I went for a hike earlier this week at Cama Beach State Park on Camano Island.

Perhaps "hike" is a bit of a misnomer. I actually just strolled along some very well groomed (but muddy) trails through the woods to Cranberry Lake.

Well, "lake" is a bit of a misnomer as well. The trail ends abrubtly at a marsh. A large marsh, to be sure, but certainly not a lake.

I did see some evidence of beavers. And I startled a mama deer with a spotted little one by tromping loudly through the underbrush to get a picture that didn't even turn out, but my camera wasn't nearly as fast as they were. That's a lie. My camera is very fast. I'm not.

Then I wandered out of the woods and down to the beach. I would like to say that the picture at the bottom does not do this hill justice. It's a killer. So near the top I turned around to "take a picture". What I really needed was to get my breath.