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Weekend Photos: Timberline Trail, Mt. Hood

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It's the weekend, and time for more eye candy! Back at the very end of August I joined my brother-in-law and his nephew in a 4-night, 5-day backpack on the Timberline Trail around Mt. Hood in Oregon. At about 42 miles, with around 10,000' of up and down (if you think a trail that draws a circle around a mountain stays at the same elevation, think again!), we chose to take our time. We met a startling number of people with a different approach: trail runners doing the whole thing in one day. I admire them and envy them, but my days of imagining I can emulate them are definitely over. Since we started with a four-hour drive down from Seattle, we didn't hit the trail until 2 p.m. the first day. That meant hiking until dinner time to get to a particularly scenic campsite in Paradise Park. The first photo is by my brother-in-law, photographer Tom Dempsey, whose amazing work can be found at Photoseek.com . At the risk of making you lose all interest in my post, his take on the tr

IWSG: Horrors!

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  It's the first Wednesday of the month, and time for another IWSG post.   Purpose:   To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting:   The first Wednesday of every month is officially   Insecure Writer’s Support Group   day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!   Don't forget you can post your link on the IWSG Facebook page !   Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG   The awesome co-hosts for the October 2 posting of

Cozy Mystery Review and Author Guest Post: Gone Crazy, by Terry Korth Fisher

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Thanks to the author and Great Escapes virtual tours for the chance to read and review this cozy mystery. Gone Crazy (Rory Naysmith Mysteries) by Terry Korth Fischer 5-STARS With its sensitive depiction of Native Americans and solid, rich characters, Gone Crazy thoroughly entertained me. ~Novels Alive About Gone Crazy Gone Crazy (Rory Naysmith Mysteries) Mystery 3rd in Series Setting – Nebraska Publisher ‏ : ‎ The Wild Rose Press, Inc. (July 22, 2024) Paperback ‏ : ‎ 284 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1509255974 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1509255979 Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D47XQ8WZ A formal declaration of love scares the bejesus out of small-town Detective Rory Naysmith. As Valentine’s Day approaches, he evaluates his relationship with bookkeeper Esther Mullins, and decides to take her on a romantic date that ends with a poet’s murder. Assigned to the case, Rory pushes his private life aside. Things gets tricky after Esther is appointed Executrix for the estate—then rumors start that

Weekend Photos: Goat Rocks Concluded

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Back in August, I spent 12 days walking an 80-mile segment of the Washington PCT (Pacific Crest Trail). So far I've featured the 1st three days and a bit, from our start near Crystal Mountain Ski Area to Chinook Pass, and a couple of days continuing south into the William O. Douglas wilderness. Last weekend we started into the Goat Rock s, and today we'll conclude the trip (so I can move on to the next one, and the one after that, and the one I'm about to do... I'm spending a lot of time in the wilderness and not so much working on that novel...). I left Hidden Springs, my 8th camp of the trip, fairly late. I didn't have a long hike planned for the day, so enjoyed my morning, taking time to contemplate the terrain I was about to hike through. The heart of the Goat Rocks. The trail promptly descended several hundred feet to Teiton Pass, deep in the forest (how wrong is that?), before climbing to a much more dramatic saddle with no name, but fantastic views. This