A Visit to Key Peninsula

My sister and her husband have a new place on Key Peninsula, and we haven't seen them or my step-father, Dick, for a couple of years, so today we took a pleasant trip in the fall sunshine down to visit.

We decided to try to avoid the traffic mess of Seattle and Tacoma by taking the ferry from Edmonds to Kingston, and then following Hwy 16 down to Purdy, where we turned onto Key Peninsula.

It took nearly three hours to go from our house to theirs, but it was a very pleasant drive.

There's nothing prettier than Puget Sound on a pretty day.  We saw the sailboats, ferries, container ships, and beautiful fall colors everywhere.

Mt. Rainier was out in all her glory on the south, and Mt Baker was shining white on the north, as we headed toward the Olympic Mountains to the West.

My ageless sister had a serious painting project in work.

Dick is looking great at 91, and Scott was as entertaining as always when we went out for lunch.

We went home via the Tacoma Narrows bridge,

where we got the very best view of Mt Rainier.  It was another picture perfect fall day and ideal for a nice jaunt around the Pacific Northwest at its prettiest.

Signs of Fall

The leaves have been vibrant this year.  The oak trees that have been planted in rows everywhere are pink, red, and orange.

Vine maple vividly displays orange and yellow.

My row of blueberries is mostly red, with some bushes turning mostly yellow.

We are savoring this time of colorful beauty, knowing that we are about one wind storm away from bare trees.

Our first wind storm yesterday left our driveway littered with needles and leaves from the Cedar and Maple trees that line our driveway.

It's been a banner year for pumpkin and squash.

Oh oh, what's that I see on the tree next to the bird feeders?

I guess it's not only people who are storing up for winter.