I have been very blessed this week to be smack dab in the middle of beautiful majesty. I have always felt my soul belonged in the mountains. When I used to truck, I would always feel this sense of overwhelming comfort every time I went through mountains. It didn't matter whether it was the Appalachians, Rockies, Cascades or Sierra Nevadas. This calming deep feeling of fulfillment has filled my soul, almost as if Mother Nature is saying 'Welcome home my son, rest your soul.' The Northwest isn't much different than the Rockies but it does have a little bit different feel to it. Nothing bad, just different. There is about 5,ooo feet difference in elevation, but I'm not sure that I can attribute the change to that factor. Maybe it is because I haven't made it to Colorado for two years now and the experience isn't burnt deeply in my soul as it once was. It really isn't that relevant, whatever the case is.

The water is so prestine and clear, you can see to the bottom, no matter how deep it is. It is amazing. In some of the photos from earlier this week where we were jumping off of the bridge and swinging on the rope swing, that water was at least 15-18 feet deep. I tried to swim down and touch the bottom but didn't make it. That bridge is 2.5 miles from the Academy. Running down there right after class and jumping right in is more refreshing than I can describe. It is truly an amazing feeling, feeling each and every pour, almost get nourished with pure spring water. I'm guessing the water temperature is around 60-65 degrees. I would just jump in and sit there and tread water for 20-30 minutes, feeling the blood pump through my body. The cold water constricts your vessels, elevating your heart rate. You can almost literally feel the toxins leaving your system, leaving you feeling so nourished and refreshed.

Yesterday we went and did a little sight seeing in some nearby communities. The upper water fall is from Snowqualmie Falls. I need to do a little bit of reading on the history of the falls. There is a hydrogenerator by the falls, so I am assuming that the community of Snowqualmie may get a portion of the electricity from there. It was beautiful. If you notice in the photos, for scale, the spa in the upper left hand of one of the photos. I'm not exactly sure how tall the falls are but the look pretty tall.

The photos of the bottom water fall is Franklin Falls. The trailhead to the falls is just down the freeway from the exit to the Academy, within a 15 minute drive. It was another beautiful short hike up to the falls. There is an I-90 bridge that is just above the falls. We went down and climbed some rocks to get to some hidden spots. There were little falls all the way up the trial. I learned a little lesson today. Whenever hiking, wear your trunks. You never know where you can just kick off your shoes and dive right in. There were so many little 4-10 foot pools that would have been awesome to dive into right off of the rocks. The river has cut a pretty deep channel into the valley throughout the years so the walls are pretty steep.

There was one place that where the water had eroded the rocks away in such a manner that they resembled water slides. The rocks get slippery when wet and you can slide right down then into a pool.

Standing at the bottom of Franklin Falls today was a very humbling feeling. The falls don't look very tall but the force of the fall creates a mist that hits you in the face and just feels incredible. Just standing there, peaceful quite surrounding with the mist and wind blowing straight into you, cleansing your soul and enriching you.

I hope that all is well with everyone and summer is starting to calm down. I wish you all the best and don't be surprised if I don't come back home.