Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

A few weeks ago, while weather in Seattle was waxing hot and hotter, I nabbed my backpacking pal Zeke and headed to the WA coast to hike the Ozette Triangle, with extras. It's peak season for backpacking, but by going midweek we were able to nab a permit for a nearly empty camping area at the mouth of the Ozette River (adding about 5 miles to make a two-day trip of just under 14 miles. I started early from my home in Seattle, choosing to drive around via Tacoma rather than take the ferry across the Sound (total time isn't much different, and the gaps between ferries were inconvenient).  Zeke brought Second Breakfast (some tasty home-made "egg mcmuffins" with bacon, a total treat for me), and we were ready to hike by half past 11.  Crossing the Ozette River where it leaves Ozette Lake. The river meanders a lot to cover less than 2 linear miles and drop about 150' to the ocean. Our trail cut a (comparatively) straight line through the forest instead, though I think ...

Before I get to my review, I need to report that reality has struck and I've shifted my launch date back to August 25. With luck, I can actually get all the parts together by then! Why does every book take at least a long as the last? You'd think I'd get the system down and be faster at this!   Now, on to today's feature: a great book I got for Xmas, about the first botanists to run the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, collecting botanical samples all the way!   Title : Brave the Wild River: The Untold Story of Two Women Who Mapped the Botany of the Grand Canyon Author: Melissa L. Sevigny  Publication Info: WW Norton, 2023. 290 pages in paperback. Source: Xmas gift  Publisher's Blurb: In the summer of 1938, botanists Elzada Clover and Lois Jotter set off down the Colorado River, accompanied by an ambitious expedition leader and three amateur boatmen. With its churning rapids, sheer cliffs, and boat-shattering boulders, the Colorado was famed as the mo...

A few weeks ago a friend came to visit, and I outfitted us both with backpacking gear (yes, I can fully gear up at least one extra person, if they can fit the same size pack I do) for an overnight hike in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness (Washington). Our goal: Pratt Lake, about 6 miles in from the Talapus Lake Trailhead. Why? Because sleeping in the mountains is not only the best way to get good light for photos (weather permitting, which it didn't really), but is just good for the soul. We packed light for a fast overnight, which keeps it more fun. I didn't think there would be great photo ops, and decided to take only my cell phone, not the "real" camera (also left the camera because it looked like it could rain on us). I am pleased with how well the photos came out.   We waited to leave home until after the morning commute, so had lunch at the trailhead and started hiking after noon.  Pete Possum, raring for another adventure.  Less than 2 miles of easy climbing took u...