A quiet day here.  Even though I did go for a ride in the rain, it was far too wet for photos.

So I have contented myself with taking some photos of my view from my PC.  There’s a sliding glass door not more than five feet from me.  The door leads out onto a balcony/deck.  The balcony is a bit wobbly, and needs to be replaced, so I don’t go out on it much, just far enough to put feed into the feeding stations. I don’t know how well I will be able to photograph the visiting birds…

Definitely needs work, eh?

 Here’s the view from the deck:

Rain…

Yesterday I left from work with the high hopes of adding to my string of riding a different bike each day.  Much to my annoyance, the chosen bike decided to blow out the little nut of the presta tube, and thus would not retain air.

My Rodriguez, looking unhappy that she did not get to go for a ride.  If you look carefully, you can see that the front tyre is flat.

Fortunately, I had another bike stashed in the car, and rode that one instead.  My journey took me through familiar territory–I headed down to the Seattle Processing and Distribution Plant, went past Boeing Field, through downtown Seattle, and headed to Bellevue on the I-90 Floating Bridge.  I was to meet a fellow member of Bike Forums in Bellevue, perhaps to have lunch, but almost certainly to have a companionable ride.

Even though I worked overtime, I was still a bit early for our meeting, so I spent some time in Bellevue loitering around some of the attractions which I had ignored earlier.   It was very windy, and a bit wet, on the Floating Bridge, so I was unable to get any good photos.  They were all quite blurry due to the shaking of the camera. 

 (this photo is from a few weeks ago, just to remind everyone of how the bridge looks)

This current photo shows the only autumn colour I’ve seen around here–on the Interstate, no less.

I made do instead with getting some photos of one of the parks located in Bellevue, right on the water.

I did say it was right on the water, didn’t I? The replacement bike looks as she would like to go for a swim, lifeguard or no!  Note the choppiness of the water, and this is in a protected bay, too.

I also discovered that one can hire canoes here, which is good, because that ‘Mercer Island Canoe Trail’ is just around the bend, probably less than a quarter of a mile from this park.

After doing my dawdling, I stopped just long enough to photograph this sign–the City of Bellevue would like us to believe that Bellevue is a ‘bike-friendly’ city.

I wouldn’t know about that…there are a lot of hills (which can’t be helped), but very few bike lanes, and there are a lot of aggressive drivers, at least in the downtown part of Bellevue.

No real wildlife viewing today, just a good time getting out and riding my bike, and getting to meet a friend!

We left Bellevue, and headed down the Lake Washington Loop for a ride to Gene Coulon Park.

Art in the Park!  My friend introduces herself to the statue in Gene Coulon Park.

I managed to make it home from here just before the rains poured down.  A GREAT DAY!

Today started off rather poorly…it was raining quite hard most of the evening, and I feared for the worst when I got off work.  Around 8.00 am I decided that I was going to go have a ride and a look around no matter what, so I went to the favourite bike for a wet ride–my rigid 1985 Fuji Thrill mountain bike.

 I headed to Lake Youngs Reservoir, as I haven’t been there in about two weeks.  Perhaps some changes will be noted?  The leaves should have started falling, and perhaps I will spot a big buck with huge antlers.  Perhaps I will hear loons? Perhaps even see the bear which lurks in there!

So, off I went.  It’s up hill and down hill.  It’s steep, too.  Part of the approach is on the paved road, which goes past Big Soos Creek Trail.  It’s about a mile further east than BSC though, and yet it’s as if it’s hundreds of miles away, because the feel of the trail is so different.

 Part of the trail runs parallel with the regular roads which form the boundaries of the reservoir. 

The rest of the trail dodges inside, and that’s when you think that you are miles away from civilization.

This is the worst hill going counterclockwise.

I was actually a bit surprised to see that the leaves have not yet really started to fall.  In fact, they haven’t even changed colour for the most part.  This is a Bigleaf Maple, and the largest of the leaves measured about 17 inches across.

As I travelled around the reservoir my eyes were drawn to this vivid orange mushroom.  I hadn’t a clue what it was. I later managed to discover that this is a Lobster Mushroom.  It’s actually a parasitic fungus, Hypomycetes lactifluorum,  which colonizes members of the Russula  and Lactarius genera. It’s edible, too! My trip was already a success–I’d seen something I’d never seen before.

I was only about halfway around the reservoir at that point, so on I went.  I’d been looking for an example of the truly ugly slugs we have here, the ones of the mottled yellow and black variety.  I did find the usual brownish orange one, together with what looked like a racing model of a slug.  The racer decided to scrunch up when I got off the bike to take a closer look, so it’s not nearly as interesting as it was when I first saw it. 

Later I managed to spot one of the ugly mottled ones.  Yes, it’s really ugly.  I believe that the explanation for the colour scheme is that it is meant to blend in the forest floor by looking like a piece of scat.

As I was busy photographing the ugly slug, I noticed something else.  A beetle, the likes of which I had not seen before.  All in all, a better day than I thought.  Oh, it stopped raining halfway through the ride, too!

Still got the Fuji rather muddy.

Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

I worked overtime this morning, and as soon as I got out the door I knew this would be a good day to go to the Green River Natural Resources Area. 

Some of you local to me may have gone right by this area without even knowing that it was there.

http://www.ci.kent.wa.us/publicworks/specialprograms/grnra.asp

Gives a much better explanation than I could.  Suffice it to say that the GRNRA is 304 acres of wildlife habitat that’s been preserved from being covered by houses.  What does that mean?  Well, in the area where I live, house density can be as many as 6 houses per acre…

This bridge has been like this for quite a while.  Doesn’t look as if there’s any big rush to get it repaired, either.

I spooked a flock of gadwalls here in this stretch.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen as many gadwalls in one place before.

The bodies of water here are essentially linked sewage ponds. I can remember that when I first started living up here on the East Hill, that it was possible to wander around very close to the ponds. Not any more!

Some of the varying habitat–there’s upland, grass meadow, and of course, ponds.

There’s also some very nice viewing platforms–three of them if I’m not mistaken:

A photograph from the top of the tower.

I know that at least one or two of you are asking how I got there–this is a mid 1980s Raleigh mixte.

A better photo of the mixte–she is eager to get going, but there are no bikes allowed on the trails in the Resources area…

The birds were almost too numerous to mention–Peregrine Falcon, Cooper’s Hawk, Gadwall, Mallard, Canvasback, Northern Shoveler, various teal. Northern Flicker, Hairy Woodpecker. White-crowned Sparrows. Golden-Crowned Sparrows. Fox Sparrows. I’m going to try looking for owls next time I am here. I think that this area will be on the top of my list for winter birdwatching spots.

For those of you who wonder why I live here–this is Mount Rainier.

I started off the day with a dream that I was going to ride to the Green River Natural Resource Area…show off the wonderful viewing towers…get photos of vast rafts of ducks covering the old sewage ponds…

 Unfortunately, when I stepped out of work today I discovered that we were fogbound!  Hmmm.  So, change of plans.  I went for the boring, old, done to death Big Soos Creek trail.  But today was different, because well, there was fog.

Because there was fog, the first thing I noticed was that there were thousands of spider webs everywhere.

I don’t know what spiders were in these webs.

I stopped at a house with a wonderful garden, and a brilliant dry stone wall.

There’s a little ceramic owl set into the wall–it’s the object with the blue eyes.
There was something else there in the wall, something I’d never noticed before. For the record, this is probably as close as I will come to spotting a hedgehog:

Look carefully at the spot enclosed by my handlebars…there’s a hedgehog there.
The same garden has some Chinese Lanterns, too.

Some nice looking nettles–I think I will see if treetop’s tip for the nettle hair conditioner will work.

Back near the 208th Street parking lot, one of the feral rabbits:

Serendipity! I met a fellow member of Bike Forums out there on the new extension.

Naturally, by the time I got home, all the fog was gone, and there was brilliant sunshine.

The 1980s Nishiki Sport mixte served me well today, but onto another bike tomorrow!

Today’s outing was a rather low-key affair, as I was not entirely certain that I would be able to outrun the predicted rain.  I set off on my beautiful salmon pink and white 1987 Centurion Dave Scott Ironman Expert bicycle:

Like the Nishiki Prestige I rode a few days ago, this is a woman specific design bicycle, with a 700c rear wheel, and a 24″ front wheel. The design is meant to help prevent ‘toe overlap’, which occurs when a bicycle is scaled down to fit small individuals. The bike is in front of a lovely medium sized Douglas Fir.

My wanderings today consisted of visiting some interesting looking greenbelt areas.  These greenbelt areas are actually stormwater storage ponds. 

Normally the ponds are a rather boring largish pit dug into the ground, but a number of older ones are actually designed to act as wildlife attractors. So, somewhere in here

is a Hairy Woodpecker. I think when I actually took the photo it had scooted behind the tree trunk on the right hand side (undoubtedly laughing at me), and then flew off into the dark undergrowth behind this clump of trees. But I didn’t care, the Hairy was one of the first I’ve seen in ages.

As can be seen, this stormwater storage pond was large enough, and old enough for the neighbourhood locals to have put in a nice path. Some of the pond was not very appealing looking–

but nevertheless, undoubtedly sustained some wildlife. I spotted the Hairy Woodpecker, the usual Black-capped Chickadees, and also some Chestnut-backed Chickadees. I heard Red-breasted Nuthatches and Spotted Towhees. I will have to go back and see if I can spot some migrating warblers, as I heard some rather suspicious bird calls which I did not immediately identify, which means that they are not birds I find normally.

This was a very short day out, as after about 40 minutes, the rain started coming down. Not too bothersome, but as it was getting late in my day, I headed home…

A good day overall, and encouraging in the number of birds located, too.

Today I went down to Big Soos Creek.  Now I know, I ride a lot down at Big Soos Creek, but it is a never ending show, and there is always something of interest down there! The normal ride used to be approximately 12 miles round trip, but is now around 16 miles with the new extension.

Also, today’s ride featured the first bike I purchased when I first returned to cycling almost ten years ago. This is a 1997 Schwinn something or other. It’s meant to look like a lady’s cruiser from the 1950s, but it has twist shifter grips, and it’s geared with six speeds.

This hill may look insignificant to those of you at home, but it is notorious in it’s steepness. Short, but brutal.

The trail has recently been expanded and is now almost 6 miles in length, although I did not ride on the extension today. I did stop at this nice little bridge to check for salmon–

but did not see any. I also went to scope out this pond–I was a bit taken aback when these Mallards swam up to me without hesitation. I think they are getting fed by the locals. These are wild ducks, hence the surprise.

There’s another pond, about a half mile further along the path, which no longer seems to have any wildlife in it. I used to see Wood Ducks in here on a regular basis.

Perhaps all the duckweed has something to do with it?
Part of Big Soos Creek trail runs through an old apple orchard. There’s also a vast tract of native wild roses here. The roses are full of tiny rose hips, bright orange-red now.

Some of the rose hips–

Near the old end of the trail, this is part of the new extension. I really enjoy this part of the trail–it’s odd riding over the water.

So, why the question about the Wooly Bears? Well, I haven’t seen any yet. Normally at this time of year I would be seeing dozens of them crossing the trail. Perhaps in a few days?
Birds seen and heard were Spotted Towhee, Black-capped Chickadee, Mallard, Fox Sparrow, Bushtit, Oregon Junco, House Finch.

My husband and I had occasion to go to the town of Kenmore today, so I decided to start my ride off in Bellevue this morning.  I had started off at one of the Park and Ride facilities just south of downtown Bellevue–this is me on my 1987 Nishiki Prestige:

 I started off on what would have been a rather routine ride–got to get the hill just after the Park and Ride out of the way…

 
I came swooping down the other side of the hill, and got to the spot where the I-90 and I-405 intersect. Underneath the I-90 bridge is where the entrance to the Mercer Slough is located. I’ve been on the bike path through the Slough often enough, but had never bothered to stop and read this sign:

I finally stopped to read it, and was astonished to discover that there’s over five miles of trail located in the Slough itself.

So that determined my course for the day. Naturally, I went to take a closer look at the Slough. First up was the Blueberry Farm.

There is a boardwalk/barked path running through the Slough. It’s meant for pedestrians, so I walked the bike through. I noticed this beautiful example of a Madrone tree’s peeling bark just at the beginning of the path through the Blueberry Farm.

There was a small shack on the path through the Blueberry Farm. There were several odd boxes on the outside walls of the shack, and imagine my delight when I discovered that the boxes were mason bee blocks.

As can be seen, many of the holes are occupied.
There is a small stream running through the Slough–it’s actually the Mercer Slough Canoe Trail. I noticed some ducks swimming on the water, and abruptly realised that the ducks were Wood Ducks. Oh, how I wished I had a better telephoto lens!

What a wonderful sight! I have not seen Wood Ducks for almost a year, although they nest at Big Soos Creek, and I have heard them down there.
It’s necessary to cross the stream in order to get back to Bellevue…

Must be the day for looking at interesting wood bark–I noticed this Paper Birch bark. There’s lichen on the trunk as well.

After having a lovely wander around the Slough, and deciding that I will have to return eventually, I continued on home. I took the Lake Washington Bicycle Loop, which runs alongside Lake Washington (naturally!). There were not many people out riding today, which is unusual. This is an extremely popular cycling route, as there is very little motor traffic, and quite pleasant scenery. The route more or less finishes in Renton, but I have another five miles or so to go. My meanderings take me past a fascinating building–the Renton Public Library. It’s been built over the Cedar River.

I also rode past the spot where the Washington Dinner Train used to be…no rails there at the moment, as they’ve been torn up.

The train station is still there, but no people throng the waiting platform.
I ride through the charmingly named Burnett Linear Park (it was YEARS before I realised that there was no such person as Burnett Linear. The park is named that because the park is located on Burnett, and the park is long and yes, LINEAR), and head over to the base of the East Hill. I paused long enough to look around for the Western Scrub-Jay which lives in here:

I heard the jay, but did not see it. I suspect that there is a breeding pair there, as I have heard or seen the birds there at various times of the year.
Back up the hill I go–it’s steep, and long.

Home at last…

A good day–Wood Ducks, Spotted Towhees, the usual Black-capped Chickadees, the rather more unusual Chestnut-backed Chickadees, a heard Western Scrub-Jay, and to cap the day, a Steller’s Jay at the bird feeding station at home.

Yes, autumn is here.  It’s not just the big orange squash (aka ‘pumpkins’) that give the season away, it’s the fact that it’s dark every morning as I leave work.  Mind you, if I were leaving work when I normally get off the photos would probably be of bats and owls!  Sunrise today was at 0657.  Even with the two hours overtime I worked today I still set off before the sun peeked over the horizon.

So once again I start off with the new Control Tower at SeaTac. Those were dark and stormy clouds this morning, although I got only a few sprinkles and lashings of rain on my 19.5 mile ride home.

So, what bike today? The nod went to the 1980 Centurion LeMans mixte. This was the second vintage bike I ever got, and the first mixte. For those of you who don’t know what a mixte is, it’s the style of bicycle with sloping twin toptubes. It’s meant to be a unisex bike. I personally think they have very graceful lines, and especially like the way the bike has an ‘arrow’ appearance.

A lot of vintage bicycle enthusiasts would tell you that the ’suicide’ brake levers make this a lower end bike–nevertheless, it’s a very nice riding bike, in part because it’s a bit heavier than many of my other bikes.

Today I headed home by way of Military Road. Military Road runs along the crest of the WEST Kent Hill. Gary Ridgway (better known here in the United States as the infamous Green River killer) lived along this stretch of the road at one time. The garden of this house is a happier place than the Ridgway house:

The other half of the front garden:

But I was out to explore new territory, and found it!

There are not a lot of places where dogs are allowed to be offlead in King County. Remember, the United States have endemic rabies, unlike the UK, so many jurisdictions here require dogs to be leashed whenever not on the owner’s property. I expect that the park had just had the gate opened–as can be seen from the photo, it was barely dawn when I arrived here.

This is clearly a hot meeting place for dog owners, at least that’s what would be suggested by the board.

On to the fastest part of my ride home–the mile long descent of the West Hill.

I am quite curious what is to be done with the land on the south side of the street, as it looks as if a park is to be developed there.

The rest of the ride home was fairly uneventful. Bird and mammal sightings have been sparse–presumably because even if the creatures were out there I can’t see them due to the darkness. I still managed to spot American Crows, Black-capped Chickadees, House Finches. Domestic cats were out and about as well!

Home at last…

Today I went for a ride in yet another different area–this time winding through the neighbourhood just east of SeaTac airport.

 
Where I start off each day when riding home, this is the new SeaTac Control Tower. The old one was damaged by our last big earthquake!

Today’s ride was my 1983 Nishiki International.  This is one of my favourite bikes. The huge chain on the rack is not mine. I have never seen another bike parked in the rack, so I don’t know why it’s there.

Can you tell I’m heading directly east?

Truckin’ on down the road…I-5 is only about 50 feet away on my right. You’d never believe it.

I don’t know if it can be easily discerned here, but this road has a ferocious grade to it–about 20% would be my guess. I barely made it up this stretch without getting off and gasping for breath.

I think this cat was rather amused at seeing me pant my way up the hill. It must have realised I presented no threat, as it did not bother to bolt into the woods when it saw me.

The way I went has a section with a type of boardwalk–hard to describe, actually. I don’t know if what I rode through has a name, if it’s a park, or what?
It’s a link between the hill and shopping though.

The shopping–yet another boring mall (this is Southcenter Mall):

A photo showing the ‘boardwalk’:

The wooden bridge over the Green/Duwamish River. It was not until I was almost off the bridge that I realised that there was apparently a beehive on the bridge. It was too dark to get good photos, however.

 I’ve ridden over the Kent Valley, and I’m heading up the hill. This is the view looking over the Valley. It’s actually rather bleak looking.

Home!

Not much to see out there. A few people fishing still for pink salmon. A large contingent of cyclists. Bees on the bridge…

 On the other hand, it’s getting cool, and I’m enjoying that.  There’s also been a much greater bird presence at the feeding station.