Snoqualmie Falls, Washington

I drove east of Seattle today to see Snoqualmie Falls.  This is one of the most visited places in Washington.  Really pretty falls but at a low water level now.

There was a lot of construction around the falls.  You could only go to the top as they were redoing the route to the bottom of the falls.  You can see the construction in this picture.  It was a pretty drive out and I enjoyed getting out of the city.  Probably no more post until I get back from the Alaska cruise.  I leave tomorrow.

Inside the Chihuly Garden and Glass Exhibit

"I want people to be overwhelmed with light and color in a way they have never experienced."  Dale Chihuly  Chihuly is the guiding genius behind each of these creations.  All of the glass is hand blown.    There is a theater which shows 30 minutes of short films about Chihuly.  I sat and watched every one.  

This is a ceiling made up of many glass pieces.    I almost did not go to this exhibit but decided to pay of the combination Space Needle and Chihuly Glass Exhibit.  I am very glad I did.  I spent more time in this exhibit than I did in King Tut.

This is a large room size piece.  

Another ceiling shot.

Small part of the room size piece.

Another part of the room size piece.

I had left the room with the glass ceiling when I looked back and noticed what it did to the wall so I came back for another shot.

Two boats filled with blown glass shapes.

One of the many chandeliers in one room.

Hand Blown glass bowls in another room.  The gift shop had small bowls for sale.    They ranged from $6000 to $8000.   I didn't buy one.

Tropical Butterfly House

A visit to the Butterfly House was included in the price of the King Tut ticket.  You have to look close to see the first two Butterflies.  I got 10 good pictures out of around 50 I took.  I did wish I had my Canon or Nikon SLR.  The point and shoot has trouble staying steady when it is focused up close.  

On of the feeding stations.

I like this one.  The butterfly becomes part of the sign.

Boise, ID to Portland, OR

I crossed the Snake River between ID and OR and followed it for the first few miles after crossing.  The drives between Steamboat and Salt Lake City and Salt Lake and Boise were pretty boring.  There was the Dinosaur Monument but between Salt Lake and Boise it was just high desert.  There were large areas that had burned in wildfires but nothing else of interest.  This drive was very different.  The scenery was varied and great for the entire route.

This arched bridge was built in the early 1900's and has been restored.  The gentleman who designed the bridge felt they should be strong and attractive and he succeeded in both.  I pulled of the interstate to the overlook for the bridge.

When I got far enough north I started following the Columbia River.  This is the same route Lewis and Clark followed. All along the cliff tops on both the Washington side and the Oregon Side there were windmills turning and generating electricity.

This is from one of the view points where I could pull off the freeway to take photos.  There were no places to pull of where there were  the best views of the cliffs on either side of the river.  I was surprised by how many trains and how long the trains were that I saw on the drive along the river.  The tracks ran along the same path as the highway.

At this view point there were some of the cliffs on the Washington side of the river.

Another view from a pull off.  This was a drive I wished I had taken when I had the RV and spent 2 month in Oregon.  On this trip the only place where the path of the two trips crossed was Baker City.  I did not visit Portland on that earlier trip either.  Tomorrow I will post photos of my sightseeing trips around the city.