A few days ago, Dawn and I drove an hour and a half to see what western Washington's record rainfall has done to Snoqualmie Falls. We sat for awhile in traffic that was backed up by an accident on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. This is the bridge that links Gig Harbor to Tacoma.
The 270-foot waterfall was booming, with great clouds of mist rising hundreds of feet to envelope us at the upper viewpoint.
The falls are central to the culture and spirituality of the Snoqualmie People. According to Wikipedia, the falls are "the place where First Woman and First Man were created by Moon the Transformer" and "where prayers were carried up to the Creator by great mists that rise from the powerful flow." The mists are said to connect Heaven and Earth.
Twisting lichen- and moss-covered branches along the trail were otherworldly.
We hiked to the bottom of the falls, and when we hiked back up the sun had broken through and illuminated the water. It was beautiful.
Afterward, we toasted the day with wine and iced tea and then had breakfast food for lunch at the Salish Lodge.
Have a colorful day
Beautiful pictures! And what a lovely legend to go with the falls.
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures. I've been seeing pictures of falls in Washington that were just a trickle and turned into powerful falls with all the rain Washington has had.
ReplyDeletexx, Carol
Really enjoyed this post! I love reading about your travels and the history you share so often when you visit places. So nice you get away as often as you do!!! Wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI've only been there once - for a December wedding at the lodge - but even then the falls were something to behold. I'd been wondering what all the rains and snowmelt were doing to its flow. Stupendous!
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