- Mount Constitution (wa100.dnr.wa.gov)
Mount Constitution is the second-tallest mountain on an island in the lower 48 states, rising more than 2,000 feet above beautiful Orcas Island. In Moran State Park (named after former Seattle Mayor Robert Moran) several hiking and biking trails wind up and around the mountain through cool, green forest and past several beautiful lakes. A series of switchbacks makes traversing the steepest part of the trail a little easier. At the summit, visitors are rewarded with views of the San Juan Islands and the North Cascades, and even British Columbia is visible to the north on a clear day. In addition to the trails, a year-round road leads all the way to the summit, allowing outdoor enthusiasts of all abilities to enjoy everything Mount Constitution has to offer.
- Thomas Cole (Wikipedia)
Thomas Cole (1 February 1801 – 11 February 1848) was an English-born American artist and the founder of the Hudson River School art movement. Cole is widely regarded as the first significant American landscape painter. He was known for his romantic landscape and history paintings. Influenced by European painters, but with a strong American sensibility, he was prolific throughout his career and worked primarily with oil on canvas. His paintings are typically allegoric and often depict small figures or structures set against moody and evocative natural landscapes. They are usually escapist, framing the New World as a natural eden contrasting with the smog-filled cityscapes of Industrial Revolution-era Britain, in which he grew up. His works, often seen as conservative, criticize the contemporary trends of industrialism, urbanism, and westward expansion.