Mt. Rainier, or is it just rainier here?

My mom and Chuck rented a house in the Mt. Rainier National Forest and invited Tom and me.  Lucky us!

The brand spanking new gondola at Crystal Mountain ski resort.  An expensive, but very effective way of summiting.  Remember to not feed the wild animals.

Oops.  Someone fed the wild animals.

Such beautiful vegetation at 5,500' elevation.

 The views are spectacular, Photoshopped or not.

Made another stop at Tipsoo Lake.

 Brilliant scenery!  The foliage, the mountain, the lake and its reflection.  Ohhhhhm.  Ohhhhhm.  I feel like being reincarnated as a lady bug.

Vancouver rocks! (Not the one in Washington, that's just adequate)

We just got back from a quick weekend trip to Vancouver.  We stayed in a quaint apartment in the city... what a view!

 About 2,000 members from the local and Portland hiking clubs climbed Strachan Mountain just north of Vancouver.  Beautiful hike!

View from 1/2 way up... little did we know what pain awaits us.

Someone from Hong Kong would feel crowded on this hike.

The snow field from Hades.  Looking down.  Then looking up.  My legs still can't look at these pictures.

The peak was conquered!  What a great reward.

King of the mountain!  The Lions are in the background.