RHH's photos with the keyword: larrabee

A wonderful place to explore at low tide.

This was taken at Larrabee State Park in Northwest Washington. The evening was so quiet even the gulls seemed to feel it and allowed me to come within a few feet of them and take several photos without a telephoto lens.

Larrabee Sate Park, Northwest Washington.

Best viewed in a large size.

This photo was taken in Larrabee State Park in the Chuckanut Mountains south of Bellingham on a rainy morning. We had stopped nearby to use the bathrooms before going on to do some hiking.

These Striped Coralroots are finished blooming now except at higher elevations, but are one of our favorite native orchids, and one we always look for when in bloom. They have the largest and most beautiful flowers of all the Coralroots in our area and are also more difficult to find than many of the others. This photo was taken in Larrabee State Park on the coast and on a rainy day. We found a lot of Striped Coralroots there this year, perhaps due to the late, cold and wet spring. Larrabee is in the Chuckanut Mountains and is a wonderful place both for its wildflowers and for its tide pools. The Coralroots are mycotropic plants, without leaves (which makes them hard to find when not in bloom) and without chlorophyll, deriving their nourishment from the soil through a relationship with a fungus (funny thing with which to have a relationship, but that's the way it is). Interesting plants! More photos and text here: nativeorchidsofthepacificnorthwest.blogspot.com/2012/05/s...

Here is another view from the top of Winchester Mountain looking north. The previous day we had hiked the trail that is visible in the center of the picture along the ridge reaching to the right and up to the top of the highest knob on the right. That knob is part of the Pleiades Overlook and the Pleiades are the jagged peaks just visible on the right of the picture. The highest peak is Mount Larrabee and the two peaks to the left are the Border Peaks, American Border Peak nearest to Mount Larrabee and Canadian Border Peak the farthest away. Just visible in the distance is the Canadian Coastal Range. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t... ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t...

Friday and Saturday, October 5 and 6, son Edward and I went on an overnight backpacking trip in the Twin Lakes area of the Cascades north of Mount Baker. We left early Friday morning and were on the trail by 7:30 am. We hiked that first day to the Pleiades Overlook on the shoulder of Mount Larrabee, a distance of eight miles round trip miles with an elevation gain of 1,845 feet. On the shoulder of Larrabee we were at an elevation of 6,740 feet and could see for miles over the North Cascades. On the south flank of Larrabee we also took a side trail and explored the old abandoned Gargett mine. We camped that night at Twin Lakes and the following morning we got up before daybreak, had a quick breakfast hiked up the Winchester Mountain trail, another four miles round trip and an elevation gain of 1,310 feet to the top of the mountain (6,510 feet elevation) and the old fire lookout there. On the way up we stopped to photograph the sunrise on Mount Baker, which looms over the whole area and is the first peak to catch the light of the rising sun. We stayed for nearly an hour taking pictures before going on to the top of Winchester Peak with its breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t... ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t...

We visited the site of the old Gargett Mine while on our hike to High Pass. It lies on the south slopes of Mount Larrabee and there is a considerable amount of old equipment and metal near the shaft and on the slopes below. This old tank was below the mine half buried in the talus with Pasque Flowers around it. I've attempted to find some history of the mine but thus far have not found anything. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t... ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/10/hiking-in-t...

This is one of our native trees. The Pacific Madrone, Arbutus menziesii, grows along the Pacific coast from British Columbia to California. Sadly, it is declining throughout its range. This photo was taken at Clayton Beach in Larrabee State Park and shows the attractive features of this small tree, its green wood and its naturally peeling red bark. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/09/clayton-bea...

This photo was taken earlier in the year In Larrabee State Park, but not at Clayton Beach. Near the main road through the park, Chuckanut Drive, there is a walking and biking trail, the Interurban Trail, that follows the road for many miles. This photo was taken along that trail at a spot where we go to see these orchids every year. Corallorhiza striata has the largest and showiest flowers of any of our native Coralroots. It blooms in the spring and is usually found growing in rather sheltered and shady areas. In this particular location it can be found in some large clumps if they survive the dogs and bikes and hikers who use the trail, but usually they do and people who use the trail seem quite careful to use it responsibly. All the Coralroots are leafless and without chlorophyll. They live in a symbiotic relation with a fungus and through the fungus obtain their nourishment from decaying material in the soil. Washington has five species of Coralroots, maculata, mertensiana, striata, trifida and wisteriana, plus several important varieties of these species. nativeorchidsofthepacificnorthwest.blogspot.com/2012/05/s...

On one of our hikes in Larrabee State Park on a rainy day we found these Bellis Daisies (Bellis perennis) along the path. They are not native to Washington, but are a European import that has naturalized all over the world.We took some pictures of them in the rain though we had better things to look for.

One of my wife's pictures from our hike to this mountain lake in the Chuckanuts. Her picture is better than mine, so I've posted it instead. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-wet-walk-...