Category Archives: New Experiences

New Experiences, Photos, Troy's Blog, wildlife

Returning to the Rookery

This past winter I was talking to some photographers who mentioned a Great Blue Heron rookery (nesting site) relatively close to me and that no matter what the weather, herons begin to return in March. One nice early spring day, the first day of spring in fact, I took some time to stop by and see where this place was and if the herons were indeed returning yet. To my surprise there were many birds already there squabbling over which nest they wanted. There were several nests still unoccupied so I expect there will be more birds migrating to the area as spring progresses.

Searching for the right nest

While watching several pairs of Great Blue Herons it was interesting to observe how they interacted with each other and with other herons in the area. Each checking different nests trying to pick just the right one to raise new little herons and defending that nest from others. I focused on one pair for awhile, watching and photographing some of their behaviors, as I continued to learn more about these larger birds. After checking a few nests thoroughly, they seemed to settle on one. However, that one nest still required some work before it would be suitable to lay eggs into.

Disagreeing on the next quality

At one point there seemed to be a discussion and disagreement over an aspect of this nest which you can see from the photo above. I couldn’t tell what the issue was but the result was one of the herons flying away from the nest to find solitude in the river banks below. The picture below shows the Great Blue Heron taking off from the nest while the other one continues to inspect parts of the potential nest. While away, the remaining bird made some adjustments to the sticks improving this chosen nesting site.

The disagreement escalates as one of the Herons leaves the nest

Five minutes later this heron returned to the nest and the pair seemed to make up and act as though they missed one another. For a couple of minutes they spent time kind of cuddling with one another before returning to the task of re-enforcing their nest. In the picture below you can see them with their heads crossed almost as if they were hugging. Maybe this is just some sort of method of checking out if they had been near another bird or reconnecting their bond. Whatever it was it was interesting to witness.

After some time the Heron returns and they display affection towards one another

Part of reconstructing their nest involved flying to another vacant nest, and stealing branches that could be used on their own nest showing why getting to the rookery earlier in the year was beneficial and worth risking exposure to bad weather which could include snow. And lots of it!

Pillaging other nests for sticks to repair their own nest

It’s interesting to watch as they would check several branches for just to right one for their own nest. Once the branch was chosen they would, not so carefully remove it from the nest and fly back with it in mouth.

Returning to their nest with another stick stolen from a different nest

After several sticks added and repairs were made, the nest was deemed suitable allowing for some rest before the real work of raising young arrived.

The nest is finally complete and it's time to rest

New Experiences, Photos, Troy's Blog, wildlife

Spring Eagle Migration

A couple of weeks ago I spent a Saturday in Wabasha, Minnesota photographing Bald Eagles as they return north after the cold winter. The National Eagle Center in Wabasha tracks Eagle numbers throughout March and the count for this weekend looked really good provided many opportunities to watch these magnificent birds of prey. After finishing my commitments on Friday night I quickly ran around the house gathering equipment and gear I might need for a day along the Mighty Mississippi tracking and photographing Eagles.

Awaking well before dawn, on a short nights rest, I got my remaining gear and some food together and headed out the door. It was just after 4:45am which would give me enough time to make the nearly 2 hour drive to Wabasha and arrive there to see the sun rise above the horizon as Eagles begin to take to the sky for the day. It was a nice day for an adventure with temperatures reaching above freezing making for a comfortable day outside without excessive layers of clothes. The drive went by quickly with the horizon beginning to cast light into drifting clouds as I got closer bringing out some beautiful pinks in the sky. Reaching the first stop for the day at Reeds Landing, the sun was only moments from breaking above the trees across the river. Getting set up to take some pictures of the sunrise, Eagles were already flying above distracting me from the first mornings’ light.

Sunrise over the Mississippi River

While the sun continued to rise I attempted to capture an Eagle in the photo as they flew overhead but was unsuccessful as it was still too dark and the Eagles turned out blurry so I returned to focus only on the sunrise for the time being. One of the nice things about Eagle watching at that time of year is if you see a large bird, it’s likely an Eagle. During much of the summer I’m often fooled by larger birds that turn out to be Turkey Vultures and then disappointed. In a short time the light from the rising sun increased enough to begin capturing birds in flight. Just at that time a young one flew into view heading right in my direction. Focusing the camera on it I began to snap away getting some beautiful photos as it got closer. The result is the picture at the top of this post.

Looking through the trees

The biggest challenge of photographing these Eagles is to find a spot to get close enough for some great photos. Often times they will fly away from you or land on the other side of the river where they are too far away to get great shots. Even with that, opportunities did become available from time to time. The trick was to be ready and have the camera settings right for the situation. Sometimes it works out and other times I was frustrated with a blurry shot wanting to slam the camera and lens to the ground. All in all it was a lot of fun to photograph these beautiful birds and watch as they interacted with each other and flew overhead. Listening to their calls, which sounds very little like the sounds you hear on TV shows, wondering what they’re saying to each other. Sometimes they called one another to the tree they’re in and other times it was letting anther Eagle know they are not welcome to land in that tree. But many of the calls I couldn’t figure out the purpose of.

Soaring in the blue sky

After awhile the Eagles seem to move away from an area requiring getting back into the vehicle to search for more elsewhere along the river. There are several nests in this area also. These are quite impressive to see as they’re so large. Almost like a tree fort. All of this just for an little Eagle or two. These nests are constructed over several years, increasing in size each time. There was one nest being guarded by an Eagle giving some perspective on how large the nest is.

Watching over the nest

Throughout the day there were many Eagles soaring in the warming sun. Every once in awhile there would be a couple of birds arguing over a particular fishing spot or certain territory in a tree or on the remaining ice along the river making for some interesting and entertaining behavior. Several times I attempted to capture this with the camera but often it was over before I could capture the event. There were a few that I managed to photograph but they were often far away allowing the Eagles to avoid a close-up shot. The picture below is one of the best shots I managed to capture. These two were arguing over this location on the ice. It lasted for less than a minute.

Fighting for ice space

As the day got later I continued to work on capturing an Eagle swooping down to catch a fish. Unfortunately I had little success. The bird, captured below, has a fish in it’s talons while heading to a tree away from all the other birds to feast without being disturbed by another Eagle trying to steal the fresh meal. I watched this one gliding over the water and then circle around before plucking a fish out of the river all the while snapping away. Unfortunately those pictures are all a little blurry and the actual moment of catching the fish was missed. I have a photo of the Eagle touching the water and another one just after it caught the fish. While it’s nice to see those shots, it’s also disappointing as they are not great compositionally or completely in focus. Something to continue to work on. Even after this bird caught the fish I didn’t stop tracking it and luckily I didn’t. It ended up flying almost overhead as it headed towards the hills behind me giving me more opportunities to grab a picture with a fish in the talons.

Retreating to a treat to feast on a freshly caught fish

Near the end of the day the light was getting too low for good picture taking of the Eagles so I headed to a spot to enjoy the last rays of the sun for the day before making the trek back home. Thankfully it was a beautiful sunset over the vast Mississippi River as you can see in the small Panorama below.

Sun setting over the Mississippi from above

Adventures, New Experiences, Troy's Blog

Walking Across the Mississippi

One of my goals during the raising of our children was to take them to the beginning of the Mississippi which is located at Lake Itasca. A few of the landmarks I think anyone living in Minnesota should see include Lake Superior and the North Shore, The Minnesota State Fair, Minneapolis and St Paul, and where the Mighty Mississippi River begins. As we continued on our quest to complete our National Parks Monopoly board I began to run out of time to experience the Mississippi headwaters with the children and was thinking this wouldn’t happen. Fortunately there was a portion of the summer with no travel plans and we decided to add Voyageurs National Park to our board which was not all that far from Itasca State Park where this large river begins.

Walking across the Mississippi

Leaving Voyageurs late in the afternoon we arrived at Itasca State Park at sunset to a porcupine crossing the road in front of us. That seemed like a good omen to begin this portion of our journey. Getting to our campsite at dark made it a bit more challenging to set up the tent and get everything ready so we could sleep but eventually we were successful and grabbed a snack before crawling into the sleeping bags for some much needed rest before a full day of exploring this area boasting the start of the Mississippi. Unfortunately it was a cool night with temperatures falling into the 40’s Fahrenheit making it a little difficult to get a good nights rest but we eventually emerged from the tent, grabbed some food and headed out with the first stop the Headwaters Visitors Center.

Family photo at the Mississippi headwaters

By the time we arrived at this river crossing it was mid-day and there were a lot of people exploring this start to one of the longest rivers in the world. This made it a bit of a challenge to grab some family photos so we watched as many other people along with our children ventured across the rocks or through the water to add walking across the Mississippi to their list of accomplishments with the goal of returning at a quieter time. I did take a few photos at this visit to the headwaters just in case plans changed and we became unable to get here with a smaller crowd. Even with all of the other people exploring around here it was fun to think about how far this water will travel and how long it will take for the water we were walking in to reach the ocean so far away. Fortunately we did make it back the next day after the visitors center closed so there were a lot fewer people.

Crossing the Mississippi at a second location

With less people we set up the camera and took a few family photos for memories and then played in the water a little more without worry about causing issues with other visitors. To get to the beginning of the Might Mississippi you have to park at the visitor center and walk a short distance to the lake and this small river. Hard to imagine the Mississippi as a small river. I’ve grown up visiting this river often a little further south watching as barges moved cargo up and down it and couldn’t imagine it being a small river to walk across at some point. There are a few other locations in the state park where you can walk or drive across the little Mississippi which we did to fully take in this idea. One thing that always seemed weird to me was this river flows north for a ways before finally turning south. The land here is a high point so everything flows away in several directions which is why the beginning of the Mississippi River runs Northward before the ground gets lower allowing the water to return to a normal direction of flow going south. There’s a webcam set up to view the headwaters if you’re interested in viewing it live. Mississippi Headwaters Webcam

Having a little fun at the start of the Mississippi River

New Experiences, Troy's Blog, wildlife

Bears–They’re Everywhere

During a trip to Northern Minnesota we stopped in Orr for a night after many hours sitting in a car. One of the things to see in Orr is the Vince Shute Wildlife Sanctuary which allows visitors to see wild bears. They’re only open during a few hours in the evening so we spent some of our afternoon preparing for a week camping in Northern Minnesota and resting before venturing off to the sanctuary. For the short drive we were all just hoping to see a few black bears and get a good photo or two. This appeared to be an unrealistic expectation for August! There’s a long unpaved driveway to enter the wildlife sanctuary with anticipation growing along the way to watch black bears but also a bit nerving for first timers like us. We didn’t know what to expect.

 

Black bear standing on a tree limb

I was a little anxious because I really didn’t know if there would be a possibility of contact with a bear and how this sanctuary thing works. Will there be bears to see and photograph, how safe is it? As you get closer to the parking area there are small signs pointing you further until reaching a larger opening with people directing cars on where to park. I kept looking around trying to figure out where this sanctuary viewing area was and for any possible bear passing by but there was no sight of either. We got parked and headed to a little shelter to purchase tickets for entry. Upon receiving the tickets we were told to wait until a bus arrives. Oh this wasn’t the actual viewing area. Heading back to the car to get sunscreen, bug spray, and of course the camera I studied the other visitors to see what the procedure appeared to be. No one else really appeared nervous, just excited to see bears like we were so this must be a fairly safe endeavor. With gear in hand we waited about 10 minutes or so until an empty bus appeared from the woods. A small line formed to load the bus until it was full and off we went to the wildlife observation deck.

Sleeping bear

After a short bus ride we arrived at a wire fence enclosed observation deck. The bus pulled as close to the entrance as possible and staff blocked any potential opening before allowing us to get off the bus and ascend the stairs up to a raised observation deck which stands at least 7 feet off of the ground. within the first minute we spotted 3 bears off in the woods climbing around dead logs lying on the ground. This was already as many bears as I had hoped to see hear. Sanctuary staff encouraged us to keep moving to allow everyone to get on the deck assuring us there were plenty of bears to see on this day. Venturing further into the platform we could see several other bears with one on a tree limb not far away from the deck so it was at eye level for us. This just didn’t seem real to have this many wild bears in one area so close. We had about 3 hours here and for the first hour we were in a state of shock at being able to see all of these bears of different sizes.

Resting after a full meal

There were many bears at 300 – 400 pounds. I have never seen a black bear that huge and certainly wouldn’t want to meet up with this bear in the wild. There would be no chance if it became aggressive. A renewed respect for these incredible creatures. Off in the distance we could see a couple of cubs sleeping in a tree. I’ve seen pictures of this but never was able to see it in person. It is amazing to witness with your own eyes. While photographing these bears a mother with it’s cubs came into the area with the cubs climbing up into a nearby tree shortly thereafter. We learned that the mother gives the cubs a signal to climb for their safety as larger bears really can’t climb very well. I missed this signal but others witnessed it. Fortunately I was able to photograph as these cubs continued to climb higher and higher with surprising speed. It’s an experience that I can’t believe and one that almost does not seem real.

A bear cub climbing a tree

During our time on the observation deck some of the staff would give talks on the sanctuary and animals that visit it such as birds, squirrels, raccoons, and deer. Some of the other information included why so many bears keep coming here. A few of those reasons include safety and food. Inside this whole sanctuary bears figure out they’re safe from people and cars. Food is plentiful and easy for them to find which is another reason for them to visit the Vince Shute Wildlife Sanctuary. The one thing they do have to watch out for is other bears due to the larger numbers in such a small area and we witnessed a number of scuffles as they declared dominance and who’s food is who’s but nothing too major or violent. During the 3 hours of observing bears we saw between 40 and 50 wild black bears of all sizes as they continued to scarf down pounds and pounds of food in preparation for the upcoming hibernation season. Soon the bears would leave this sanctuary in search of solitude and a place to take a winter nap before giving birth to new cubs early in the new year. An amazing experience which hopefully can be repeated again sometime soon.

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New Experiences, Troy's Blog

Climbing for Air …. American Lung Association

For a number of years now (10 to be exact) the American Lung Association has organized and event called Climb for Air. I’ve heard about it for a couple of years and thought it was cool that they would be able to use one of the taller buildings in downtown Minneapolis for it. This is a fundraising event ending with each person climbing stairs for 31 stories. When I first heard that I questioned if I would be able to accomplish such a feat.

Climb for Air event in Minneapolis

On Friday I heard of this event happening this year again and began to ponder if I should attempt climbing stairs for 31 floors to reach the top of one of the skyscrapers in Minneapolis. I’ve not been working on getting into trail condition as much as I should be so physically I’m not as prepared. Researching further 31 stories equates to about 680 steps. Once I saw that then there was little doubt if I could do this or not. There have been caves explored where I’ve climbed half that many stairs so I should be able to do this although this is just climbing up, up, up with limited breaks like a cave would have. After going back and forth I decided it would be a good new life experience for me as well as a worthwhile organization to support in honor of an uncle I lost due to lung cancer and signed up.

Over half way done

The next day I arrived at US Bank Plaza to begin my climb. Average climb times are listed as 10-15 minutes so I figured I should be able to do it 20 minutes taking my time as needed. They attached tracking tags to one of your shoes to keep track of how long it takes to climb and off I went stair after stair. I remember reaching the second floor and then the third. Before I realized it I was at the 16th floor – over half way. I stopped for a quick water break on the next floor and then there was the 19th floor. My legs were beginning to feel it a little but more so I was breathing pretty hard by this time.

From the top

Reaching the 22nd floor I tried to slow down a little for the next flight, took a few seconds to stretch tightening muscles a few times until reaching the 29th floor and decided a strong finish was how I wanted to end the climb. During this time I was thinking back to last summer’s climb of Long’s Peak and wondering how many steps I climbed for that. A few more than this I’m sure. Once getting to the top floor I was a little shocked it was done and kept walking back and forth on that floor to cool down while grabbing more water. After a few minutes I realized it took just over 6 minutes to climb 31 stories. Wow was it really that quick? It was an enjoyable experience and one I felt good doing. Marathons and bike races aren’t of much interest to me but this fits in well for me.

After completing the climb

Adventure, National Parks, New Experiences, Troy's Blog

The U. S. National Anthem

Every time I hear the United States National Anthem, there is a deeper meaning after visiting the place it was written – Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland. One of the first things you can see upon nearing the fort is the tall flagpole carrying a huge American flag which author Francis Scott Keys was looking for during the bombing of the fort by British soldiers.

Canons protecting the fort

Once inside the fort, you can see where the canons that defended this fort during the attack were placed. This brings the attack to life imagining soldiers maneuvering cannons and loading them to fire back at British ships in Chesapeake Bay outside of the fort while taking cover as these ships fired back.

Looking out into Chesapeak Bay where the National Anthem was first written

Walking along the top of the fort walls, Chesapeake Bay is clearly visible shining in the bright blue, sunlit sky. After seeing the fort and many of its canons you begin to visualize British ships in the water firing almost causing you to quickly duck back behind the brick walls for protections.

Watching the flag flying in the wind high over Fort McHenry

It’s very humbling to think of this large icon of America, its flag, flying in the wind while soldiers engaged in heavy battle firing at each other through a smoke filled sky created from canon fire. To imagine what this must have looked like to Francis Scott Keys and the impact it had on him during these days. His surprise, joy, and pride to see Fort McHenry and the United States flag continuing to exist in all their glory once the battle ceased. On this Independence Day I have further respect for those who have given much to give us our freedom and continue to defend it yet today!

A huge American flag flying in the courtyard

 

New Experiences

Snow Storm Timelapse

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During a recent snowstorm in Minnesota I set up a camera and took a timelapse of it and fortunately caught some interesting photos. Put together you have this video of just over 4 minutes. After you watch it through one time there are some interesting things to watch out for. In the first couple of seconds you can see Saturn trailing across the sky. The video is added to show in real time what the snow fall was like. As your watching the snow accumulate, pay attention to the street sign. In the beginning it is easily visable but eventually gets blocked by snow. Also, around 3:20 you can see the snow settling and melting in the bottom, center of the screen. This is surprising as the actual air temperature was only a few degrees above zero fahrenheit. It is due to the reflection off of the building and shows just how powerful the sun can be this time of year even in Minnesota. For those that want to know some of the technical aspects of this video:

-there are over 20,000 images used

-each second of video represents 6 minutes of time as this is compiled at 60 frames a second with photos being taken every 6 seconds.

   

New Experiences

The Seashore of Olympic National Park

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The Coast

Often a national park will have multiple ecosystems to explore allowing for a more diverse experience. Olympic National Park definitely fits into this concept with three different systems – mountains, forests, and a coastal ecosystem. It’s always interesting to find freshwater environments near the coast so you can contrast and compare them. A small distance apart can make a tremendous difference in the wildlife that visit each and in some cases both types of water. Gulls, eagles, and bears will visit both freshwater and saltwater in search of food while salmon will only enter freshwater during spawning season and ducks and deer remain near the freshwater. Pelicans will primarily stay near saltwater along with so many other sea creatures (urchins, sea stars, ect…).

Sandy Beach Littered with Logs

Those of us that don’t live near saltwater are not use to seeing the diversity of both these ecosystems and how similar they are as well as how different they are. After visiting the interior of the Olympic Peninsula for a couple of days it was time to venture to the coast and enjoy another environment. Two things on our list of things to see here were the sea stacks which are basically large boulder or small islands of rock out in the ocean not far from land and tide pools containing urchins, anemones, and other sea creatures caught during low tide.

Dungeness Crab

We started out at Beach 1 near the Kalaloch Lodge to start our coastal adventure. After a short hike down to the beach you notice it is full of logs piled everywhere and Dungeness Crabs laying all over the beach being picked at by gulls. Being there in late August may provide a different encounter with the crabs as I’m sure they don’t litter the beach here year around. Working to get over the logs you land on the soft sand often desired with a beautiful beach. Unfortunately, there where no sea stacks and no tide pools to peer into. After a little more exploring, it was time to find our next meal and another vantage point to explore the ocean coast.

The View from the Lodge

Since we were near the Kalaloch Lodge, and there aren’t a lot of dining options in this area, we opted to eat there and enjoy a great view of Kalaloch Creek entering the ocean. We enjoyed our meal and then a quick hike down to the ocean for another touch of the soft sand before venturing off towards Ruby Beach. This beach was recommended as the best location to see the sea stacks closest to us. There are better beaches for this which also offer nice tide pools but they were several hours away and our day was dwindling as it was.

Rocky Shores of Ruby Beach

Getting out of the car at Ruby Beach you can’t see the ocean but there is definitely a strange sound. Another short hike to get to the water and now this sound makes more sense. There is no sand here, just small, smooth, flat rocks making a unique sound as the water washes onto them. Finally a view of sea stacks. I’m sure they are more impressive on sunny evenings as the sun wanes behind them but this day was cloudy with heavy mist all around us. Still they were fun to see. Due to our timing, the tide pools would not be visible as it was near high tide. That was a little disappointing as pictures we’ve looked at provide a lot of colorful creatures. To see a post by Lee Rentz displaying some beautiful photos of the tide pools click here.

Sea Stacks

After enjoying this stone beach for awhile, rain moved in making the decision to call it a day and head back to the hotel pretty easy. Three days of exploring this national park left me exhausted so an early night at the hotel was just right in order to recoup before returning to Seattle for another long day’s adventure.

Another Form of Sea Stacks

New Experiences, Troy's Blog

Dinner at the Space Needle

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Downtown Seattle

One of the most popular attractions when visiting Seattle is the famous Space Needle.  So when planning for a trip to Seattle the first stop was Spaceneedle.com. We knew we wanted to view Seattle from the Needle but didn’t realize the different options available to experience this unique structure. Eating at the Skycity restaurant was very appealing until viewing the menus and seeing the prices. For a family of four to eat there it was going to be over $200. Not sure that was in the budget.

How about some time on the observation deck? That was still a little pricey but how often did we plan on visiting Seattle? Probably this one time so better take advantage of being there and go to the top of this famous attraction. The next question – do we go during the day, the night, or both since all of these options are offered? After figuring out that the observation deck was included with a meal, the cost of eating in the Skycity restaurant was not as bad. Especially if we decided that the day and night was what we wanted to do. How about eating around sunset and then going up to the observation deck before dinner to see Seattle in the waning hours of the sunlight.

Everyone in our group decided dinner around sunset would be a good idea, that is of course, if the sky was relatively clear to see the sun. Let’s take the chance and make reservations! Next, finding out the sunset time of Seattle in late August. For that we used timeanddate.com and then made our reservations around that time. Here’s hoping! It was off to Seattle.

A Cloudy and Foggy Morning

Our day began in the Olympic Mountains with plenty of clouds and fog. A sunset didn’t look very promising giving way to a little disappointment setting in. There was most of the day left for the sky to clear but the forecast didn’t indicate a good chance of it. For a different view of Seattle we took the ferry from the Olympic Mountains to northern Seattle. Driving on a boat was a unique and fun experience for those of us that don’t really get the opportunity to do so. I’m sure it’s old news to those who get to do it on a regular basis. Once we exited the ferry it was off to downtown to explore the fish market, the underground, and eventually end up at the Needle.

Location of the Popular Fish Market

As the day continued, and our Seattle adventure taught us about the city, we noticed the sky beginning to clear a little. There is hope! Our reservation time was ticking closer so off to the hotel to clean up, change, and get ready for dinner. We arrived at the Space Needle taking in the uniqueness of this structure that we had seen several times from a far. Where is the entrance? It’s not like there is a definite front to this building. Walking around it we found entrance doors and slipped inside. A huge gift shop is what greats you. How do you check in? Walking around on the inside a reservation desk appeared so we walked up to it and let them know we had arrived for our reservation. Pretty easy once you gain your bearings in this circular building.

The Space Needle

We were directed towards a line for restaurant guests to take a specific elevator near your reservation time. After waiting a short time it was into the elevator and quickly up the Needle. The elevator ride itself is fun as they are on the outside of the building and have large windows to view the city as you climb to the top. It was such a smooth ride and went to fast for us as we enjoyed peering out at our surrounding while the elevator climbing higher and higher making the ground look smaller and smaller. Next stop, the observation deck. Going out onto the deck gave a wonderful view of Seattle, the Olympic Mountains, and Mt. Rainier.  Unfortunately, this view is impeded by cables taking away from the magnificence of it. Still a nice view. After about 15 minutes we were called for dinner and made our way down one level to the restaurant.

Seattle From the Observation Deck

We were quickly seated on this revolving floor and had an even better view of the area because of the complete windowed view giving a panoramic look at Seattle and the nearby mountains without the cables. Everyone in the group had been warned of the prices to be expected for dinner so the shock had was taken care of.  I couldn’t decide what I wanted to eat because I was spending most of my time watching the setting sun. Success! Most of the clouds had dissipated leaving a gorgeous sunset over the Olympic Mountains. This plan could not have worked better. What a blessing.

A Beautiful Sunset

Dinner came and the sun left leaving us with great food to enjoy while Seattle was lit up underneath us. One of the kids dishes comes with noodles in the shape of the Space Needle itself. How fun is that?! And for dessert, how about a smoking bowl of ice cream?

        Noodles in the Shape of the Space Needle         Smoking Ice Cream

For those who may be questioning whether to eat at the restaurant or just visit the observation deck, I highly recommend taking the opportunity to eat at the Space Needle at least once if nothing else for the unique experience of it. I will certainly do it again if the opportunity presents itself.

Night Time From the Needle

For those unable to get to Seattle, here is a live webcam from the Space Needle.

The Space Needle at Night