Views of Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula. . .and beyond
There was a classic car show yesterday as part of Sequim’s annual Irrigation Festival (a celebration of channeled water that allowed farming to start here over 120 years ago). As is fitting for such a celebration, it rained. On top of that, we went late. There weren’t many cars still there but the ones we saw were interesting. Like this three wheeler.
It was pretty tricked out.
This piece of land juts out at the base of the bluffs at Dungeness Recreation Area. It’s taken a beating over the last year and is a fraction of the size it once was. We’ve paid attention to it because from time to time it’s been a perch for a passing eagle and lots of seagulls.
Here’s what it looked like about 18 months ago when we were shocked to discover a photographer and model had scrambled onto it for a photo shoot.
The trail along the Dungeness Recreation Area bluffs continues to erode, chunk by chunk. Before this part of the trail was rerouted we were shocked to suddenly discover a gap alongside it where land had previously been.
The margin of vegetation previously extended alongside the trail where the land now has a gaping hole. Wind, erosion, sandy soil, and waves pounding at the base of this cliff take their toll. Terra firma isn’t so firm here.
Incidentally, the curve of white you see in the distance in these shots is the surf hitting the Dungeness Spit, the longest natural sand spit in the United States. At its tip, a bit over 5 miles in the distance, is the (unseen) New Dungeness Light Station.
We’ve had a lot of wind lately. Not only is there a pileup of sand along the road’s edge at Dungeness Recreation Area most plants anywhere near the bluffs are frosted with it.
You can find pretty much anything you need in Sequim or nearby Port Angeles. For some things there isn’t always a vast array of choices. But I guess I haven’t cruised the cookie aisle at Safeway lately. The Oreo selection, which takes up most of this shot, stopped me in my tracks.
Oreos aren’t usually on my radar. Last I noticed there were Oreos and Oreos with extra filling. Now it’s either classic chocolate or vanilla cookies. And the fillings? Ready? I may have missed some but here goes: Fudge creme, mint, peanut butter, red velvet, mega stuf, heads or tails double stuf, birthday cake, triple double, minis, low fat, lemon…and something called “spring,” which as far as I can tell is the standard Oreo cookie with the filling dyed yellow. I have no idea what “heads or tails double stuf” is. Or “triple double,” for that matter. Don’t make me decide.
We vote by mail in Washington state. We can also leave our ballots in drop boxes. Sequim’s drop box was recently replaced with a new, larger version to accommodate anticipated high turnouts for our presidential primary on May 24.
Our ballots arrived last weekend and we deposited them in the new drop box. I don’t exaggerate when I say that the box was swarmed with voters.
While I was there – the time I took to walk up to the box to deposit ballots and take these shots – the traffic past the box was constant. And ballots aren’t due for two weeks. I think most observers would agree we’ve never seen anything like this election.
We had rain forecast over the last week or two and had virtually none. This is from a wetter day last month.