Unlike Tina, we had no problems with Covid restrictions last year, so we traveled when and where we wanted to.  In April we drove to Colorado and back for a Hillsdale College National Leadership Seminar.  It was a wonderful springtime trip, and we traversed numerous mountain ranges on the way, starting with the Cascades in our home state of Washington.

This is the East side of Snoqualmie Pass on Interstate 90.

Not too much farther east on I-90, we stopped at the Indian John Rest Area, from where we got an excellent view of the Stuart Range in the distance.

Our first stop was Walla Walla, and from there the Blue Mountains are prominent.

Please also note the vineyards in the foreground.  The Walla Walla Valley is an AVA (American Viticultural Area) of its own, and is the source of some of the most wonderful wine.

We also crossed the Rockies, and the Snowy Mountains of Wyoming.

As we passed through Idaho, my husband insisted we make a stop in Minidoka, which was the site of the only concentration camps ever erected on American soil.  Those concentration camps, established at the behest of Democrat President Franklin Roosevelt in World War II, were home to thousands of Japanese-Americans, who lost their homes, businesses, and livelihoods after Pearl Harbor.  The place is desolate now, with only the shells and remains of the buildings.  This was the only sad, depressing part of our trip.

This was a housing barracks, where Japanese-Americans lived for years.

I made time to visit my beloved Skagit Valley last year.  In November, I drove up to meet a friend for lunch, and beforehand I drove through the fields.  I found these birds.

This is a stop on the swans’ migratory route, and they stop here for days to get their fill of the green grass before moving on.

Closer to home, I also got some pretty good photos of the birds in our backyard.

Taken through our sliding glass door, I am so proud of this picture of a red-breasted nuthatch adult feeding its youngster.

Then, when it snowed, I got the two Juncos and three Bushtits at the suet feeder.  What looks like a snowy mountain is the barbecue!

When we went up to Leavenworth in June, I got some pretty good photos of the profuse flowers planted everywhere in town.

But, if I had to choose the very best photo I took in 2022, it would have to be this one, also from Leavenworth.  I normally don’t take pictures of people, normally preferring landscapes.  But this one just begged me to take it.

All the little kids (and a couple of big ones) siting outside the ice cream shop, looked so cute eating their cones.

I’m back to working now, so don’t have my days free.  Our trips in 2023 will have to be on weekends, until I can accumulate some vacation time.

Here’s the Link to John’s Original Post for this week.  And Tina’s too!