A Day in the Woods

A fresh fruit and granola breakfast, with freshly picked berries...



... and a visit with a doe and her two fawns...



... followed by a morning spent mostly in and around the bungalow; myself up in the garden, closer to the farm house, in order to get wireless Internet access, and Ellie working with pastels indoors, making what turned out to be a very nice abstract landscape painting.

Late morning, we decided on a hike, and took the drive down to Olga again. This time we chose to drive on, past Olga’s...



... to Obstruction Pass—a place we had not visited before on either of our trips. We were delighted to have made that choice: leaving the car at the parking lot, we opted for the .9-mile walk to the beach over the .6-mile, and found ourselves climbing fairly steeply along a trail that had that wonderful soft, spongy underfoot feel created by centuries of forest entropy.




A high canopy of greenery above, and the brilliant, mottled green of moss surrounding us, covering every boulder, every fallen tree-trunk.






The previous night’s rain, as Ellie noted, had left a dampness in the air and on the ground, so that the whole environment seemed to breathe with life. This had to count as one of the loveliest hikes we have ever taken—and we have taken many in our time. And George was thrilled with this new territory to explore. A city slicker in the wilderness…




From the high point of the trail, it wound steeply down again towards the sound...




... leading us eventually down a precipitous rocky path to a pebbly beach.


We found a couple of young families there, from the camp sites at the water’s edge, but otherwise this beautiful cove was ours to enjoy its tranquil beauty. We cast about a bit to find the trailhead for the shorter way back, but failing to find it, retraced our steps on the longer one—and found, of course, that it was much longer on the return.

Driving back to Olga, we bought coffee at the smaller of the two restaurants, where we found an outdoor table to enjoy the sandwiches we had made, along with an outsize chocolate chip cookie from the deli counter.

After this late lunch, we headed back to the bungalow, passing another doe and her young fawn at the side of the road...


... and changed into fresh clothes for a different experience: a chamber concert at the local auditorium. We knew the seats had been sold out, but had been told at the box office that we’d be more than likely to get tickets if we showed up an hour and a half before the concert’s five o’clock start, because people buy blocks that they choose not to use. We showed up, then, with books to read, at three-thirty and sat in the lobby hoping for the best. Alas, this was the premiere of the two-week concert program, and everyone showed up. At the last minute, we were offered a single ticket, with the possibility of a second after the first piece if the seats had not been claimed by then. We declined.

We could have made the trip into East Sound for dinner, but there is too much left in the refrigerator to waste, so we decided instead on a kind of Cobb salad concocted of left-overs, with a glass of wine. I’m writing these notes Thursday, the morning of our last day on the island. Tonight, a blow-out at what we have heard is the best restaurant on Orcas Island, and tomorrow an early departure for the ferry back to mainland America. This travel log may be neglected for a couple of days while we get back on the road. We’ll see what opportunities arise…