I originally went up to try to catch sunrise at Reflection Lakes, but the clouds and wind on the water didn't exactly cooperate...not bad in terms of color, but it really became Non-Reflection Lakes for the morning.




Shortly thereafter, the clouds rolled in for the morning. So, what is there to do but take advantage of the rivers up there for a new installment of WFOT?

First, the cascades on the Paradise River above Ruby Falls.













An obligatory wildflower shot along the path.




Then, below Ruby Falls, a whole series of mini-falls have the collective name of Washington Cascades.










Finally, and more a matter of Water Flowing Through Things, the Cowlitz River cutting a hundred-foot channel through Box Canyon.




I mentioned in the title this was "the unexpected end of a Rainier summer." It wasn't supposed to be -- as a matter of fact, I was on my way back up Rainier the very next day...when the engine on my 1991 Accord (with 429,631 miles on it) finally gave up the ghost. By the time I had gotten the car towed off the mountain, managed to get back home (did you know that it takes two days just to get a bus out of Packwood, Washington, to the nearest place where you can get a rental car?), and replace my old Accord with a slightly-less-old Accord, not only were the wildflower blooms over on Rainier, but I had to cancel a planned trip to the Oregon coast which was going to be my big photo trip of the summer. I'll still be back to Rainier this year, but it will be to capture autumn foliage, not summer flower meadows. I guess my planned wildflowers/sunrise/Reflection Lakes shot, for which I've already found the perfect tripod location, will have to wait until next August...