“There is an eternal landscape, a geography of the soul; we search for its outlines all our lives.” (-Josephine Hart)

Monday, I took a phenomenally scenic journey from Spokane, in eastern Washington state, to Walla Walla, Washington, in the southeastern region of the state.

I always relish making this trip, because it’s such a fascinating drive, with vast, open spaces and dramatic skies for miles on end.


The landscape is other-worldly, stark, and yet absolutely beautiful.

The first time I came to Washington, I thought the entire state was like the west coast with its lush, evergreen richness and color. Once you cross the western mountains, though, you hit the “rain shadow” that leaves much of the rest of the state dry and ochre-colored.

There are farms periodically in the countryside, and close to Walla Walla itself, the area is known as the “Napa of the North,” because of its burgeoning wine industry.

This is also part of the Lewis and Clark trail. I’m always awed by the journey those two took, when I travel through states that mark the trails they forged.
It’s a very rugged landscape and intimidating in its very scope.

Just thinking about Sacajawea being pregnant as she led the two of them through the wilderness boggles my mind.

Ever since I saw first-hand the landscape she traversed, I have held her in the highest esteem.

“Life is like a landscape. You live in the midst of it but can describe it only from the vantage point of distance.” (-Charles Lindbergh)