On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
Mike in Oly
So much stress and worry, but hope and determination too. So grateful for the beauty in the world to give us a break, and refresh our spirit to keep fighting to preserve it. This is a glimpse into my corner of this incredible continent.
Iron Creek Falls, Gifford Pinchot National Forest, WA.
East Bay Marina, Olympia, WA.
Ocean Shores, WA. Old pilings fading into the sea are ubiquitous. And often beautiful.
Kubota Gardens, Seattle, WA. The rhododendron is our State flower.
Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
Staircase Rapids, Olympic National Park, WA.
Raven, the trickster. A core symbol of the northwest coastal peoples.
Mt. Rainier as seen from Ocean Shores, WA. The mountain dominates all of western Washington. A revered presence.
Waikiki Beach, Cape Disappointment, WA.
Sunset at Roosevelt Beach, WA.
stinger
Beautiful. Serene. Thank you.
debbie
All are beautiful, but that first photo especially!
arrieve
Oh my God, do I need these tonight! Thank you.
I love them all but the pilings and the marina are just wonderful photographs. And that’s an amazing sunset.
Dagaetch
I needed this tonight, thank you. Moving water just does wonders for me in soothing the craziness.
AnotherBruce
Kabuta Gardens is a treasure. It is one of those places that seems small but when you explore, you understand how large the small spaces are. It’s great fun. One of the true great places of Seattle.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
All lovely, and thanks much since we all needed these now. That stunning PNW raven has stolen my heart.
Mike J
Mount Rainier @MountRainierWA 9h
Remember, it doesn’t matter if you vote Democrat or Republican, molten lava will burn through your flesh at the same exact excruciating rate. We’re all one. Love,
Dan B
Great photos that don’t scratch the surface of the beautiful places in the state. The North Cascades, the San Juan Islands, and many places in Eastern Washington would start to cover all the variety but your photos give a very good taste.
I first went to Kubota Gardens when it was a nursery. When the city took over and hired my friend Don as head gardener I knew it would be great. He’s built like a tank, works crazy hard, and is a wonderful spirit – the kinda guy you dream of for a boss. We live a couple miles from it and are amazed at the beautiful wall, gate, and garden viewing pavilion that have been added, plus the additional plantings.
wenchacha
Thank you for this! My daughter lives in Port Townsend, WA. It is a beautiful part of the world.
Dan B
The photo of Rainier from Ocean Shores is interesting. Is that 100 air miles or more? We can see Mt. Baker, 90 air miles north near the Canadian border from our house in SE Seattle.
O remember seeing scale models of Rainier and Everest at REI years ago. Rainier was taller from base to summit than Everest. And Rainier is a piker compared to Denali. Although Southern Chile looks amazing.
susanna
All the beautiful water! Love your pictures, they’d be appreciated any evening, but tonite they’re a needed respite.
The Enderville Phantom
I recognized the first image. Iron Creek Falls. It’s south of Randle. If you were to go on the East side of St. Helens one of the roads, 25, drives by it.
I’ve tried to stay calm by staring at a waterfall of late too.
jnfr
This is wonderful. Thank you.
Dan B
For comparison the pic of Rainier from the ocean is the equivalent (wildly rough estimates) of seeing Philadelphia or Boston from NYC, or Cleveland from Columbus.
Wag
Thanks for these photos. Especially the last one. Serene.
Dan B
Looked at your photos again. They are beautifully composed. The light is sublime, etc. It helps to have great subjects but you have taken these subjects to new glories.
Thanks for these on a soggy unnerving day.
Mike in Oly
@Dan B: Glad you enjoyed them! And granted, this is just the small area of WA I access on the regular in these pics. Seattle to Ilwaco, Rainier to Roosevelt beach. We could do a week just in the Columbia River gorge, or the scablands on the east side, or… or….. There is so much more to the entire region than ten pics can ever convey. I plan to spend a lifetime exploring it. I am grateful every day to live in such a beautiful place.
TomatoQueen
All lovely, but those rhodies are stunning.
J R in WV
Rhododendron is also a popular and common bush here in West Virginia. But we don’t have anything like Rainier. Amazing photos, thanks so much
I’ve been listening to Eric Satie’s piano work “Once Upon a Time in Paris” which is also very calming. Not into the news so much right now, will wait until things are counted, don’t need guesstimates and predictions tonight at all.
Mike in Oly
@J R in WV: I LOVE Satie! Great selection for this night.
WaterGirl
Absolutely gorgeous photos! They really are calming.
way2blue
Love these photos. I’ve spent a lot of time in the PNW, usually in the middle of nowhere, and love this reminder of how beautiful it is.