What a beautiful day!  We returned home via Highway 2 where we saw the most colorful landscapes, which I could not capture in anything but my memory, since I had forgotten to charge the camera battery the evening before.  In many of the arroyos we saw what my husband called “an avalanche of color,”  soft purples, reds, yellows, greens and oranges. The views were spectacular.

My favorite site, which I had never noticed before, despite having made various trips on this highway, was Peshashtin Pinnacle Peaks.  I found one photo on the internet, but it doesn’t do justice to the site (and anyway, the link doesn’t work).  According to the Washington State Parks website, “Peshastin Pinnacles State Park is a 34-acre desert park featuring a group of sandstone slabs and spires called “the pinnacles.” Climbable spires reach 200 feet into the air. Rocks and trails provide views of surrounding orchards, the Enchantment Mountain Range, and the Wenatchee River valley.”   We walked up to the first pinnacle and part way to the second, but really were not prepared to climb ( I was, after all, carrying my silver Coach bag, which made me look pretty silly on this trail.)  We met some hikers who described the best route and were very encouraging, except for the comment by one that “I cried when I reached the top.”  I should have asked for clarification, but my sense was that she was not crying from joy.

We were fortunate to have arrived there one day before the park closed for the winter, but we’ve made plans to buy walking sticks (which one group of elderly German hikers assured us were the only things that stood between them and death) and high-tail it up to Leavenworth as soon as the park re-opens for the summer.