Washington Page 7: Olympic Peninsula: Lavender Farms , Olympic National Park , Port Townsend , ferries , Mount Townsend rhododendrons

A huge glacier covered the Seattle area 3,000 feet deep in ice only 15,000 years ago, gouging the scenic fjord of present-day Puget Sound. To reach the Olympic Peninsula from Seattle, you must take a ferry or drive south through Tacoma. Washington's latitude lies in a transitional belt between sub-Arctic northern forests and warmer drier regions. Moist temperate air masses sweep onto the west coast and hit the spectacular Olympic mountain range, dumping heavy rain on the southwestward (windward) slopes, creating dense temperate rainforest. The mountains wring the air dry, creating extensive rain shadows to their east and northeast, such as in the towns of Sequim and Port Townsend.

Edmonds to Kingston Ferry:

Above: The Washington State Ferry "Spokane" plies the Kingston (Olympic Peninsula) to Edmonds route on Puget Sound.

Port Townsend:

Above: A sailboat is moored offshore from an old pier at historic Port Townsend.

Above: In this image from summer 2007, the Washington State Ferry "Nisqually" docks at Port Townsend, in view of Three Fingers Mountain (6854 feet), arriving from Keystone on Whidbey Island. In November 2007, Washington State Ferries closed down this run from Keystone, Whidbey Island, due to all 4 ferries suffering severe corrosion after 80 years of use. The run was replaced by a passenger-only service.

Above: The Olympic Mountains rise behind industrial smokestacks of the paper mill at Port Townsend. After a local economic crash in the 1890's, Port Townsend's economy was very weak until the 1920s when the paper mill was built on the edge of the town. The Port Townsend Paper Mill, located at 100 Paper Mill Road, has approximately 325 employees in Jefferson County (as of 2005), manufacturing 325,000 tons of unbleached paper and cardboard every year. The privately owned Port Townsend Paper Corporation continues to be the backbone of Port Townsend’s economy as well as the largest single employer in Jefferson County. 

Above: The Washington State Ferry "Nisqually" docks at Port Townsend, in view of Three Fingers Mountain (left, 6854 feet) and Glacier Peak (right 10,541 feet / 3,213 meters). This ferry came from Keystone on Whidbey Island. In November 2007, Washington State Ferries closed down this run from Keystone, due to all four Steel Electric class vessels suffering severe corrosion after 80 years of use. The run was replaced by a passenger-only service as of December 2007.

Above: A sailboat motors past an old pier at historic Port Townsend, beneath the Olympic Mountains.

Above: Posts of a former pier decay at historic Port Townsend.

Mount Townsend, Olympic National Forest:

Above: Wild native rhododendron flower buds prepare to burst beneath tall evergreen trees in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest, on the Mount Townsend trail #839. (June 26, 2007

Above: Wild native rhododendron flower buds in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest, on the Mount Townsend trail #839.

Atop Mount Townsend (6,200 feet elevation), you can see Puget Sound and Mount Rainier in the distance. Mount Townsend is Trail #839 in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest.

Carol hikes along Mount Townsend (6,200 feet elevation), in Buckhorn Wilderness, on Trail #839, in Olympic National Forest.

Above: Indian Paintbrush brachts and flowers.

Above: Wild native rhododendrons flower and a vine maple grows new leaves beneath a dead tree draped in lichen, in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest, on the Mount Townsend trail #839. (June 26, 2007)

Above: Rhododendron flowers and buds in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest. (June 26, 2007)

Above: Rhododendron flowers in Buckhorn Wilderness, Olympic National Forest, on the Mount Townsend trail #839. (June 26, 2007)

Olympic National Park:

Above: Mount Olympus (7965 feet elevation), seen from the High Divide Trail in Washington. In 1981, UNESCO listed Olympic National Park a World Heritage Area, and described it as follows: "A great variety of landscapes and ecosystems can be found there, with a great wealth of marine life along its rocky coast, forests of giant conifers in the valleys where huge herds of wapiti [large deer] roam, and craggy peaks overhanging some sixty active glaciers."

Above: Hood Canal and the Olympic Mountains and Lake Cushman (left center) seen from the air.

Sequim Lavender Festival, Olympic Peninsula:

The Sequim Lavender Festival is held yearly in mid-July in the town of Sequim, "The Lavender Capital of North America", on the Olympic Peninsula, Washington.

Above: Yellow sage and purple lavender on Purple Haze Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Below:  A red and yellow sunflower head rises above lavender at Jardin du Soleil Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Left: A woman and two children collect lavender into a basket, at Purple Haze Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.
    Below right: Pink flower balls above lavender, on Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Left: A woman in a pink sweater cuts a bunch of lavender, on Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.
    Below right: Rows of lavender at Jardin du Soleil Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Left: A barrow of lavender and an old widker chair, in the gardens at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.
    Below right: Pink flower balls rise above the lavender at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Left: A pink flower sphere rises above the lavender at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.
    Below right: Sunflowers, poppies and lavender at Jardin du Soleil Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Left: An old yellow grindstone in the lavender fields at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.

    Below right: A water wheel and red & violet flowers at Lost Mountain Lavender Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Above: Three spiny grey flowers at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.
Below: Decaying building with mossy roof, in a lavender field at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.

Below: Five spiny grey flowers at Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, in the town of Sequim.

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Washington Map:

Washington Page 7: Olympic Peninsula: Lavender Farms , Olympic National Park , Port Townsend , ferries , Mount Townsend rhododendrons

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Index to Washington:  Page 0: Highlights ~ map ~ 1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4 ~ 5 ~ 6 ~ 7

• Page 1: Seattle Area: Seattle ( fireworks , Space Needle & EMP , University of Washington ) ; Bloedel Reserve, Bainbridge Island
• Page 1a: Seattle Aquarium 
• Page 1b: Volunteer Park Conservatory 
  
• Page 2: North Cascade Mountains : Mount Baker , Mount Shuksan , Sauk Mountain , Anacortes , Grasshopper Pass , Maple Pass , Rainy Pass SR20 , Hidden Lake Lookout , Sahale Arm , 2a: Skagit Valley Tulips
• Page 3: Whidbey & San Juan Islands: Deception Pass , Ebey's Landing , Fort Casey , Meerkerk Gardens
• Page 4: Mountain Loop Highway: Glacier Peak , Mt Pilchuck ,  Green Mountain , Gothic Basin  , Lake 22 , Walt Bailey Trail , plants, flowers, insects , southern Mt Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest
• Page 5: Central Cascades, Highway 2 & Interstate 90:  Alpine Lakes Wilderness (mountains, larch, mushrooms) , Surprise Lake , Granite Mt , Lake Serene , Carne Mountain
• Page 6: Southwest WA: Mt. Rainier , Goat Rocks , Mt. Adams , Mt. St. Helens
• Page 7: Olympic Peninsula: Lavender Farms , Olympic National Park , Port Townsend , ferries , Mount Townsend rhododendrons

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