Wonderland of the World 1884

Beginning my 12th year ...

Welcome! I'm celebrating my 12th Anniversary publishing John's Island. My first regular post was on January 1, 2011 and today's post is published post #887. Many complimentary comments have encouraged me to continue posting items from my collection of Yellowstone National Park memorabilia, photos from my daily walks along Seattle's waterfront, sky photos, and a few other things. Thanks to all for stopping by.

From my Yellowstone National Park collection ...

The Wonderland of the World
Published by Northern Pacific Railroad, 1884

Yellowstone National Park was created by an act of the United States Congress in 1872.  The only way to visit the Park at that time was to walk, ride horseback, or take a stage coach. Ten years later, in 1882, Northern Pacific Railroad's transcontinental line, from eastern parts of the country, reached Livingston, Montana, and soon added a spur to Cinnabar, close to the north entrance of the Park. Jay Cooke, founder of the NP Railroad, had supported making Yellowstone a Park so the railroad could profit from it without owning it. The railroad began a guidebook series in 1883 to attract tourists to the Park. This book, The Wonderland of the World, was the 1884 edition of the guidebook series. I've scanned many of the artistic views in the book for you to enjoy below. Be sure to click on the image to get bigger, better view.

 

Great Falls of the Yellowstone National Park

Views of "Old Faithful" Geyser

Falls on the Gibbon River

Scenery on the Yellowstone Lake

Lake Pend D'Oreille, Idaho

Pillars of Hercules and Rooster Rock --
Columbia River

Interior view of the train.

I could have scanned the entire book for your reading enjoyment. However, Google Books has already done all that work and here is a link to the whole book.

Early January Snaps along my walks ...

First photo.
First walk of the new year.
Looking southeast from my starting point.
Elliott Bay and Mt Rainier in the distance.
The spot here is called "the steps" ...
I take a picture here at the beginning of
every walk to record the sky conditions.

Half of my walk is complete ... 1 mile. (1.6km)
This is my "turn around" spot.
Elliott Bay connects to Puget Sound
which connects to Strait of Juan de Fuca
which connects to the Pacific Ocean.

The SAKIZAYA ORCHID is at Grain Terminal 86.
This ship is operated by WISDOM LINE.
Seattle is one of the West Coast's grain
shipping ports. Most of these grain ships
are headed to Asia.

First day of loading grain, the ship is light ... note the red 
part of the hull and words WISDOM LINE.

Two days later ... most of the red part of the hull is underwater.
This is now a heavy ship ... almost fully loaded.
She sits lower in the water (deeper draft).

Starting picture on a wet day.
January 7th

Starting picture on a dry day.
January 10th

THOMAS G. THOMPSON
The 274-foot-long vessel is equipped for conducting
multidisciplinary research projects that involve
large teams of scientists.
NOAA Ocean Exploration

January 5 walk started at dawn.

SEATTLE FIREBOAT 2
Fire Rescue
Seattle Fire Department
More Info

Other mentions ...

Three hummers on the feeder!
Wow, this is unusual.
Normally ... hummers don't like to share a feeder.
One bird will chase the others away.
There are exceptions ...
In this case, I think it's because many humans
have taken down their hummingbird feeders.
They are unaware that the Anna's species stays in
the Pacific Northwest all year.
With fewer sources of food, the birds get along
better. At least that's my guess.

For my birding friends ... from National Geographic

A newly recognized bird!
Visit the full species account,
currently available for free.

Pocket Heater

Dnaleao Electric Portable Pocket Heater
keeps hands warm on cold walks!
Easy to recharge ... it's great.
From Amazon 2 pack for about $22.
Do you NEED this?  No.
Does it spark joy?  Yes.

W I N

WHIP INFLATION NOW
Pin it on and wear it everywhere.
Made famous in 1974
to encourage disciplined spending habits.  😊
The WIN button can be worn regardless of your political views.

Bet you haven't heard ...

You heard?
The west side of my walk is the waterfront.
The east side is a railyard for the Grain Terminal.
I get a kick out of some of the graffiti on the rail cars.
(There is plenty!)
I thought this was exceptionally unusual ...
English words are actually spelled out correctly
with proper characters.

Space Needle Fireworks - January 1, 2023

No, I didn't walk up to watch from Kerry Park.
12:00 Midnight
(Screen shot from TV coverage.)

Skies ...

Moments Apart

Walking south, just one big patch of grey clouds.
January 6th

After turning around, walking north, 9 minutes later.
Spotted someone taking a picture with their phone.
Thanks to that person ... I glanced back and 
My OH My! ... what a change!

Olympic Mountains on a clear morning ...

Looking across Puget Sound to Bainbridge Island
and on to the Olympic Mountains.
Note the low fog on the Island.
It was a clear, cold morning, January 2, 2023.

Colorful sunsets

January 10 ... five minutes BEFORE sunset

January 10 ...10 minutes AFTER sunset

January 8th

Rainbow!

Truly a lucky catch.
January 11th at about 8:05AM
Looking west from home.
Bainbridge Island and the
Olympic Foothills in the distance.

At the bottom of the picture ...
the Smith Cove Marina.
A pot of gold in someone's sailboat?

Closing thought ...

I didn't notice this until I got home, looking over the pictures taken on a rainy walk, January 7th. Looking at the full size image of the gull on a rock, I noticed all the rain drops hitting the water's surface. I really zoomed in and picked out one rain drop. It reminded me of a quote by Alan Watts (see below the photos). One rain drop makes a tiny ripple in the water of Puget Sound and ultimately the Pacific Ocean. The little ripple is clearly there but gone in a second or two. Similar, in a way, to humans and the Universe ... we're here for a while and then gone. Enjoy your days!

“You are a function of what the whole universe is doing in the same way that a wave is a function of what the whole ocean is doing.”

     Alan Watts

Published Post # 887