Featured: 'North Cascades and Olympic National Parks' by Tilman Paulin

tilman

All-Pro
Location
Portland, OR
We did a 10 day trip in northern Washington in July. Day hikes in North Cascades National Park and a few days in Olympic National Park on our way back home to Oregon.

Wonderful places... took way too many photos :) Gear-wise I kept it "fairly minimal": Olympus EM-1 with the 14-54mm and the 75-300mm. And a hiking pole with small ballhead as monopod.


Sauk Mountain: after some miles on a steep gravel road and a fairly short (but steep) hike you get rewarded with views like these:

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Sauk Mountain by tilman paulin, on Flickr


Mt Baker Wilderness (Artist Point): at first we were disappointed when we heard that there was still way too much snow to hike, but we still had a fun day up there.

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Mount Baker by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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Untitled by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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driving through the snow... by tilman paulin, on Flickr


Hiking up to Cascade Pass:

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Cascade Pass hike by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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Cascade Pass by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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way back down by tilman paulin, on Flickr


Olympic National Park (Hurricane Ridge area)

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Sunrise Ridge by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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Olympic National Park by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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Sunrise Ridge hike by tilman paulin, on Flickr


and finally some animals we spotted along the way :)

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Pika by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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marmots by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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fawns by tilman paulin, on Flickr

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bunny rabbit by tilman paulin, on Flickr
 
Thanks! :) In various ways July isn't the ideal time for hiking in the Cascades (trails at higher altitudes still covered in snow, temps being in the 80s and 90s on sunny days, raised stream levels due to snowmelt, mosquito season,...).
But it makes up for that with beautiful scenery and fun in the snow. And since we had no choice in the timing we tried to make the best of it :)
 
Beautiful country. The North Cascades look sort of similar in the winter (minus the water running across the road), but the Olympics are so beautiful on a sunny summer day, and you don't get that many sunny days in the Olympics. I spent too many soaking wet nights camped in or around that range - it's nice to see it looking so bright!

-Ray
 
Tilman, I'm way behind on keeping up with your photos but so glad that they caught my eye right here on the front page this morning! I look forward to following up more closely. Looks to me that you had a fantastic time - and the range of images with your two lenses makes me realize what a simple and useful camera set up you chose.

Also, love seeing that MINI racing along.;)
 
... and the range of images with your two lenses makes me realize what a simple and useful camera set up you chose.

Thanks BB! :)
Yes, I keep trying to simplify my gear for hiking. Last year I still had some primes with me and a waistpack (Thinktank Speed Demon). Apart from the weight, it took so much time to change lenses all the time.
(Rotate waistpack to front - open - get lenses - change lenses - close - rotate pack to back - rinse - repeat :) )
The more time you stand around doing that, the less distance you cover. And then there's my wife patiently waiting... :redface:

This year I kept it down to one standard zoom which I carried in Mindshift Gear's "UltraLight Camera Cover". Plus the tele-zoom for whenever I needed more reach.
That worked pretty well for me so far.
The hiking pole / monopod also did a good job. I wouldn't want to carry a tripod all over the place. The hiking pole is already at hand and much quicker to set up for me.
 
Thanks for the details, Tilman. It's always good to hear the realities behind these kinds of "in the wild" photographic stories...whether the wild is in deep country or in the more chaotic urban landscape. Clearly your kit worked out really well for you - and your wife looks very happy!
 
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