April Showers and a Hanging Garden

Field work today entailed a trip up the Skagit Valley. The low pressure system off the coast was causing a strong east wind out of the valley this morning. Not an uncommon phenomenon.
Up the valley it was wet and cold and with ice in the rain drops. One reason western Washington has such thick vegetation like that described in yesterday’s post is the rain. I have little to complain about though as this winter was very mild. The weather today may have been the worst I have been in since - well last April.

This big leaf maple growing along the flood plain of the Skagit River had created an impressive hanging garden, a common characteristic of big leaf maples.