I am also in the midst of actually writing that paper-you know, the one that I have been doing research for all summer long???-and only have this week to finish it, so bear with me folks. I will try to make it out to every one's blogs, but I am not very hopeful.....
In the mean time, I wanted to share a little story with you; one about our little adventure in the back/high country of Buck Creek-and the surrounding area. Did I just say adventure????I thought we were just going on a little, old, trail ride????
It started out innocent enough. Amber said that she heard/read/thought that the trail systems in Buck Creek were loops, and that some were around one hour long, some were around two-three hours long, and that there was one that took the rider waaaaaaaay up, looped around the top of a foothill, and then came back down-oh yeah, and that particular trail was supposed to be around four hours long.
In the mean time, I wanted to share a little story with you; one about our little adventure in the back/high country of Buck Creek-and the surrounding area. Did I just say adventure????I thought we were just going on a little, old, trail ride???? It started out innocent enough. Amber said that she heard/read/thought that the trail systems in Buck Creek were loops, and that some were around one hour long, some were around two-three hours long, and that there was one that took the rider waaaaaaaay up, looped around the top of a foothill, and then came back down-oh yeah, and that particular trail was supposed to be around four hours long.I also knew that there was a trail that connected Buck Creek to another area known as Huckleberry Creek, which is about 12-15 minutes NW of Buck Creek on the highway...traveling 60 mph. This trail ends at a place called Suntop, which is an old fire lookout station, and is really nowhere near Buck Creek.
Are you guys beginning to see where I am going with this story yet?????
We really lucked out weather-wise too, as it was misting and raining off and on the whole way up to Buck Creek. Once there however, the sun came out, and....I'll get to the rest later. The first part of the trail took us through a lovely old growth forest, and then into a clear cut that had some wicked, steep, switchbacks.
We really lucked out weather-wise too, as it was misting and raining off and on the whole way up to Buck Creek. Once there however, the sun came out, and....I'll get to the rest later. The first part of the trail took us through a lovely old growth forest, and then into a clear cut that had some wicked, steep, switchbacks.In fact, they were so steep that we got off the poor horses-remember they had been off for about two months-and led them up the hills. We would lead them about one mile and then ride them one mile....
We had only been riding one hour, when we came around a corner, and could see the airstrip that we had parked the trailer. See that small horizontal gray patch near the middle of the picture below??? That is the airstrip.
Here...I zoomed in on it for you. The silver blob in the middle of the the strip-it was actually behind the strip, not on it!-was one of the travel trailers that was down there. We were parked to the extreme left of the strip. You can just make out a whitish blob down there.....
At the top of the clear cut, we came to a logging road, but the trail continued on the other side, so into the woods we went. Let me just say that I had a hunch the whole time that we were not going in a loop, but Amber kept insisting that we were, and that at any minute, we were going to go around a corner and start descending...uh huh...yeah right!!!!
While most of our ride was out in the open, there where a few areas that we went through that were magnificent in their stillness. 
Some spots were so tree choked, that absolutely no light made it to the forest floor below. It was so very quiet in these woods-we called them "dead" woods-and there were big clouds of mist/fog that kept coming down from an unseen sky, and blowing through the trees.
They were beautiful in their desolation, and we rode in silence to take in their full effect.
We had only been riding one hour, when we came around a corner, and could see the airstrip that we had parked the trailer. See that small horizontal gray patch near the middle of the picture below??? That is the airstrip.Here...I zoomed in on it for you. The silver blob in the middle of the the strip-it was actually behind the strip, not on it!-was one of the travel trailers that was down there. We were parked to the extreme left of the strip. You can just make out a whitish blob down there.....At the top of the clear cut, we came to a logging road, but the trail continued on the other side, so into the woods we went. Let me just say that I had a hunch the whole time that we were not going in a loop, but Amber kept insisting that we were, and that at any minute, we were going to go around a corner and start descending...uh huh...yeah right!!!!While most of our ride was out in the open, there where a few areas that we went through that were magnificent in their stillness. Some spots were so tree choked, that absolutely no light made it to the forest floor below. It was so very quiet in these woods-we called them "dead" woods-and there were big clouds of mist/fog that kept coming down from an unseen sky, and blowing through the trees.They were beautiful in their desolation, and we rode in silence to take in their full effect. We were now maybe two hours into our ride, and I began to get a bit antsy. I just kept thinking that if the loop-that we were supposedly on-was four hours in length, then we should be heading back down at any time, right??? Then why were we continuing to go up???
To be continued......
And of course old Bo Bo took advantage of having all of us in his paddock at once....
He snuck kisses.....
And scratches....and apples...and lots of attention! Then he and Sienna had to take the 
Because it has been raining for the past few days, and because we spent a lot of our time in the watershed...I mean trespassing...ahem... I mean trail riding......the woods were dark, green, and luscious.
Dark...
And deep....
And as you can see, Waska was quite full of himself. Well actually, he was his usual steadfast self, unless Bo came near him. Then he pinned his ears, rolled his eyes, and opened his jaws.
Anywho, we had a blast, and are planning on heading out again tonight.
So, on our last day at the beach, we decided to head back down to Ocean Shores and go for a ride on the beach. Now, I would be lying if I said that I didn't have have-I did-but I would also be lying if I said that my one hour of pleasure at the expense of the horses didn't bother me-it did.
What do I mean??? Let me explain. I am a firm believer in a philosophical theory-one that I think was started by Immanuel Kant/Kantian philosophy, but don't quote me!-and it has to do with morals and moral judgement.
Who wants to analyze and think about their every action??? Maybe that's what is wrong with society today....
Where was I??? 
Above is a picture of Katie and her horse, Tater. He did still have quite a bit of life in him, and is not usually used for children, but our group was almost entirely children, and there were no more kid horses with kid saddles available. 
Eric was on the cutest old 
Me??? I ended up riding this Belgian gelding named Trigger, who had dead sides, a dead mouth, and who seemed to be zoned out 1/2 the time.
Wasn't he a sight to behold???? Everyone teased me, because his mane and tail, and my hair were almost identical in color and curl....
There is a nasty riptide that you have to watch out for, so we try to only play in the water when the tide is coming in. Below you can see several of my family members out in the water. I got in a little later, but for obvious reasons, could not take my camera out there with me...teeheehee!!!
The temperature of the water is around45-50 degrees, and we often stay in it for up to an hour. When you get out, you literally cannot feel your feet or legs, and you are ravenously hungry. Good way to burn calories, I guess...
On our second day, we awoke to cloudy skies and rain. It was still beautiful out though, and we decided to head down to Ocean Shores.
While there, many of us rode the go-carts and bumper cars...
Better hurry, Eric!!! Auntie Beki and Katie are catching up to you!!!!
The wind was blowing and the rain was pelting, but it didn't deter this bunch at all....
My dad-in the red-looked like some kind of deranged hillbilly in his hat, and the seat belt looked like suspenders...lol!!!!
After all the fun and games were over, my mom, Katie and I headed back to Moclips, while everyone else stayed and golfed...in the rain!!!! They looked like drowned rats when they finally got back.
At high tide, my mom, Katie, and I took a long walk on the beach-the rain had let up somewhat-and then walked upriver. The place we stay at is really neat, because we are near where the Moclips River meets the sea, and there is so much plant and animal diversity there.
It is a small town on the Northern coast of WA, it has a private beach-no cars allowed-and it butts up next to the Quinault Indian Reservation, which has wildlife, scenery, and a cultural heritage that is to die for.
We all had a really good time, and I promise that there will be more beach posts, but for now, enjoy some of the wildlife photos that I took....
A small shark that was left behind as the tide went out....
A majestic bald eagle who sat watch on the Reservation....
A sand dollar peaking out from the sand....
