The state of high-speed rail in the U.S., as told by the New York Times.
#Texas #Cascadia #Brightline #California
The reality: the only true HSR is the Acela, which tops out at 150 mph. That's just barely high-speed by international standards.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/headway/high-speed-rail-trains-america.html
Hello from game night where I am trying to be artistic about taking a photo - or was an hour ago when this was taken! We were playing Cascadia again, it’s just so fun! Amazing that Ben is just barely out of the photo and didn’t extend a hand to flip off the camera, this might be the only game night photo I have in four years that doesn’t include his middle finger. 
There was one little fash man podcaster doing a livestream while walking down the sidewalk through the crowd - once only, I think - with a couple of his buds behind him,. talking to his audience of maybe tens about how "pathetic" all these people were with "nothing better to do" on a Saturday afternoon, and I wish I'd turned around and gone into my "aren't you so pathetic! what a good li'l booklicker! <3" doggie voice before delivering commentary about how if protesting is pathetic showing up to _cover_ a protest must be a whole 'nother _world_ of pathetic but alas, I didn't.
there's always next time
Okay so it was hard to get photos but I think we had nearly 300 (eta: Anna said they did a count of 425!) - I could count about that and I'm pretty sure I missed some but I also could've double-counted from across the street - at Lynnwood Tesla.
(It's hard to count through moving cars.)
That's pretty good.
Drivers honked a LOT of support. The counter-crowd was functionally _nonexistent_ - we had a couple of drive-by finger-throwers and swearers, but I only saw one (1) MAGAt hat. Which is kinda nuts.
This #ancient yellow #cedar #tree is older than the Great Wall of China & older than the Vatican.
All #ElderTrees - of this colossal & majestic scale, must be preserved & their ecosystems protected.
"Ah, but how will you capture us? We know the secrets of the Fire Swamp. We can live there quite happily for some time..."
#photography
#forest
#theprincessbride
#trees
#hiking
#oregon
#pnw
#cascadiaexplored
#cascadia
Time to get my first radio. Reddit seems to like the Yaesu FT-65R. What say you, Mastodon?
My main interest is emergency preparedness, including communicating following the Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake.
So many emojis, but no #Cascadia? 
#FootpathFriday through the #forest 
Rugged hiking trail, winding through luscious coastal temperate rainforest.
#ThrowbackThursday
4 years ago, I first met this gentle giant.
It's one of the only older Western red #cedar #trees left at #W̱MÍYEŦEN #NatureSanctuary. Most of the land had been logged more than once before it was acquired for conservation & rewilding. This is a 2nd growth cedar & it is over 150 yrs old.
The W̱MÍYEŦEN #Nature Sanctuary is a 42 acre protected forest and riparian area that supports biodiversity while preserving ecosystems and wildlife habitat. The tranquil natural environment, inspires an awareness of nature as teacher and essential ally.
https://wmiyetennaturesanctuary.com/
I'm a member of this local, biodiverse nature sanctuary. They mainly rely on memberships & public donations. They work with #Indigenous leaders/educators/naturalists from #Wsanec First Nations. The name was changed from the former Mary Lake Sanctuary to W̱MÍYEŦEN Nature Sanctuary to respect that the property is on native lands.
"I was here." - Beaver 
Very clear evidence of #beavers activity. You can see their many chew marks on this stump. This is in a small #Saanich community park, stewarded by citizens who live beside little Calvert Lake.
Access to trails is off of Prospect Lake Rd & easy to miss if you're not paying close attention. Only room for 2 cars to park on roadside pullouts. The trails aren't very well maintained & you can easily get lost around them. I've ended up in someone's backyard once, trying to hike back out. Wear long pants because there's a lot of places you have to bushwhack through along tiny footpaths. Lots of salal, Oregon grape, lady ferns (excellent for fiddleheads harvesting) & mushrooms.
Dapper #daffodils drenched in dewdrops.
This beautiful, ancient yellow #cedar tree has a massive, moss covered trunk. It is estimated at over 500 years old. There are very few #ElderTrees of this scale found outside of protected parks on Southern Vancouver Island now. The few remaining unprotected old growth forest tracts should be conserved for stability & longevity of our wild, ancient ecosystems & for the future generations to enjoy/admire/study.
The need to protect old growth forests has been the case for decades but even more important in present times because of accelerated climate change & the increased greedy desperation of corporate ecociders & our governments who aid/abet the pillaging which destroys wild environments that are essential for humans to sustain our lives on Earth. Valuable medicines are found & several medicines have yet to be found in these old growth, coastal temperate, wild rainforests. We need to protect these ancient forests for the above listed & many more important reasons.
My layered #PhotoArt tribute today, in honour of #Indigenous #FirstNations & #forests.
Both photos I used to create this piece were shot in the #Cowichan area.
