Smoke

The boys headed for Alaska this morning for a few days of salmon fishing. I headed east, to visit friends who just moved to Lake Wenatchee. It was a fun, relaxing weekend with good friends and lots of good food and wine.

Early Saturday morning, the smoke rolled over the ridge and into the valley. It's a grim reminder of the many forest and range fires that are burning across the state. By Monday morning, the rising sun turned red as it rose through the pall of smoke.

As I drove home over Blewett Pass, I never drove out of the smoke. The layer hung against the hills, clinging to the landscape. I finally drove above it when I reached the 3000 ft. summit of Snoqualmie Pass.

I always stop to photograph Ingalls Creek, especially when the leaves begin to turn color in the autumn. With the hot, dry summer we've had this year, the mountains are showing fall colors already.