Discovery Park Seattle

We woke up to a beautiful day on Friday November 6th and decided to explore a part of Seattle we had never been to before. Discovery Park is located in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood, and is the largest park in the city. Entry is free. The Discovery Park Loop Trail is a designated National Recreation Trail, 2.8 miles long with an elevation change of just 140 feet. It passes through both forest and open meadows, offers extensive views, good prospects for bird watchers, and can be hiked or jogged year-round.

We walked to the highest point on the Loop Trail. A sign points right toward a viewpoint near the old chapel that looks out over the South Meadow. What you see from this viewpoint is the Puget Sound, The Olympic Mountain Range and Bainbridge Island.

The little white World War II chapel perched on the hill at Discovery Park has been given historic landmark status and given a second chance to remain standing on a spot that overlooks Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. Before there was a park here, this area was Fort Lawton and it is thanks to the fort that this large park is available to Seattlites who wish to explore an urban trail.

While Fort Lawton was a quiet outpost prior to World War II, it became the second largest port of embarkation of soldiers and materials to the Pacific Theater during the war. The fort was included in the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list. Fort Lawton officially closed on September 14, 2011.

One of our goals while at Discovery Park was to see the light house on West Point. We stopped at the visitor center and asked about driving to the lighthouse and we were happy to learn that since we were 62 or over we could get one of 8 special parking permits to park at South Beach close to the West Point, otherwise we would have had to hike there. If we were prepared it would have been easy enough for us to take the South Beach Trail and walk/hike but on this day we were happy to drive.

The West Point Lighthouse has a Victorian-era Beacon. It was built in 1881.

North Beach on Shilshole Bay.

South Beach on the Puget Sound looking towards the West Seattle Bridge with Mt. Rainier barely visible. Squint and you can see it.

This last mosaic is a photo of South Beach with a couple navigating the rocks on the left of the photo. I zoomed in on my photo to get a closer look at them. When I took this photo I didn’t realize we’d have a nice encounter with this couple. They had hiked down to the beach. When we made it to our car and started back to the visitor center to hand in our parking pass we saw them starting their walk back and we decided to roll our window down and ask them if they wanted a ride back. They were happy to accept and we learned they had just arrived the day before to the Seattle area from Milan, Italy. They were here for a very short time to see their daughter who was attending a special course at the University of Washington. We were happy to share our experiences in Milan with them. They were navigating our city by bus and other public transportation.

We would like to visit Discovery Park again in the future to see more of the park in a different season.

I’m linking up to Mosaic Monday with Maggie at Normandy Life. Click over to see more mosaics from around the world.

We have enjoyed a quiet weekend with a mix of rain, high winds and a little sunshine. We were home mostly except for church this morning and have eaten all of our meals in. Why do I feel like I need a pat on the back for that or that you even need to know that? Hope you had a good weekend in or out!

The Buckeye State

Ohio country roads. We didn’t make it to the larger cities in Ohio like Cleveland or Columbus. On this drive we were headed to the airport in Detroit to fly back to Washington State.

It was always a treat to see a horse and buggy although it was scary to see scenes like this next one.

A tanker passing the buggy on the road.

Millersburg

We stopped at this General Store near Sunnyslope before we drove through Nashville, Ohio.

Word of Truth Bible Church in Nashville, Ohio.

First Presbyterian Church in Loudonville was having a Ham and Bean Supper. Loudonville is in the heart of Mohican Country.

Just after Hayesville we connected to Highway 30 to head west and connected to 75 north onward to Michigan. We stopped in Toledo, Ohio for lunch. Toledo was the largest city we navigated on this trip.

Holy Toledo! Many of us have heard the expression, but where did it come from?

The origin of the exclamation “Holy Toledo!” is the subject of much speculation. One suggestion is the name came about because of the heavy concentration of churches located on Collingwood Boulevard, according to the Greater Toledo Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Also, the City of Toledo, Spain, after which the American city is named, is often called “the Holy City of Toledo.”

Other suggestions of origin are not religious, but may be more likely. Holy Week has always been the worst week at the box office for show business; old-time Vaudeville actors contended that any week in Toledo was Holy Week. Toledoans Joe E. Brown and Danny Thomas popularized the term as they became nationally known performers.

This Ghost Sign says Lucas County Board of Elections.

After driving around this area looking for a spot that was open to have lunch we settled on the Ye Olde Durty Bird. It was open and there was parking across the street. Sometimes those are the best reasons to choose a spot in a downtown area. Thankfully it was good.

Time will tell if I link up to any memes this weekend. Got some laziness going on. How’s your Saturday going?

I will link up to InSPIREd Sunday and to the Barn Collective and to Monday Mural and signs, signs.

Thank you to Beth, Sally, Tom, Oakland Daily Photo and Lesley.

Roads Less Traveled

All these roads, signs, and fences are from our trip to Amish Country at the end of September. These roads are in Holmes County, Ohio.

^{Matthew 7: 13-14 –}“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

Linking up today for ABC Wednesday with Mrs. Nesbitt, Roger and the team. R is for Road Less Traveled.

Also linking up later in the week to signs, signs with Lesley and Good Fences with TexWisGirl.

Holmes County Ohio Farms

Farms from a distance for The Barn Collective in Amish Country Ohio.

Linking up with Tom the Backroads Traveller for The Barn Collective.

We had a lazy mostly indoor Saturday with lots and lots of rain. Today, Sunday, we’ve had some blue skies and sunshine. We spent the afternoon with our oldest kids. They fed us well and we had some good conversation. We’ve followed super Sunday in Major League Soccer to see who will move forward in the playoffs towards the MLS Cup final game. Montreal is moving on and it looks like Toronto will, too, eliminating both New York teams. We (Seattle) play Dallas this evening. Colorado eliminated Los Angeles earlier today. This information is probably only interesting to me and that’s okay.

Hope you all are having Sundays filled with good things you enjoy!

InSPIREd Sunday

My last two churches from Ohio Amish Country happen to both be white. This first one is St. John’s United Church of Christ.

The name of this simple church is Holmesville Church of Christ.

I think the best feature on this country church is the belfry. We did not see any bats up there…

Bats in the Belfry: An antiquated term for insanity, madness. Belfry: the top of a bell tower on a church, where the bell is housed. Often infested with bats, who enjoy the darkness and seclusion of the place.

She’s got bats in the belfry, sqirrels in the attic, owls up in the loft.

Linking up to InSPIREd Sunday with Beth and Sally.

On the Way to Charm

One of the days we were in Ohio we drove to Charm, Ohio. These are some fences and farms we saw.

It was a wet day with a few dry spells, the very last day of September. And now it’s November already.

So far this is what November looks like here.

Facebook lit up last night and today about the Cubs winning the World Series in game 7. In general I’m not a baseball follower but doing something for the first time in 108 years is significant. I did manage to stay awake and see the outcome. I found these photos in my archives from my one and only time outside Wrigley Field in 2012.

Congratulations Chicago Cubs!

Thank you TexWisGirl for hosting Good Fences.

More Signs from Indiana

All of these signs were seen on a Sunday along the Heritage Trail in Indiana mostly contained within Elkhart County. The Pillsbury’s flour sign was in Wakarusa.

These last two signs are in Topeka, Indiana just south of Shipshewana next to Yoder Popcorn. There were a few places that would have been fun to explore but were closed on Sunday.

Linking up to signs, signs with Lesley.

Such a wet and drippy day here in the Pacific Northwest. Daughter and I had a fun several hours shopping at the Navy Exchange and Costco with a little lunch in between.

Amish Farm Mosaics

I really thought these corn shocks were cool.

“One of the most well-known ways of taking in corn is through shocking it. The first step is for the farmer to drive his team of horses, pulling a machine called a binder which cuts the cornstalks off close to the ground. The binder then makes bundles of corn which must be gathered by hand and stacked up in a teepee-style pile. Although the cornstalks are now dry, the corn is probably not dry enough to be stored safely. The whole idea is to prevent the corn ears from falling on the ground and absorbing moisture. When the corn is dry, it will be gathered on a wagon and either shucked by hand or run through the corn picker.”

I’ll be linking up to The Barn Collective at Tom the Backroads Traveler and to Mosaic Monday with Maggie at Normandy Life.

ht: Dutchman News

InSPIREd Sunday

Central Christian Church in Elkhart, Indiana

Grace Lutheran Church in Elkhart, Indiana.

We saw these two churches and a few more on our Heritage Trail Driving tour while in Indiana the end of September. I’ll add a couple more here that were quick drive-by shots.

First Presbyterian Church in Goshen, Indiana. Goshen is the county seat for Elkhart County and the following photo is the courthouse.

Linking up with Beth and Sally for InSPIREd Sunday.

Fences along the Heritage Trail, Indiana

Linking up to Good Fences with TexWisGirl.

Can you believe this is the last Good Fences for the month of October? Here’s an October fence from our own backyard taken on Wednesday. We are in the midst of some very sloppy weather here in the Seattle area! I took this shot from our kitchen window.

Happy end of October to all of you! Do you have a costume picked out for Halloween?

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Category Archives: Travel

Discovery Park Seattle

The Buckeye State

Roads Less Traveled

Holmes County Ohio Farms

InSPIREd Sunday

On the Way to Charm

More Signs from Indiana

Amish Farm Mosaics

InSPIREd Sunday

Fences along the Heritage Trail, Indiana