Crabbing...

This past weekend we were invited to join our neighbor James on his boat to go crabbing. He's got quite the set up and we had a great time! On board were James, Bill, Daryl and I. We left from Camano Island State Park and dropped four pots on the north side of the island. After dropping the pots we headed over to Deception Pass - wow, it's so beautiful from the water!! From there we stopped at Oak Harbor for a bathroom break and then back to check on our pots. Once re-baited and moved slightly, we enjoyed a nice lunch in the sun. Our total catch was 15 crabs. James brought his big cooking pot over... I just could not be outside when they were being put into the pot, my heart goes out to all living things - ocean bugs included.

Daryl ended up with the task of getting them cooked since James had to leave. Mishelle and Ryan came over to eat some of it though - and thankfully so - we didn't know what to do with them!

Click the photos to view them larger, enjoy!

Floating Picnics

This is what we call a day on the boat where we don't find a marina to dock at. Instead we find a nice quiet bay somewhere and drop anchor, turn on the music, have lunch, sip a few beers and lay in the sun. The boat rocks gently with the waves, the sea air smells so nice and occasionally we see a little wildlife. This past weekend we took the boat out Saturday and Sunday. Our friend Joan came along on Saturday; Sunday we had Ryan, Mishelle and their kids Kennedy and Connor. Good times.....

Big Four Ice Caves

Daryl had Friday off work so we wanted to get the boys out and do something fun; it's been blazing hot the last few weeks (it even reached 105 degrees at our house!). My ankle wasn't quite ready for a long or difficult hike so we settled on the Big Four Ice Caves. It's a nice stroll through the forest, 2 miles round trip. The trail is very well maintained and fairly level. It was beautiful all the way through, but the end was stunning. There were many waterfalls on the face of the mountain, a huge pile of snow at the bottom caused by avalances, the caves just starting to form and wildflowers in bloom.

The ice caves are caused by wind that comes over the mountain (Big Four Mountain) and blows down the face, under the avalanche. As the air blows through and the snow starts to melt a cave is formed. They collapse easily so walking inside or on them is not recommended. Standing at the mouth of a cave you are treated to a nice cold blast of air. It was soooo refreshing! The ranger said September/October they get quite big. There is a snow cave about 3/4 mile away and he said it's the biggest he's ever seen it. We didn't hike to it, but I did get a picture.

On our way out Daryl took the boys down to the Stillaguamish River to play in the water for a bit. CJ was hesitant about getting in, but not Storm! There was a log sticking out of the water and both boys swam out to it and pulled as hard as they could - never able to unearth it. When Daryl was ready to get going again, he called CJ to him... CJ started to come, saw the leash and went running for the river. NOW he wants to get in. It was quite funny watching this happen a few times before Daryl finally starting walking off without him. CJ must have realized Daryl really meant it, so he sulked back to his leash. Click the photos to view a larger size... enjoy!The Ice Caves
The Ice Caves - Storm
The Ice Caves - CJ
CJ retrieving the stick
Storm retrieving the stick
Base of snow and wildflowers
Beautiful Scenery
Snow cave with waterfall above
Waterfalls on the side of the mountain
Boys playing in the Stilly river