Fall at Bishop Ranch

Fall kicks off at Bishop Ranch with 80 to 90 degree days that could easily pass for summer just about anywhere else. Thankfully, the evenings cool off quickly due to shorter days and the coastal breeze that comes through the Hayward Pass each evening.

Fall leaves and summer flowering trees

The landscape at Bishop Ranch is conflicted – the leaves of the Liquid Amber trees are turning red, while the Crepe Myrtle trees still have blossoms in shades of pink and lilac.

A heron roosts in bare branches

Bright fall day

The baby geese and ducks have all moved on, but herons and Canadian geese still stop by the lake for a quick meal, or to roost in the trees. Shrubs and grasses that line Bishop Lake have gone to seed. I've collected a few seeds, and am curious if they are viable.

The red leaves deepen in color as fall progresses

The Bishop Ranch landscaping crew has been working on special projects, like planting a new bank of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), and trimming the grass clumps to foster growth in the next season.

Grasses in bloom	Grasses cut back for fall
Crepe Myrtle seed pods	A young heron lake side

Fellow co-workers still take walks around the lake and grounds, but often later in the day when it is cooler. Soon enough, the hot days will give way to cool fall days, fabulous sunsets, bare branches, and the discreet fall colors of the Mediterranean climate.

Early sun sets in fall

Signs of Fall

While much of the country is cooling down, here in the San Francisco Bay Area, summer is just getting started. With our Mediterranean climate, we're heading out of our cool, foggy days, and into the hot dry months.

Golden hills of fall in Northern California

The winter rains typically don't start until late October or November, unless we have an especially dry winter or are in a drought. The land is parched and dry. Even gardens that use limited water are looking droopy. The hills surrounding the Bay Area are golden brown and tinder dry, and dotted with live oaks - creating the iconic picture of the California summer dry landscape. For us, hot and dry are the normal signs of fall.

Fall Festival at Marra Farm

One of our South Park rambles with Mako took us through the Marra Community Garden. Recall we visited in winter, and saw the bones of the garden and lots of healthy looking kale (see Marra Farm Community Garden).

Marra Farm community garden in South Park, Seattle

Walking with Mako

When we visited this time, in late summer, the garden was filled with beautiful produce just starting to ripen, and within a month of harvest. The corn stalks stood high, and the ears were just ready to bulk up.

Giving garden

Corn stalks at Marra (note the slender ears of corn)

Beds were filled with a variety of squash, tomatoes, sunflowers, chard, lettuce, beans, and several types of pumpkin. Everything looked healthy and delicious.

Garden plots

Makes me wish were were going to be in town for the Marra Farm Fall Festival on the fourth Saturday in September. If you're in the Seattle area, find out more: Solid Ground 17th Annual Marra Farm Fall Fest.

Rambles in Sunny Seattle

It was difficult to leave the cool misty land of my youth, with all its wonderful memories, hardy people, and natural beauty. My husband and I had a great time reconnecting with family and celebrating life together. On the way home from Alaska, we stopped in Seattle for a long-weekend with our wonderful son and daughter-in-law, and Mako the Granddog.

Catching up

Lounging in air conditioned bliss

It's always such a pleasure to see them and spend time together. Their youth, energy, and optimism is invigorating. They are busy making their way in the world, but always make us feel welcome.

Walk on the Duwamish Trail

Garden ideas - terraced border

Garden ideas - masonry work

One favorite activity is taking Mako for long walks in South Park. It's fun to see the neighborhoods, find interesting gardening ideas and plants, and catch up on each other's lives.



Another favorite activity is eating, whether we cook ourselves or go out to eat. Our son has become a wonderful and adventurous cook. This visit he made delicious Shepperd hand pies (with homemade rough puff pastry) served with delicious glazed carrots; rice with pork belly; and eggs-over-easy served on toast. Delicious!

Hudson's restaurant near the morgue

We  also enjoyed pizza from South Town Pie, burgers and fries from Lorretta's Northwestern, and a leisurely big breakfast at Hudson Seattle Restaurant (near the Georgetown Morgue). We celebrated the birthday of our tricenarian daughter-in-law at the wonderful Pomodoro Restaurant with its delicious Spanish-Italian food and welcoming ambiance. Someone shouted "Forever 21" when the flaming tiramasu was brought out (an excellent wish for everyone)!

Warm ambience at Pomodoro Restaurant

Flaming tiramasu and forever 21

Media update

One of the highlights of our short visit was a Saturday morning session of Bossa Nova jazz with Marco de Carvalho & Friends at C & P Coffee in West Seattle. Carvalho is a Brazilian musician from Rio de Janeiro, and graduate of the Music Conservatory in Rio de Janeiro. He and his talented band of musicians played for a couple of hours to a loyal crowd. We listened over coffee drinks and donuts.

Marco de Carvalho & Friends at C & P Coffee

Saturday morning

Coffee at C & P Coffee

Homey atmosphere at C & P Coffee

Sunday morning came too quickly, and we were soon on the plane zipping back to the San Francisco Bay Area. The visit was the perfect ending to a wonderful trip, filled with natural beauty, family, and birthday celebrations (or uncelebrations)!

The end to a wonderful trip

Rainforest Plant Wrapup

One of the great payoffs of all the rain in Southeast Alaska is all the green and all the beautiful flowers.

Here is a gallery of some of the flowers I saw while taking walks in damp, green Southeast Alaska. Some are native, others have escaped. All are beautiful. You can see more flowers in Wildflowers of the National Forests in Alaska,

Fireweed	Goldenrod
Alaskan daisies	Wandering fleabane.
Raspberries	Red scabiosa
Wild celery gone to seed	Dandelion
Wild rose	Rose hip

Eagle River and the Crab Feed

A group of us headed "out the road" to the Eagle Beach State Recreation Area. This is a favorite place as it is surrounded with beauty and grand views, offers easy walking for a multi-generational crowd, and frequently has milder weather than downtown (when Juneau is cloudy and drizzly, Eagle Beach may have high-clouds and no rain, and sometimes even sunshine).

Mist over Eagle River

Watching the river

Fun with Grandpa

A dense fog hung over the vegetation in places along the river, giving it a soft focus look.  As always, we looked for bears (recall a year ago we watched a young female bear delicately eat a salmon in this same place - see Beautiful Juneau).

Exploring with Grandma

No fish

No bears

As with the streams at Mendenhall Glacier, we found the streams at Eagle River void of spawning salmon, so little to draw the attention of hungry bears. We found interesting plants in the area, and enjoyed exploring along the access road to the campground and cabins.

High-bush cranberries almost ripe

Wood rose

We drove over to nearby Eagle Beach for a walk on the sandbars. It was fun to skip rocks on the water, listen to the birds, and take in the sweeping views of the sea, the craggy mountains, and Herbert Glacier in the distance.

View to the mountains and Herbert Glacier to the right

Family portrait at Eagle Beach

A few days later, my brother and dad pooled their personal crab licences, and treated us all to a crab feed. My brother arrived with a plastic table cloth, an assortment of kitchen shears and pliers, and two King crab legs per person. We fell to work releasing the crab, and feasted on the sweet, delicate meat dipped in melted butter.

Crab Feed 101

Gaining momentum

Finishing up

In the pictures of the event, we all look pretty grim, but don't be fooled. It's just pure concentration and culinary pleasure. We celebrated another birthday with delicious cake and ice cream, this time for a sexagenarian.

The aftermath of a great crab feed

Birthday Black Forest cake

We had enough crab leftover for several crab melt lunches. Needless to say, we were full of gratitude for the gracious squandering of the season's crab take on our behalf. It was delicious, and a wonderful experience!

Preparing the crab melts