On a bright sunny morning in Hoquiam, Wash., I headed for the hills to see what I could find.
I began my photo session on Grand Avenue, just before it rises between Karr Hill and College Hill.
I've heard that in the old logging days, this 'pass' was used to roll or slide logs out of the hills into the flat.
Thankfully there are still trees here. It's hard for me to tell if these larger ones shown below are old growth trees or new. I can't imagine that they've grown to that height in 100 years or so; on the other hand, their girth is relatively narrow, so maybe they did.
My original plan heading up Grand Avenue was to stop off at Elton Bennett Park before heading up to the graveyard, Sunset Memorial Park, atop College Hill.
Elton Bennett has a nearly half mile loop running through the woods on the side of College Hill. When I walk to the graveyard, I often take a shortcut through Bennett, exiting up the hillside about halfway through the loop, but this time I decided to stay on the avenue.
People with expensive homes in the hills were heading down to the flat for work.
These two statues adorn a yard at the crest of Grand, where it meets Sunset Drive.
Sasquatch periodically changes his outfits. I've seen him draped with multiple bead necklaces as though he has just returned from Mardi Gras; now he seems to be prepared for a boat outing.
A new buddy joined me at this point on my walk. This is Rowdy. I learned later that he has just discovered how to open the back gate of his yard. He was apparently out for a ramble the same as I was, and he decided to join me for the rest of the morning.
Looking across Sunset Drive toward the top of College Hill, you could see the cell phone tower glinting in the sunlight.
When I started up Sunset Drive to the graveyard, Rowdy, somehow, sensed my move and came running from where he had wandered to lead the way.
On the right in the photo above, just past the telephone pole, is where I usually jump off the loop in Elton Bennett to catch Sunset.
After the first rise, the lane turns to the right and the view opens up briefly. You can walk up the grass to the top of the hill...
...or take the stairs.
Hoquiam has been placing its dead on this hill since its earliest days in the 1870s. In general, the open top of the hill has the newer graves, while the lower, wooded reaches have the older ones.
I followed the lane down to the right.
But first Rowdy had himself a roll.
I took a couple shots looking back the way I'd just come.
Continuing on, the old mausoleum, built in 1914, caught my eye.
Since the sun was still low in the sky, I decided to duck inside to check out the light through the stained glass.
It was fun to get some practice with interior shots, but the outdoors soon beckoned again.
When I came out, the sky was painted with clouds. Here you can see the graveyard's open hilltop and the new Garden Mausoleum, built in 1990.
I took a few more shots of the old mausoleum before deciding to head back home.
Rowdy had been waiting for me while I photographed the inside of the mausoleum. He apparently had a good ramble while he waited, because on the way back he felt the need for some refreshment ... from a flower vase next to one of the headstones!
Good thing he took a drink though. It's about a mile back to my apartment from the cemetery, and he followed along the whole way. I worried that he was lost and abandoned, but he had tags, so as soon as I got back to the house (and my cell phone, which, absurdly, I never carry with me), I called and was able to get in touch with the owner.
The owner drove up in about ten minutes. It turns out Rowdy lives not far from where I first met him.
I'll have to keep an eye out for him next time I walk up there, in case he wants to pop the gate again and join me.