Rosario, Deception Pass State Park, 2026

 

 

 

 

  The Indian maid statue, Rosario, Deception Pass State Park

 

The same day we visited Washington Park we drove across the Deception Pass bridge and on to Deception Pass State Park, Rosario.  The Discover Pass or a day fee is required here.  The park has a picnic area, a modern flush toilet restroom, and access to the small beaches on each side of the peninsula.  The Indian Maid statue with information placards explaining her story is located right at the beach access and the trail up to a territorial view point.  The trail is steep but short.  The views from the top are beautiful especially on a nice sunny day.

 

 

Looking north toward the San Juan Islands from the top at Rosario

 

  

This is another trail we often do at the beginning of hiking season.  This day we saw lots of blue camas in full bloom, more of the Spring Gold, Star Flower, Madrone trees in bloom, red grass, and something we think is Pacific Sanicle.  Pacific Sanicle is common in the area and grows amid Camas and Sea Blush. 

 

Blue Camas growing with Spring Gold

 

 

 

Madrone tree in bloom

 

 

 

Star Flower

Red Grass

 

We see this plant often here and at Goose Rock, another part of the Deception Pass Stake Park.  It probably has an official name but I have just been calling it red grass.  It is pretty and catches the eye since it is red and among the gray rock, green and brown everywhere else.

 

 

 

 

    Pacific Sanicle ?  

 

On the drive home we stopped in Mt. Vernon for milk shakes.

 

Count for the day:

14 people, 6 dogs

RT a loop of about ½ mile

Discover Pass required

 

Washington Park, Anacortes, 2026

 

 

 

 

  

Bob taking pictures of Fawn Lilies and Calypso Orchids

 

Washington Park is located in the city of Anacortes, about an hour and 40 minutes drive from home for us.  There are parking areas, picnic shelters, beach access, and modern restrooms.  No pass or fee is required unless you park a boat trailer in a special lot or are camping.  The camp ground has spots that can be reserved for RVs and tents.  There are also modern restrooms with flush toilets and hot water in the camp ground.  

 

 A one-way paved road makes a loop that can be walked by pedestrians.  Dirt side trails branch off from the paved road here and there offering opportunities to get off the road and into the woods or down to the beach.  The park is a popular place for locals to walk their dogs.   

 

We try to go to this park every year in mid-April when the fawn lilies, calypso orchids and other wild flowers are blooming.   There are a couple places with short dirt trails leading to semi-open areas where the lilies grow in the hundreds.  Mixed in with the lilies are the tiny bright purple-pink Calypso orchids and sometimes Coral Root can be found in with them too.  We have found Chocolate lilies here too, but this time we were either too early or too late and did not see any.

 

 

 

Shooting Stars

 

 

 

Shooting Stars often grow in marshy open areas.  These were found along the fence line in the wide open meadow at the top of the hill. 

 

 

 View from a corner of the meadow area 

 

 

 

Blue-Eyed-Mary

 

These flowers are very tiny and frequently cause a surprised "Oh" when seen.

 

 

 

Spring Gold

 

Pink Sea Blush 

 

 

 

 

Field Chickweed

 

 

Dandelion seed head

 

 

 

Calypso Orchids

 

 

Spotted Coral Root

 

 

 Death Camas

 

 

 Fawn Lily 

 

 Group of Fawn Lilies

 

 

 

 Yellow Monkey Flower

 

 

 Prairie Star

 

 

Deer we saw in a group of five that were browsing in the grass 

 

 

 

Count for the day:

 

33 people, 14 dogs

 

RT 2.1 miles

 

No fee or Discover Pass required.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 759

 

 

 

 

 

Mission San Carlos Borromeo, Carmel, California

[Photo by:  John H. Atkinson, Jr.]

 

This unused color postcard featuring the Mission San Carlos Borromeo was distributed by Bell Magazine Agency of Monterey, California with color production by Mike Roberts.  At the bottom left is C33551 Color Photo:  John H. Atkinson, Jr.  At the upper left corner is a blurb:  “Mission San Carlos Borromeo, Carmel, California.  Established June 3, 1770, San Carlos is one of the oldest yet one of the best preserved of the Missions.  At the foot of its High Altar rest the remains of Padre Junipero Serra.”

 

Mission San Carlos Borromeo was the second mission built by Franciscan missionaries in Upper California.  It was also called The Carmel Mission.   The mission was founded in 1770; however, the church itself was not built until 1797.  Father Junípero Serra, who was later canonized by Pope Francis and is now known as Saint Junípero Serra, headed the mission until his death in 1784.   From the time it was built until 1833 it was the headquarters of all Alta California missions.  The Mexican government secularized the buildings and land in 1833.  The building fell into disrepair.  Only the chapel was saved when the roof was rebuilt in 1884.  In 1886 the ownership of the mission was transferred from a group of Franciscans to the Diocese of Monterey.  Since that time Carmel mission has been a parish within the diocese.

 

Beginning in 1931, Harry Downie began restoring the mission.  He worked continuously for 50 years.  It is the only Spanish mission in California with the original bell tower and bell.  The Carmel mission also contains the state’s first library.  The mission is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a National Historic Landmark. 

 

For additional information, see:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_San_Carlos_Borromeo_de_Carmelo

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jun%C3%ADpero_Serra 

https://sbthp.libraryhost.com/agents/people/32

English Boom Trail, Camano Island, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

English Boom Trail sign at parking area

 

On the same day we went to Cranberry Lake we also drove to English Boom where we walked the short beach trail.  It is a free county park founded on a historical site.  There are remains of pilings for the docks built during early logging years that were used when transporting logs by water.  A small limited parking area is next to the beginning of the trail.  As it turned out, we were lucky to find a spot.  When we returned from the approximately easy 1-mile hike we saw several cars had parked along the roadside since all the regular spots were filled. 

 

There are a couple of short wheelchair-friendly boardwalks and a viewing area plus picnic facilities but no outhouse or regular restroom.  We had been here before when the tide was in and it wasn’t possible to walk all the way out to the end due to water over the trail.  This time we planned to try it at low tide and were able to go the entire way without problems.  This park is a popular birding area. 

 

The park was named for Edward G. English who was a leading timber magnate in the Northwest and also one of the founders of the town of Mount Vernon.  

 

   

Historical information with photographs 

 

 

 Bob on the trail

 

  

This trail or pathway surface is packed sand with a couple of small bridges over a stream.  

 

 

 

    This stream meanders in and around the trail 

 

         Someone built a driftwood tepee

 

 

The tide is out

 

The remains of dock pilings are everywhere along the shore for almost the entire length of the trail.

 

  

Driftwood and more pilings

 

Tide is out, mud flats with Mt. Baker in the background

 

 

 

Shore erosion

 

Most of the beach was rocky with mud flats when the tide is out.  There is a lot of driftwood.  We noticed some places where the water is eroding the shoreline.  Here sand has been partly washed away from rocks and clay soil.  

 

 

   

Bird sitting on the top of an old piling

 

Even though the trail was posted as a birding area with several different birds identified as possible to see, we only saw a few Mallard ducks and this black bird.  We have often seen Great Blue Herons and eagles on both Whidbey and Camano Islands but not this day.

 

Count for the day:

 8 people, 1 dog

RT approximately 1 mile

No fee or Discover Pass required 

 

 

Cranberry Lake, Cama Beach State Park, Camano Island, 2026

  

 

 

 

 

Sign at the beginning of the trail to Cranberry Lake

 

We are still in warm-up mode for hiking, choosing shorter distances, and low elevation trails.  We opted for two short trails on Camano Island this week, Cranberry Lake and English Boom.  There are several Cranberry Lakes, this one is in the Cama Beach State Park.  A Discover Pass is required. 

 

We stopped at the main entrance to the park and checked in at the Ranger Station, where got instructions and a map.  What sort of facilities are available?  The Ranger Station has a nice public restroom.  The road from there winds around and has access to several large parking areas and trails.  There is another restroom closer to the beach that is also modern with flush toilets, sinks, and hand blowers.  In addition to those parking areas there is on-the-street parking with room for perhaps 7 or 8 cars near the beginning of the Cranberry Lake trail.  There is also a small café closer to the beach that is open on Friday and Saturday.  We were told the food was excellent but we were not there when it was open. 

 

The Ranger explained that there may still be some wild cranberries growing here and the lake is more like a bog than a lake at times.  We were pleasantly surprised to find a real lake more or less surrounded by boggy areas.  The trail is an out-and-back, with several off-shoot paths down to the lake ending up at about 2 miles round-trip.

 

 

  

We loved this sign.  One of our pet peeves is finding full dog poop bags left on trails.  This reminder sign was at the trail head and had a dispenser with poop bags and a receptacle for used bags of poop but we still saw one left on the trail.  

 

 

     Most of the trail looks like this.   

 

 

In one place there is a boardwalk over a boggy or swampy area

 

 Downed tree

 

  

Bob standing by the downed tree  

 

This giant tree had a rotten core and must have split and come down during a windstorm this winter.  The fallen tree remains had been cut leaving the trail clear with no need to climb over or scramble around it.

 

  

Cranberry Lake

 

The lake really was more of a lake than a bog at this time of the year.  There were lots of lily pads but it was too early for the flowers.

 

 

Canada geese 

 There were many Canada geese, almost all honking and making quite a racket.  They were mostly hard to see but this couple posed for a photo.

 

 

Great Blue Heron 

 

It is difficult to see amid all the branches and greenery, but a great blue heron is sitting on a snag.   

 

 

Creeping blackberry

 

 

 

Salmon berry

 

 

  

Skunk cabbage

 

 

Pacific tree frog also called the Pacific chorus frog

 

We only saw one of the frogs; however, there were dozens more hiding and loudly serenading us with croaks and ribbits.

 

Count for the day:

 

10 people, 2 dogs

RT approximately 2 miles

Discover Pass required