I left the Whiskey Bend trailhead already intoxicated with the Olympics. The short drive from the park entrance had fed my eyes with large trees and the deep and varied greens of mosses and ferns filling every available space. A doe and fawn grazed at the parking lot as I staggered down the trail. My first pictures were unfocused, fuzzy attempts to capture this lushness.

Continuing down the trail I began to focus more on the parts of this forest, the individual flowers and ferns, or parallel stands of trees. Patterns began to assert themselves in the field of alder trees near Michaels Cabin and the cascading creeks bisecting the trail.

The few other people thinned out as well, so I concentrated on assembling the huge trees draped with moss into my mental picture of forests. The Olympics were building up in my head off the forests of the Smoky Mountains, similar creeks and greenery, but much more lush and the trees were many times larger. This comparison began to melt down when I saw the first snowcapped spires through the clouds.

Descending to the Lillian River I caught up to and startled a female backpacker ahead of me. "I was just thinking of the warnings about cougars when you came up behind me" she explained. I passed ahead and broke out my stove at the Lillian Camp to prepare dinner by the river. She stopped as she leapfrogged me and said "I'm calling you 'Cougar Man' because you snuck up on us and walked so softly and quickly by." I could only apologize and return to my boiling water.

Stomach full, I took advantage of the long evening light and pushed on four more miles to the Mary Falls Camp. Counting (and admiring) streams along the way I couldn't wait to take more pictures in daylight.

Tired after a long day of catching flights, I grew disappointed with the sign announcing the "Bear Cable 300 yards" that was proved a lie by a trail reroute. Finally reaching the camp I waved to the only two other occupants, who did not mistake me for a man-eater, and settled into a sandy black spot near the river.

Making a trip to the bear cables with my food, I again passed by the other campers and was invited to join their roaring fire. Mindy and Nick generously shared their wine and smores and welcomed me on my first day in Washington state. The couple was also from Bellingham, a town I'd visit next month, and they gave me advice on where to eat and what to see.