Reflections of the past year in the PNW!
My one year anniversary of being in Portland is coming up rather quickly! December 2014 I embarked on my journey to this lovely land. This past year has been a roller coaster of ups and downs. But, even at my lowest points I still don't feel as low as I did when living in the South.
Everything in the Pacific Northwest is visually appealing to me. I am constantly inspired by my surroundings, the weather, the people.. the food!
Here's a few images from one of the most intense hikes I've ever been on. The Garibaldi Lake hike! This hike consisted of 18km (11 miles total) and 820 meters elevation gain (2700 feet). It was about an hour drive North of Vancouver, B.C. in the great Canadian wilderness. Most of the hike was great weather-wise, but as we got closer to the lake the rain started and the temperature dropped. By the time we reached the top I was exhausted, wet, and freezing. We had limited time at the top since we were trying to make it back down by sunset. It took almost 5 hours to reach the top, with constant breaks for water and snacks. I honestly thought about giving up. That maybe it wasn't really worth it. But the visions of the turquoise water kept me going. I'm glad I did it, although I do wish the weather would have been nicer and that we would have had more time at the lake. I have future plans to go back and backpack up and stay the night----but earlier in the summer! haha!
With being injured over the summer I wasn't able to do as many hikes as I would have liked. So I mostly did some easy out and back hikes or hikes with low elevation gain. Despite my injury it was a fantastic summer. Now I'm ready for the rain and cold and possibly even snow! My heart has found it's home and it's a little area called the Pacific Northwest.
