Morning On Alder Lake

Day 311 (Part One): Before Alder and LaGrande Dams were built, Alder Lake did not exist. Here, the Nisqually River cut a steep-sided canyon, not so steep that it couldn't be logged of its valuable timber, but nonetheless steep enough that in places, the lake is as much as 400 feet deep. The river channel passes between the shoulder of the Bald Hills and Reliance Hill here, a point at which Tacoma Power and Light swings a log boom across the water to prevent flood debris from backing up behind the upper dam several miles down-valley. The defile is a catchall for morning clouds.

This morning, I was on my way to my first day as a Site Steward for the Nisqually Land Trust and drove past this placid scene as I have done hundreds of times before. A quarter mile or so beyond, the beauty of it registered in my mind. Unlike other mornings when the same thought processes have come and gone, today I turned around so that I could share this moment with my friends.