a wolf on the moon: Flood

--01_07_2009_feeling the grasp of the northwest_bv--

Leaving Seattle was a really tough thing to do. Emotionally and literally. After packing up all my stuff in the morning and dropping off a book at a friends I started out heading west on I 90 thinking the little bit of rain wouldn't impede my travels. I was wrong. Snoqualmie pass was closed to traffic due to avalanches and heavy mud and rock slides. I figured I'd give 410 a try since it is a tad more south and less busy..... Shut down. As I was turning around on 410 I came close to becaming stranded in Enumclaw, Washington. Enumclaw is a town surrounded by rivers along with roads that were clogged with bumper to bumper traffic in every direction searching for a way out.

After a little weaseling, I squeezed out of the gridlock and over a small bridge up to it's neck in water.

With high hopes of at least getting somewhere farther than 30 minutes from Seattle after three and half hours of driving I started to head south on I 5 to Portland. From Portland interstate 84 heads directly east along the Columbian River through the mountains.

The river was about 2 feet from flowing over I 5. I assume this could have been one of the sections that ended up having to close to traffic.

I managed to make it to Portland and from there everything was smooth sailing. The route is a little out of the way, but it paid off as I worked my way west out of the rain and through the mountains. It was pretty close though. All the roads are traveled on today, are or were at some point in time, closed. Including interstate 5 which isn't even near the mountains. I took as best of photos from my car as I hurried out of the rain.

A different route than planned. But at least I am east of the first set of mountains.

I felt a little weird driving away from a huge news event. But I knew that if I didn't make it out today I may have been stuck for days in the epic floodwaters that engulfed the northwest. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/395143_stormonline08.html

Pretty glad that I was driving on the side of the road without the waterfalls and giant rock walls.

Currently I am in the border town of Ontario between Oregon and Idaho. I'm on the Oregon side. I wish I could have had more time in this state. Just the drive along the river had me itching to come back and do some hiking.

Front focused waterfall.

I tried something different here with a longer exposure to blur the road and trucks passing to bring in some lines while keeping the relative shapes of the mountains along the horizon.

A long tunnel through one of the mountains along Interstate 84.

Cheers,
Brad

Listening to: (song that popped on shuffle as I drove out of Seattle) The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts, Sufjan Stevens

Kinda excited to use these guys after a long day of driving.

--11_12_2008_Hyperhydration--

Flooding has started to occur in many different places outside the Seattle area. On Wednesday we dispatched quite a few photographers to different areas to cover the rising flood waters. I was sent about an hour south, southeast of Seattle to a small town called Orting and the surrounding area near the Carbon River and Voights Creek.

I was there until dark and the Carbon River had not crested over its banks. The smaller Voights Creek had inundated a Washington State fish hatchery however about 3 miles down the road from Carbon River. I went back and forth between locations until it was dark and then I had to leave to transmit back to the paper.

Here are a few of the photos I made while roaming around on damp ground and in water up to 2 1/2 feet deep or so.

Stay safe if you're in those areas.

~brad