. HUGS B

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  6. Hi Karen, I enjoy this drive with you and such pretty skies and fences, barns and animals! Please stop by my blog on Monday as I have a surprise for you! Have a nice weekend.
    Julie xo

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  7. Such pretty countryside! I wish I could send you and California some of our rain. We have gotten so much and the fields are flooded.
    Have a good weekend, friend!

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  8. Your photos are extraordinary today Karen! Goodness! The color contrast from the sky to the foreground is incredible!! I do wish you all would get some rain here soon....the thing is we have been getting rain everyday....I can't help but think that our environment is trying to tell us something. I loved seeing those hydrangeas friend! So lovely to go along with you today! I have been away for a bit but am back now! Missed visiting you! Nicole xo

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  9. I loved coming along with you on this drive and looking at the beautiful countryside and many different fences.

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  10. It's beautiful there but I do hope you get some significant rain soon!

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  11. Lovely countryside even though you say you need rain everything still looks lovely and green but hope you get the rain you need soon, it looks so warm as we are in the middle of winter it's very nice to see warm blue skies.
    Merle ..................

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  12. Dear Karen, my friend,
    Thank you for this wonderful Trip and all those lovely fences.
    Wishing you a wonderful weekend, sending love and hugs and blessings, Claudia

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  13. Your pictures, as always, are stunning. How wonderful to be surrounded by mountains and scenic views. Keep those pictures coming! :-)

    Marilyn (in Dallas)

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  14. I live here in Oregon and we are also having extremely dry, hot weather. There are bans on people burning stuff on their property, and several brush fires have happened from stupid people tossing cigarettes out their windows. High alert! The news said that Oregon had the hottest June on record! I am not liking the heat at all. We also have not had enough rain as compared to the usual. Scary changes happening...

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  15. It is such a pleasure to travel along with you as you drive through these stunning country scenes. Each one is so pretty. There were several photos here today that really caught my eye. I must say too that your Hydrangea's are gorgeous.

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  16. Another beautiful drive on your back roads, Karen. I always enjoy seeing the farms and views there. The photo of your blue hydrangeas is amazing. They are so pretty. Have an enjoyable weekend. I hope you get some rain soon.

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  17. It's always a joy to go along on this ride with you. Such beautiful scenery! I'm surprised to hear that you have had such a dry summer. I know my friends on the east side of the mountains have had some extremely hot temps. I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed reading your post "On Faith, Family & Friends". It was so beautiful as were the photos you shared. You have a lovely family. My best to you Karen for a wonderful weekend. Pat xx

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  18. Beautiful countryside. I love the blue hydrangeas at your place.

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  19. Sorry to read about the draught.
    The skies are absolutely beautiful on your pictures, as is your hydrangea when you come back home.

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  20. I am sure that I have said it before and will say it again, but I do love going on your drives with you!!!! It is always lovely with great things to see and new places to go! Thank you for taking us! xx

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  21. Wow such gorgeous pictures, love the big clouds in the sky, such lovely drives you have there and so peaceful and gorgeous sunset to end the day! I have been praying that you all will receive rain soon, I can only imagine how scary it is if a fire were to start

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  22. Dearest Karen,
    WOW what a wonderful series about dramatic skies. You could do several posts about the ever changing skies, apart from the scenic view, visible or not visible.
    Sending you summer hugs for a happy Sunday together.
    Mariette

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  23. Dear Karen,

    Thank you for taking us along on the lovely ride - love the skies and the wonderful cloud formation. Hope you will get some rain soon - can be hard on the garden and water tanks, if you rely on the rain to fill them.
    Happy Sunday
    hugs
    Carolyn

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  24. WOw quelles magnifiques paysages !!

    bonne semaine

    xxx Maria xxx

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  25. Beautiful country -- thanks for the ride! I sure hope you (and the rest of the parched west) get the rain you need soon.

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  26. Karen, I so love coming along with you on the country roads. The area is so pretty, but it looks like it's out in nowhere. Still, it's beautiful, and a few of the pictures quickly caught my eye, especially those pumpkins. Autumn is my favorite season, and I'm looking forward to tasting all things pumpkin. I think I mentioned to you that I have a country road by our house that I often drive, but there is usually a car here and there that passes me by. To have this road all to yourself would be so peaceful. Those clouds look like maybe rain coming your way? Your blue hydrangeas look so charming in front of your home.

    Thank you for the drive, Karen. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

    ~Sheri

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  27. That was a lovely drive - I do hope you stay safe from fires ....... and the front of your home is just lovely!!

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  28. Lovely journey with you
    Dazzlingzest.blogspot.com

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  29. Lovely journey with you
    Dazzlingzest.blogspot.com

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  30. I am sorry you are having a dry spell! I would happily send some of these monsoon rains your way! :-) Beautiful views on your drive! It is so gorgeous there!

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments are important to me and are very much appreciated. xx Karen

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