Skyscrapers only gawd can make... winter in the Cascades

[arbeiter]

This is totally not skyscraper related but we all love scenery, so I figured it'd pass muster.

This is Leavenworth, Washington (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leavenworth%2C_Washington), a tourist town about 100 miles east of Seattle that my grandparents live in. I spent virtually every summer of my life here, and a few winters too. the whole american-side of my (intermediate) family decided to try and congregate here for christmas.

the first thing we did after arriving was go snowmobiling in the mountains for 3 hours. this is the closest thing adults have to kid-like fun. my mom, her boyfriend, me, my grandpa and a family friend all went together.

the snowmobiling place is in a tiny town called plain. the name isn't a misnomer by any means. it's got about 200 people, a general store with one gas pump, and it's located in a plain.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2902.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2906.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2907.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2908.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2910.jpg

this is up at the entiat ridge - probably about 4,500 feet. most of this is national forest land or private - trees are cut down here but in a non-intrusive way. the western slopes however are just mowed down.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2912.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2917.jpg

you can see lake wenatchee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Wenatchee) if you look hard.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2920.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2927.jpg

once we got back down towards the base, a few houses are around. the guy who owns this land keeps his sprinkler on year round, and this gigantic crysttal formation appears. it's frozen so hard you can stand on it. it's been here every time i've snowmobiled.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2930.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2932.jpg

perfect powder, 20 degrees and no wind. what more can you ask for? oh yeah, the snowmobiles have seat warmers, handlebar warmers, even throttle warmers. combine that with longjohns and a ski suit and you're toasty.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2933.jpg

my grandparents house back in leavenworth is covered in snow. about 5 feet.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2937.jpg

this is the view of the valley they live in - the clouds you see are actually blocking an entire mountain range, the tumwaters.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2938.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2939.jpg

my grandpa owns a vineyard and a B&B, this is what it looks like in winter. (and if you're asking, it's very high-regarded vino, and he'll only ship minumum of 1 case outside chelan county) :cheers:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2940.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2941.jpg

this is the town of leavenworth itself. it is bavarian themed, meaning all of the storefronts look vaguely germanic. my grandparents lived in the real bavaria, so it's always baffled me why they wanted to move here, but they love it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2944.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2945.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2947.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2948.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2949.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2950.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v65/matthyou/leavenworth/IMGP2951.jpg

hope you enjoyed. it is urban (kinda) and the trees are skyscrapers of another type, so let's just let this one slide by on technicalities. ;)

[mSeattle]

Real nice. The faux bavarian buildings probably look great in daylight against the snowy slopes.

[MtnClimber]

That is awesome! I love leavenworth, spent alot of time climbing there. Great town to

[KevinFromTexas]

Awesome. I can't even imagine being in snow like that. Must be cool.

[Robert Pence]

Spectacular photos! What a beautiful place!

[sabre0link]

Awesome!

Photo #8 is currently my desktop.... I like the composition :) And it works great for a desktop :)

Had a similar scene to the fog bank in the hills going on here in Alabama this morning... I wanted to take a photo of it, but didn't have my camera.. ahH! Lesson learned? Take camera with me all the time.

Of course, it was just fog in the valley, with the city waking up around it... nothing like what you've photographed here. :)

[olga]

Beautiful! Seems lika a perfect place to spend the holidays. I was stuck in a grey, rainy Malmö, I would have loved to have a place like this to go to!

[brickell]

Beautiful.
A winter wonderland. The antithesis of everything I know.

[seaskyfan]

Great photos. I love Leavenworth - beautiful and goofy at the same time.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Mmmmnature! :tup:

[James Bond Agent 007]

Ooo, pretty. Gotta go there in winter sometime.