The Seattle Times had an article about the Yakima Skyline Trail last Sunday so we decided to check it out today since the weather over there was forecast to be good.

It's almost a 3 hour drive, up and over the Cascades at Snoqualmie Pass and then south almost to Yakima. The article made it sound like it was a nice gently hike... However, it was pretty steady uphill! We were really lucky that it was breezy and cool (in the summer, it can get to 105+F here). 

This photo is on the uphill climb to the first view point of the Yakima Canyon below (extra). There were lots of balsam root flowers blooming and little else (too exposed). We ended up climbing a bit over 2 miles and then turned back. There is a highway that runs right next to the river in the canyon and we drove on that back to the interstate. It was a really beautiful drive and we stopped to eat our lunch at one of the picnic sites along the way. On the way home, we were delayed almost an hour as a crew worked to get a jack-knifed big rig off the road near the pass (extra - I didn't realize that there is a man's bending-over-butt right in the middle of the shot!).

Hope all of y'all have a nice weekend!