Friday, March 18, 2016

Olympic Mountain Vistas from the Capitol Lake Interpretive Trail

Text and photos by Nancy Partlow©

I was so surprised when I first realized that the Olympic Mountains can be seen from the Capitol Lake Interpretive Center. 

When looking up the estuary, my sense of direction gets all turned around, so it just didn’t make sense to me.  Since then, I’ve learned to orient myself and now enjoy the beautiful views that avail themselves to all CLIC users whenever the clouds lift above Washington’s rainforest peaks.
I’d like to share some pictures that I’ve taken from the CLIC dike trail that forms the southern shore of Capitol Lake’s middle basin. 
Sun and shadow over the Olympics:


Canada Geese fly low over the lake with the Olympics as a dramatic backdrop:


The Brothers peak peeks above the nearshore forest surrounding the lake:


Fog below and clouds behind create the optical illusion of a mountain range floating in air:


The city of Olympia is in the process of assessing its downtown “viewsheds” to be protected.  Janine Gates recently wrote about this effort for her Little Hollywood blog:
Although Capitol Lake is not in Olympia or even Tumwater, (it is part of the Capitol Campus and therefore under state jurisdiction), I still think the gorgeous Olympic Mountains views from the CLIC should be preserved.