On the way back from our camping trip last week as we crossed the Puyallup River, our local volcano, AKA “the mountain,” was out and glorious. Taking lots of photos from the car window sometimes lucks out. This one is SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), not even cropped. Not bad!

Visit Skywatch Friday, Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Weekend Reflections, Blue Monday, and Thursday Challenge (theme is Blue). Do see what else is fun around here first! Click on the tag of “scenic” perhaps?

I just felt like revisiting and sharing this scene, from a camping trip we took last August to the Dungeness Recreation Area near Sequim (pronounced skwim) on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. This area gets much, much more sunshine than the surrounding areas including Seattle, let alone the rainforest. There is a simple trail along the bluff over the water that is astoundingly scenic. The water is Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, I believe, with Canada a short bit across the water to the right. I hope you enjoy this vista. I like it so much I’m calling it my Best Post of the Week.

Visit Outdoor Wednesday, Watery Wednesday, Skywatch Friday, Scenic Sunday, Pink Saturday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera) and Wordless Wednesday for more photo fantasticness. Always find the latest posts here by clicking on the Sara’s Fave Photos banner above. Maybe try a new category like Nature first? Thanks so much for visiting.

On a trip up to Camano Island yesterday, just loving that sunshine, there was the Stillaguamish River (the “Stilly”) and the magnificent snow-capped Cascade Mountains as a backdrop. Today all is cloudy again, but it was so nice while it lasted.

Speaking of sunshine, I am headed south to the San Francisco area (Wine Country, here I come!) to visit and take in the Impressionist show at the de Young Museum, as the show is soon to head back to Paris. Paintings just look so different in person, and it’s much easier to get to San Francisco than Paris. I can’t wait, as great weather is predicted and it will be so good to hang with the peeps again. It will mean time off from this blog and Free Photos, but just for a week. I’ll be back before you know it with lots of new photos.

In the meantime, be sure to visit Watery Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday, and do browse around here and Free Photos while you’re here. Ta-ta!

That overlook near my house in Normandy Park, Washington didn’t disappoint in yesterday’s good weather at sunset. Mount Rainier is lookin’ picture-postcard good. Those tiny orange-leafed trees and houses seem very much like a painting that I’ve seen somewhere. And did you realize that even though it’s pronounced rah-NEER, it’s spelled like “rain-ier” (rainy-er!) which I think is a hoot. And that helps you remember to put in both i’s.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies around the world, and Scenic Sunday for more scenery (of course).

One post only on this page means there’s lots more to see if you click on Sara’s Fave Photos. Do try something new here, perhaps a search for “Rainier”?

Nothing like a waterfront park, is there? Seahurst Park, this little gem of a local park in Burien, Washington, looks out over Puget Sound to some islands and the Olympic Mountains in the distance. I think it’s lovely in the late afternoon, with the soft light falling on the new grass, happy with all the rain we’ve been getting. The leaves are going to sleep, but the lawns are waking up!

Visit Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Midweek Blues (a new meme!), Blue Monday and Scenic Sunday for more photos on the theme.

If you’d like to view the complete blog and there’s only one photo on this page, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the whole enchilada.

These butterfly-shaped orchids are irresistable. I love the way there is a whole stream of them on one stem, one behind the other. I took this photo at Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle not too long ago. Orchids are amazing and there seem to be some in bloom throughout the entire year at the Conservatory. Whatever they do, it’s working.

Visit Macro Flowers Saturday , Color Carnival , Pink Saturday and SOOC (straight out of the camera) if you have time. Great photos there.

While you are here, be sure to explore and do a search (orchid?) or a new tag (magenta?). And to get to the latest post and the full blog, click on Sara’s Fave Photos, here or above.

These are so pretty, aren’t they? I didn’t have a strong zoom lens and you can’t get too close without scaring them off the rocks, our boat captain (hi Chuck!) told us, so here’s a group portrait of harbor seals for you, taken on the waters off Anacortes, WA.

Watery Wednesday has amazing water photos of all sorts, Outdoor Wednesday has outdoor shots and Camera Critters, well, you get the idea. Also, Scenic Sunday and Weekend Reflections are well worth visiting.

Browse around here in a new search, tag or category. Water, perhaps? And you can always return to the latest post by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

I had such a wonderful day today. Friends with a boat took us crabbing out from Anacortes, Washington, which is a couple of hours north of Seattle on Puget Sound, and the weather even turned fine. Scenic and delicious—my kind of day.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies seen round the world, Blue Monday, Scenic Sunday and Weekend Reflections, too. SOOC has more straight-out-of-the-camera shots.

I’ve tagged this post Best Post of the Week because it really floats my boat (almost literally!). And don’t forget to feed the fish at the bottom of the page.

There was a dance thing at Sculpture Park in Seattle tonight, part of the Dancing til Dusk series the city has put on this summer. If you’d like to see a video of a great waltz demo, you can see it here: Waltz Demo. But the setting overshadowed even the great dancing for awhile, as the sunset turned into one of those red fire ones. This is straight out of the camera, handheld, and no special settings or cropping, either. I’m calling it my Best Post of the Week.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies seen round the world, and Scenic Sunday rocks. Color Carnival and Weekend Reflections are great, too.

Try a new tag or category today. Sunset, perhaps? And you can return to the full blog, if you’ve arrived via a link, by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

On a recent morning, this woman was calmly paddling her board across the shallow waters out towards the deeper waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, or all the way to Canada for all I know. I love the look of still water, and reflections are a bonus.

Visit Watery Wednesday, Blue Monday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday and Weekend Reflections for more interesting photos with a theme.

While you are here, you might as well explore a bit. Click on a new tag. Blue, perhaps? And if you’ve arrived via a link, be sure to click on Sara’s Fave Photos to see the entire blog. And check out my new book, Flowers of Volunteer Park Conservatory, if you have a moment, for more beautiful photography.

Here’s a misty sunset from that bluff trail in the Dungeness Recreation Area near Sequim, WA. I haven’t seen the sun set over the water in a long, long time—not since I was in Venice, California many years ago. I love the opalescent look the water gets reflecting the late day sky. I’ve posted this entry my Best Post of the Week.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies seen round the world. Also, Scenic Sunday is well worth a visit.

While you’re here, you might try a category like Waterscape, just for grins. And if you’ve arrived via the permalink, the way to the latest post is right here, Sara’s Fave Photos.

Driving on the Seattle Viaduct the other evening, there was an incredible sunset. Actually, hubby was driving and I was leaning across him and shooting out his open window. We don’t get too sunsets like this, believe me. When I saw the photos later, I was amazed to see a parasailor up there. What a view he or she must have had! Puget Sound is one gorgeous place, when the light is right especially.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more wonderful sky photos, and Scenic Sunday for more scenegasms. Color Carnival, anyone? Be sure to visit Weekend Reflections, too. While you are here, you might as well try a new category or search. Puget Sound, perhaps? See the latest photo here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos.