Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day- August 2011

I work a desk job.
By nature, I'm an outside kind of girl, so there are times of the year when it's really tough to be in the office.

One of my coping strategies is to bring a vase in every Monday morning with what was blooming out in the yard.  It's a nice little reminder of what I'm working for.
Sometimes my vase is kinda skimpy, but not so in August!

Rather than go around the yard and photograph every bloom, I thought I'd do a little "one stop shopping" and present to you my entire yard of star performers, all in one vase.

Here's the roll call for today's desktop bouquet:
• Dahlias
• Monarda
• Butterfly Bush
• Yarrow
• Nasturtium
• Chocolate Cosmos
• Nicotiana
• Rudbekia
• Shastas
• Sweet Peas (eat your heart out, Midwest...our crummy summer = the sweet peas are still kicking!)
• Echinacea
• Salpiglossis
• Potentilla
• Lavendar

Be sure to check out what's blooming in other folks' yards over at May Dreams Gardens!


Yours truly-
Tigerlily

Lake Twenty-two

Today's travels with Lewis & Clark brought us to Lake Twenty-two, off the Mountain Loop Highway.

A gorgeous little gem of a hike, I give you 22 images from our travels:

Twenty-two Creek

The fog got heavier the further along and up the trail we went

Columbine (aquilegia canadensis) with Maidenhair Fern

The fog made the day eerily beautiful.

The lake is just under 3 miles from the trailhead

Under good visibility conditions, we'd see a towering granite wall behind the lake.

Careful around that small ice cave, Lewis!

I believe this is False Hellebore (veratrum viride var. eschscholzianum) punching up under the snow.

An incredible amount of snow remains.

There's a lake back there.

A quick game of chase on the snow.

Heather (calluna vulgaris)

Fog Dog

Time for a little rest at the lake before the hike down.

Or perhaps a big rest!

Lake Twenty-two is part of a section of land that was originally set aside as a Research Natural Area in the 1940s.  The surroundings are lush, but also fragile. 

Please be sure that your use is confined as strictly to the trail as possible, to assure the beauty remains intact for generations to come!

You can read the full description of the hike on Washington Trails Association's website:
Lake-22



Yours truly-
Tigerlily