Washington State holds an incredible
diversity of climate, flora and fauna that is not matched by any state in the
union. Consider that the driest mid-latitude desert in the world—less than 7”
of rain per year—lays in the lee of Rattlesnake Mountain outside of Richland,
Washington, where a herd of elk roams the desert using hidden springs for
water. Seattle, on the shore of Puget Sound, has a beauty few cities can match.
 |
But my wife, Babe, and I have a favorite
Washington location far to the west of Seattle. The waters of the Sound and the
Olympic Mountain range force one to drive 250-miles to reach the outer Olympic
Peninsula, making it a remote wonderland for nature lovers that only gets
crowded occasionally on summer weekends. On the outer Peninsula, a little
southeast of Forks, the outdoorsmen and women will find the wettest temperate
rainforest on the planet, where moss blankets everything except the tall Sitka
Spruce and Western Red Cedar.
It takes 170 inches of rain per year to
produce this profuse growth of moss. But when the sullen, grey skies (shown
below)grey shore turn sunny, everything—the
beaches the water, the trees and the trails—becomes part of a paradise. One
glimpse of the sunlit ocean at Rialto Beach, near Forks, and all thoughts of gloomy
days and vampires vanish in the light. And if she saw it, Stephenie Meyer would
agree. 
I have used the outer Peninsula as all
or part of the setting for 3 novels. The trail shown here played a role in
these 3 stories. This shot reminds me of
Psalm 119:105 – “a light unto my path.”
As a retired meteorologist, I can make weather forecasts and then plan our 250-mile drive to sunny beaches … well, most of the time I can correctly forecast sunny beaches. Before one such trip, I saw altocumulus from Southwestern monsoon moisture moving northward from Oregon. I forecast it to arrive just before sunset, when it would provide an out-of-this-world display of color.
Babe and I jumped into our SUV and
literally raced the clouds and the sun to a beach 220 miles away. When we
arrived, we jumped out of the car, me with my camera in hand, and ran down the
trail onto the beach. We had beaten sunset by 3 minutes. What we watched for the
next 45 minutes stole our breath. The picture below will show you why. 
In mid-summer it takes nearly a half-hour for the sun to disappear once the bottom edge touches the horizon. This phenomenon occurs because the northern latitude causes the sun to appear to move northwestward. This
ball of color skims the horizon for at least 20 minutes, providing prolonged sunsets with continually changing hues of vivid color that has delirious photographers shooting so many pictures they often run out of memory or battery charge. I may be a bit biased, but my wife, Babe, makes a nice silhouette, enhancing this colorful sunset.
This is the Washington Babe and I know
and love. If only it weren’t 250 miles from home … Who knows? Maybe someday, it
won’t be.
H. L. Wegley served as an Air Force
Intelligence Analyst and a Weather Officer. In civilian life, he worked as a forecaster
and a research scientist, publishing in the scientific literature, then
developed Boeing computing systems for 20 years before retiring near Seattle
where he writes novels and where he and his wife enjoy their grandchildren. He
is an award-winning, multi-published author with a 4-book
inspirational thriller series, a 3-book political thriller series, 2 nonfiction
books, and 2 more novels on the way.
H. L. Wegley’s books – nothing graphic, always inspirational, with a climate of suspense and a
forecast of stormy weather.
A printed copy of the award-winning
novel, Voice in the Wilderness, will
be given away. To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post. This story posits
the question:
What if your blog could save the nation, but posting to
it might cost your life?
As catastrophes drive
the US into martial law, all eyes are on America, waiting to see what emerges.
KC Banning, network specialist, discovers President Hannan’s tyrannical plans
and is branded a terrorist, sending her fleeing the Beltway to find her
childhood soulmate and protector, Brock Daniels. Brock, a writer and man of
faith, gives CPR to a dying nation through his blog, which is read by military
members still loyal to the Constitution. But starting a grassroots insurgency
while reconciling KC’s and Brock’s broken relationship proves difficult. When
Hannan sends Special Forces to kill Brock and KC, starting a war in the Central
Oregon desert, reconciliation, like staying alive, might be impossible.
Two extraordinary people … born for a time such as this.
Set in
Washington DC and near Crooked River Ranch in the Central Oregon desert, Voice in the Wilderness, Book 1 of the
Against All Enemies Series, is a
political thriller, with romance, about two people who must decide if they’re
willing to sacrifice their lives to prevent the USA from becoming the Dystopian
States of America.
Voice
in the Wilderness Gold medal winner,
Reader’s Favorite Awards:
Book trailer (includes the main characters’
backstory):
Connect with H L Wegley:
(all info author provided)
H.L. I enjoyed reading your post and seeing the lovely photos of your state. I have only visited Washington once but found it to be as lovely as you describe it. Your books impress me as timely and very informative and entertaining reading.I hope I'm a lucky winner! And I wish you every success with this "second career."
ReplyDeleteLinda Swift LSwiftR@aol.com
Thanks so much, Linda! Hope you're the winner, too!
ReplyDeleteVery impressive, both the person and the photography, not to mention the writing. Yes, I observed the same kind of setting of the sun in vicinity of Ayr, Scotland. The sun's angle of descent reminded me of skimming rocks on a pond. Good info.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the beautiful sunsets.
ReplyDeleteI've only flown over Washington, but it sounds like a great place to visit (or live). Wishing you all good things with your writing.
ReplyDeleteWhen it's not raining, Washington is beautiful. But much of that beauty requires the rain. About the sunset photos -- the truth is that I have 30 or 40 GB of images of sunsets taken from a single beach in the Olympic National Park. That's about 10,000 pictures. And no two sunsets are identical.
ReplyDeleteWow, these photos are phenomenal. What amazing sunsets you have in Washington State. It's been a while since I read one of H.L.'s books, and am sure I would enjoy Voice in the Wilderness.
ReplyDeleteHI Harry (waving)!!
ReplyDeleteWashington state IS beautiful....especially Mt. Ranier :-)
Good luck and God's blessings
PamT
Thanks, Patti! If it's been a while since you read one of my stories, you will probably see some differences in my writing. Two and a half years studying the craft under Susan May Warren's tutelage has helped me a lot. Without her insight, I'm not sure I could have written three award-winning books, especially not in one 3-book series.
ReplyDeleteI've been to Washington State several times and each visit provides more natural wonders to enjoy. Your photos are beautiful, as are your descriptions. My aunt was born in Tacoma, a lovely city, and I have a Native American friend in Port Angeles. From the forests to the ocean, to the Islands and Puget Sound, you are fortunate to live surrounded by nature and beauty. Good luck with your writing career.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this lovely and informative article about Washington. Your novels sound captivating and intriguing.
ReplyDeletePhotos are magnificent and the books would be greatly enjoyed. Love this feature.
ReplyDelete