This was one of those days when I just had to get away from it all – except for traffic noise. The Asahel Curtis Nature Trail is enchanting and loud. Well maybe not completely enchanting, but once again I found that just being in the woods was good enough. The woods might be the safest place since it appears to be outhouse season. I sure hope those idiots check to see that the buildings are vacant before shooting them up. Oh I was supposed to be on topic.

After spending a long time planning the vacation I’m finding that the destination is less important than simply being in the woods. I don’t suppose that will come as a surprise to anyone. Throw in some trees and a creek and I’m a happy boy.

We cut into the Franklin Falls trail at the midpoint. The trail parallels the river, and although the view is mostly obstructed the gorge is beautiful. I only shot three pictures at the falls. It was good to see, but I didn’t feel any great compulsion to do much shooting. The trail is pretty short, so it was a very easy decision to walk downstream and cover the portion we missed instead of returning to the car.

The Denny Creek Trail passes under a high Interstate 90 bridge, so I was serenaded with the comforting sound of traffic – for at least a little bit of the time. The rest of the time I had to deal with the sounds of nature. There were finally plentiful trillium blossoms and blooming skunk cabbage. The bridge is out at the 1.3 mile mark, and I had no intention of soaking my boots and pants. Speaking of water, I’m pleased to report that we’ve had some mighty fine weather. Sure the sun was out at times, but it’s been overwhelmingly overcast. There have been really light showers on occasion. It’s just enough to enjoy the ideal of rain without having to pare down my photo gear to what little will fit under my jacket. Life doesn’t get much better than this.