Today was full of challenges. Short staff, early morning in the yoke, people not showing up to meetings, delays; you know “challenges”. Nearing ten hours of this voluntary self-abuse I decided that I’d had enough. I needed an honest to goodness physical challenge, and I needed it before the sun went down on this day of crappiness.

I packed my bag and a water bottle, put some shoes on and invited the dogs into the truck. Off we went, south bound to Mile Post 22. Something much taller than myself waiting to be climbed as fast as I could manage, bottom to top today was about 30 minutes of huffing and puffing. The cloud base obscured the top third of the ridge. It was cold, moist, and kind of dark. My lungs burned from the use. And yes, my blood was boiling with the happiness which I can only seem to find running up something much larger than myself.

I have been delinquent and neglected to update my blog for a week and a day now. Punishments have been procured and should be arriving in the postal service any day now. This, however, is a penance which is much more suitable to the crime.

The last day of August was my first day back to work after a two week long vacation. I went back into the office and faced the mountain of email that had accumulated in my absence, the stacks of projects that I needed to address, and finished off my performance review. By the end of the day I was bushed, I crawled to my car hoping that the late afternoon coffee I had downed would carry me over the pass and into my bed. Clearly I was in a sour mood and the small collection of running gear in the trunk was really acting more like an uncomfortable mental thorn in my sock than a motivator as I crawled through Seattle traffic toward Ellensburg. I just wanted to go home.

Volcanoes Can Hide

 

Here, however, we see how much location can affect a person. By Issaquah I was enjoying a good bit of music and the traffic had cleared a tad. North Bend caught me high enough in the Cascades to be contemplating my trail options. By exit 47 I was shedding my office clothes like larval vestments and dawning my snazzy trail garb with a smile. Granite peak it would be tonight.

North into ALW

The trail head didn’t look too busy although there was a construction crew truck and a few signs giving notice that there might be some trail working being done. There was another sign that mentioned how little water anyone might expect on their climb up and down the hill as well.

Handhelds filled and a small pack borne I headed up the trail at a slow climbing lope. I was trying to maintain about 2.0 MPH on the climb even though this is a steep one. It was muggy and warm on the climb up; the shirt came off so I could get some evaporative cooling going. When I got to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness boundary I paused to take a photo. You can see that the climb was working its magic and that that day’s trials were broken down and washed away. That’s the face of self-healing.

Working out Work

I kept on chugging and pretty soon I was well above timberline. There are almost *no* mountain huckleberries on the southern climb up Granite. There are also no mosquitos and I’m not sure if losing one to be rid of the other was such a bad compromise. As I climbed the sun was sinking into the Sound and making a haze that was hard to look into. The hills below along the I-90 corridor were bright with glare and silhouetted. The sky turned something between pink and brown.

Greenway Trail Crew Mid-Yoga

Once over and above the saddle the trail work was obvious. Someone has really been doing amazing work using available materials and hand tools. Mostly done with chunks of granite they’ve filled in ditches, constructed steps and raised foot paths over tarns, re-routed switch backs, built solid paths over steep terrain, and generally made something that will last many years into the future despite this trail’s constant heavy usage.

Beauty Stairs eh?

I summited and poked around the lookout tower a bit. There may be a geocache bolted to the northern cross-spar of the tower which needs to be redressed by the owner. Someone had used the ammo can as a banana peel composting bin. Not pleasant. I cleaned up what I could, looked around, took a few more photos and started back down the trail. I could see that there were a couple of more-or-less filled condensation pools in the fel field just below and east of the summit. I was down a bottle of water and figured it would be best if I started treatment on a replacement.

Condensation Ponds from Peak

Bounding silently over an old path in the fel field I came to the larger of the condensation pools, knelled and started to fill my bottle when I heard the voices of people just above me. The trail crew, who were working for the Mountains to Sound Greenway were about ready to start a boulder-top yoga session in the fading light. I held a brief conversation with these kids and then took off down the trail not wanting to have to run too much in the dark. Most importantly I wanted them to know what quality work they had been about.

Beautiful and Long Lasting

So, it’s been way too long since I did this, but here it is the TR. This past weekend was more or less spent tending to household chores I’ve been putting off for a month, but I’m in serious need of a good run tonight. The temperatures have been on their way down as we get closer to the autumnal equinox and day light just doesn’t stick around as long as it used to. Still my head lamp is charged. See you on the trail.

Summer is almost over

Wow! August is almost over. I’m a little bit sad about this. The Hike-a-Thon has given me a thirty-one day excuse to get out and go. Pretty much whenever the desire has made it itself and that’s pretty much any time. Today, for instance, I’m going to mow the lawn (because it looks jungley) and then possibly head up toward White Pass for some south end trail action. But, I’m a little sad that there’s only two more days of August left and soon I’ll be picking up all those little things I’ve been putting off.

We rock!

Yesterday Tess and I took some friends up into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Matt Amend, a buddy from my paragliding days, and his girlfriend Lorie Drabant came over from Seattle Friday evening and stayed with us. Much tasty fish and crab was consumed and Saturday morning we woke up and made plans for Matt’s first trail run. I used ancient well-worn classical trail running tools to choose something special and memorable. The dart landed squarely on the Pete Lake region below Polallie Ridge. Off we went.

Matt, clad in brand new trail running shoes, and I took off up the trail. The Ohwi section was predictably full of people and dogs. We pushed through as fast as we were able and soon arrived at the Pete Lake trail head (#1323). Matt was setting pace for much of this segment as we rolled over the slight hills on our way up to the lake. At one point, while I was in the lead, there was a great yellow something off the side of the trail that made me pause. This fungus grew all over deadfall in the area and there were bigger patches than this one.

Matt and Fungus

As we worked our way up the trail we could really make out the smell of smoke although we couldn’t really tell from which direction it was coming. When we arrived at the lake there was a Backcountry Wilderness Guard named Billie waiting at the crossroads of various trails that split off at this point. Spectacle Lake was closed to us because to get there we’d have to run right through the fire. We could climb up to Waptus Pass via Escandillo Creek basin or head on up to the real views along the rest of #1323.2 to where the PCT (#2000) climbs up and over an eastern arm of Summit Chief Mountain. We chose switch backs because it might get us out of the smoke and up high enough to see something.

Summit Chief on the Right

Off we ran. We passed another ranger monitoring the fire’s progress, but kept on our way. We stopped for a bit to eat and both of us hooted at the scenery. Then on to the switch backs, oh yeah! This here is a certified collection with papers from the State demonstrating their authenticity. Soon, I mean really soon, Matt and I were well above the tops of trees and able to look out over the valley toward the Cascade Crest. Lemah Mountain and Chimney Mountain would poke out from under the smoke from time to time, the two of us would stop and gawk for a moment and then continue up the southern side of this arm of Summit Chief.

Lemah Mountain and the Chimney

Just shy of a mile from the top Matt decided that it was probably best if we turned around and headed back down the trail. We’d already run further than he had in a day, we just had to turn around and get back to the cars. On our way down the switch backs we ran into Tess and Lorie marching happily up the trail. We joined up and began marching together down the trail. Re-watered and fed we made our way back to the lake stopping briefly to cool off in the creek.

What a view

Once everyone was back in the cars a couple of hours later we took a moment to review our shoes. Remember Matt’s were new, out of the box when we began this thing. Then off down the road where we ate vast plates of food and drank large glasses of cold beer at the Starlight Lodge. Fun times were had by all.

Nice shoes

****

Lemah Fire (~600 acres) Diverting PCT traffic on Section J‏

Just wanted to let you all know that there is a pretty serious trail closure underway right now on Section J north of Snoqualmie Pass because of a long burning fire that has recently started to flare up again.  Looking at the maps the detour to get around the fire will probably add at least a day onto most hiker’s passage through this section.  This closure extends high enough that you cannot approach Spectacle Lake as best as I can tell.  It was really smokey most of the day and the fire is creating its own weather.

Common baby make it hurt so good

 

Be careful out there, but enjoy the views.  Incredible world we live in for sure.

Holy cow! It’s almost over. Soon we’ll all move on to September and then the Washington Trails Association Hike-a-Thon 2009 will be over. So far I’ve raised nearly $1200 clams for volunteer trail work and covered about 130 miles and I plan on spending part of the next four days cramming in as much as I can manage. This and I’ve been steadily painting the house too!

Now’s the time, I’d sure appreciate your help during these last four days of August. Please take a moment to donate to this great cause. If you’ve got some spare time and want to meet up to spend some time with me on the trail that’d be great as well. Give me a ring, drop a comment, send an email.

My son Justin and I just returned from a lightweight excursion into the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness. By comparison this is one of the least popular portions of the Pacific Crest Trail that still crosses into a Wilderness area within the State and while I don’t understand this I’ll avoid argument and just go along with it. I suppose that it’s bordered on all sides by newer wilderness areas or wilderness that is so visually spectacular that glimpses of these locals might dazzle one’s eyes for months. But hey! It is Wilderness and this is the kind of place where popularity is not necessarily a great attribute.

Parnassia fimbriata

We left Tuesday morning and drove up to Steven’s Pass where we parked, loaded packs, and headed off down the trail. Justin started feeling “tired”, but soon got into the rhythm of the walking and only seemed interested in stopping when there were really neat things to see along the way. We talked a lot, or rather Justin talked and I listened with the dogs bringing up the rear.

Valhalla from around the corner

Our original intent was to walk to Lake Valhalla and see how we felt and how busy it might be once we got there. We walked through some light rain, dark clouds and wet vegetation stopping for lunch along the way. We munched our kippers and swatted mosquitos for a bit and then continued the climb. Soon we could see Valhalla looming over us and there were cloud breaks from time to time.

Jusitn in the Rain

When we arrived at the lake’s basin I could see that there were a couple of parties at campsites near the lake already. Justin complained that his feet were tired, but his face was full of energy. We paused and Justin and the girls cooled off in the water. I bundled up and braced against the cold, pausing after activity always makes me colder and the clouds and drizzle wasn’t helping. After a couple of hours everyone seemed to have had their fill and so I suggested that we might want to move along.

Valhalla

We walked up the north pass out of the basin and sallied forth. Between the lake and Union Gap there has been a lot of trail maintenance activity recently. Most of this segment has seen a Pulaski blade and there are occasionally nice new water bars installed by someone who knows what they’re up to. It’s dusty and dry, but that will settle down by next year and the trail work looks to me like it may last a good long while. Thanks to whomever is responsible Nice work!

Prunella vulgaris

From Union Gap to Janus Lake the trail could use some brushing at the least, but otherwise it’s in good condition (as opposed to excellent). Near the end of this length I could see that Justin had to apply himself to the walking, but as we came down into the Janus Lake basin he nearly ran with his excitement. Day one down and everyone was super happy.

Dinner of Mac, cheese and salmon, camp set, and sooner than later a PCT through hiker by the trail name of Buckwheat wondered into camp. He ended up pitching his tarp near our encampment and thus conversation was had. Really nice fellow, I hope we can talk again soon as he seems super full of information and good intent.

The night got down into the lower 30s, I don’t think it broke freezing but I was sorry that I didn’t bring my own tarp. I ended up moving everything from the open, soft grassy spot we had originally chosen for its excellent view of the night sky to the relative protection of a Noble Fir to avoid getting completely damped out. Pepper was so cold she became a real pest and ended up sleeping inside my bag. (Note to self: need to make a sleeping bag for her so she can stay happy all by herself).

Lake Janus in the AM

I awoke early, before the sun broke the eastern horizon, added a little clothing and headed up the trail about a mile or two to get my blood pumping and see if I could crest the next hill north of our camp. Justin stayed in bed and slumbered contentedly. When I arrived back at the camp Buckwheat was moving about I offered tea (we had plenty of fuel) and parked myself over near his set-up to continue our discussion from the previous night. He seems to have a particularly in-depth grasp of ultra-light trail cuisine and I’m still dumbfounded by both his base weight and the food weight of his pack. Very compact set up which will last an unusually long time without resupply, something work emulation.

Buckwheat

Eventually he had dried enough from the previous night and loaded up his kit and headed off down the trial. At that point I rousted Justin from his sleeping bag, made breakfast and started to prepare for the next day. The waffling I was getting from the Justin corridor helped me make the decision that perhaps this was a two day trip instead of a three day excursion. Once we’d fueled up, dried everything and got loaded we headed off south back the way we came. There were a number of segments where Justin was really stretching his legs bringing our average pace from 1.2 MPH to above 2.0 MPH. This touched this Dad in a special way; super proud of my boy.

On the return Lake Valhalla had filled up with considerably more traffic. We more or less breezed by the lake only pausing to say hello to another through trekker (an older fellow on a horse whose trail name I did not catch) and exchange information about the trail ahead.

Keep truckin'

Near the end of the return trip Justin was really dragging. We talked about food and tried to make the time pass. Finally we made our way around the last corner and the relief on his face was quite visible. “Big Mileage Justin” may be his trail name. He better slow down or someone might think he likes this kind of thing.

Awesome!

Last night’s run was supposed to be a loop. Start at Pete Creek trail head (#1323) to the intersection of Tired Creek (#1317) then up and over to Waptus Pass and back down Escandido Creek trail (#1329/#1320) to Pete Creek for the win. All was going well and I was making good time as the sun was setting behind the Pacific Crest in the west, but eventually I ran into difficult locating the next segment of the Tired Creek trail. It’s bisected by a lumber road (which the guide book mentions, but failed to tell which direction to travel once reached).

When I arrived at this point on the trail I went left (west) because I could see signage down this way. The grade is really gradual on this lumber road and so I made really good time and covered a lot of ground … to absolutely no effect. Every lumber road leads, apparently, nowhere in this neck of the woods. Believe me I tried them all.

Pacific Crest from Polallie Ridge

Finally the sun had set and I ran back to the point at which the foot path meets the lumber road deciding that I’d head up to Pete Lake or something if I couldn’t find the rest of Tired Creek trail. In the light of my headlamp I noticed that there was a pile of rocks which may have been a cairn at one point. This was just to the right of the meeting point of paths and upon closer inspection it seemed to be just that. I took off to the east wondering why someone would knock a cairn down and found where the foot path heads up the creek basin.

Fall Colors in August

I don’t think they should call this “tired” anything. Rather a more appropriate name might be Masochist’s Ditch. It’s a steep, loose, and strenuous bit of trail. I climbed it anyway. Really enjoyed myself actually. Finally made it to the border of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness with meteors lighting up the dark sky above. I stopped and tried to take a picture, noticed that I had a cell phone signal and called home knowing that Tess was probably worried about me by now. She was, I reassured and then decided to run another 15 or so minutes into the wilderness.

Alpine Lakes Wilderness boundry

There is a protected bowl at the point just below the Polallie Ridge. I wish I could have seen more of it, but even in the dark you could smell the moisture in the soil. There were wild flowers, all sorts, blooming along the path, and several owls hooting nearby. Pine and fir trees, short and tall all over the place; this would be a nice place to visit in the fall and during the day light.

Eventually I turned around and headed back down the trail. Next time I’ll be much further along and should be able to finish the loop without problems. At least I know where the trail is now.

Last week my parents came and my son came to visit us here in Ellensburg. The intent was to get everyone outside and up as much as possible over the course of the week. I had planned many day trips and overnighters, but the common denominator of our collective experience limited us to one of each. Still everyone had a great time and while my distances were down last week, the time I spent outside getting what I got was way up.

The Whole Crew

On Monday of last week I took everyone up to Esmerelda Basin (#1394) which is an old favorite for Tess and me. The parking lot was incredibly full for a Monday. Dad and I had to jokey two trucks into the little left over space remaining. There was another group of kids getting ready for what looked like an overnighter into the backcountry. Big frame packs and ice axes, no ropes or helmets. I tried to keep my chuckles to myself.

GP in the Distance

Considering the traffic in the parking lot the trail was undeniably untrammeled. The kids must have turned off to Ingalls Lake because we didn’t see anyone all the way up. There has been quite a bit of drying out in this valley this summer. You can still find water and there are places with blossoms showing, but where the trail is exposed to sunshine it has been ground to a fine, dusty powder and it gets pretty toasty from time to time.

Hawkins to the West

Soon the whole family was stopping to dip bandanas into cold mountain water. Tie one of these around your neck and the world suddenly cools a few degrees.

Who's got energy? Perhaps too much energy?

The summit took a while to get to, but everyone trucked along chatting and enjoying one another’s company. I tried to stay behind with the dogs and was impressed that Justin was doing so well with the addition of trekking poles.

You know ...

We ate lunch at the pass and soaked it all in for a bit then on the return trip we started to run into more people. A camp gaggle from down the way of horse riders, several groups of young people returning from parts unknown, and some interspersed couples on their way back.

Esmerelda Peaks that-a-way

This was a predictably good way to start off the week. Everyone had a good time.

On Tuesday we spent the morning putting together packs for a short trip into Gem Lake via Snow Lake (#1013 and #1012) although I wasn’t quite certain where we’d actually end up. We drove up to the pass, got Dad a parking pass from the automated kiosk, and then started scouting trail heads. The PCT-S (#2000-S) was nearly abandoned, PCT-N (#2000-N) looked like a weekend, and the trail head to Snow Lake (#1013) looked like a convention might be taking place somewhere on the side of the mountain. I’m not quite sure what got into me, but a strange compulsion took hold of me and I stopped my truck on the far side of the incredibly large and full parking lot for Snow Lake.

Snow Lake Parking Lot Hell

Packs loaded and dogs leashed we started our trek up the hill. Again I held back taking up the rear position of our line to ensure everyone was doing ok and so that I wouldn’t start running. Mom’s right foot had some blister action going so I got to play Doctor Matt and kept her company for quite a while. Justin was moving so fast with the trekking poles that someone might have imagined he likes to hike. The way up was jam packed with people traffic. You’d take a few steps and then have to park off to the side to let someone by. Over and over again.

Ready

After we crested the pass into Snow Lake a whistle was heard off down near the lake at the end of a boulder field. “Tweet, tweet, tweet” it was the same tone and the cadence was regular. At first I didn’t think much of it figuring it was a marmot or a kid playing with a rescue whistle. It did sound like a rescue whistle. It wasn’t stopping. There were people stopped all along the short descent into the lake’s depression listening and discussing what it might be. Maybe it *was* a rescue whistle? Maybe someone should go see to whoever was blowing it? I took off down the trail, dogs trailing behind me. As I got closer I started yelling “If you’re hurt keep whistling so I can find you!” The whistles didn’t stop. Finally I got to a point where I had to leave the trail to get any closer to the whistler. I unhooked the dogs and set out over the steep boulder field.

Mom at the trail head

Then the whistle cadence changed and I saw my prankster. A big fat marmot who hadn’t gotten the memo stating that marmots are only supposed to sound like marmots and not rescue whistles was sitting atop a boulder laughing so hard he looked like he might burst at the seams. I dubbed him “Lunch” and worked my way back up to the trail. Little bastard!

The hike up to Gem Lake from the north side of the Snow Lake depression is much improved once the snow melts away. By evening we had browsed our way through blueberries and arrived at the edge of Gem Lake. Mom, who had been fighting valiantly against blisters the whole way, was about done for so we set up camp for the night. Large plates of spaghetti were prepared and eaten with determination. Vast hoards of mosquitos were fed quarts of well spaghettied blood. Chubby bats made sport of well-nourished blood suckers as the sun went down in the west.

Morning view of Gem Lake and Hoards of Blood Suckers

The Perseids are still falling and the five sipped our beers (it’s amazing what you can smuggle in the empty spaces of an ultra-light pack) and hooted as they came zipping through the upper atmosphere.

The next morning I woke up early, dawned my shoes, grabbed a water bottle and two dogs and started running for the Wildcat Lakes. I more or less cleared Gem Lake, but there was a party of trail workers and USDA FS Rangers camped on either side of the trail as it snaked its way through the pass to Wildcat Lakes. Not feeling like leashing the mutts (who were of course on heal and under voice command) I turned back to the camp.

By the time I returned the mosquitoes were out and swarming. We struck camp deciding that breakfast could wait until we located a blood-sucker-free-zone. We ended up making coffee and eating down near the outflow for Snow Lake which was perfect. No mosquitoes whatsoever.

Justin leading the way

The rest of the trail down was uneventful. Mom’s foot was still bothering her, but she seemed to be doing ok and took off with Justin at the lead. Dad and I chatted a bit, Tess and I did the same. We descended.

After the switch backs the people headed into the area got thicker than the mosquitoes at Gem Lake. There was at least one party of 20 or more trooping up the trail oblivious to the 12 person rule in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Many other smaller groups were headed up as well.

****

Caveat #1: Mom and Dad, if you’re reading this you should know that I really should have taken us along the PCT-S (#2000-S) we would have had just as good a time without the crowds. Otherwise we had a great time and are looking forward to your next visit.

Caveat #2: My GPS ran out of juice about four hours into the ascent to Gem Lake. Mileage for these two days is based on the Falcon Guide for Alpine Lakes Wilderness estimates and confirmed with the measuring tool in Google Earth. Times are best effort, but pretty close. My watch was still working.

Caveat #3: Still not sure why Tess hides from the camea’s lens.  I’m going to make September’s goal one in which I collect candid shots and post them all on the blog so that you’ll all stop wondering if I’m really married.

Wednesday night the girls and I went up to Beverley Turnpike and ran up and over the pass toward Ingles Lake and then back again. The mileage wasn’t too great, but we had a great time, got to see the peak of the Perseid meteor shower before the moon rose and without any cloud cover, and came back to the house early the next morning tired and happy. I think that Gigi may have exceeded her ability and age on this one too, which contributed to the slower speeds and shorter distances. My girl is getting old.

We didn’t make it to the trail head until around 7:00 or 7:30 and then we puttered around a bit getting everyone ready for the steady run to the top of the pass. I was feeling low on energy when we started so I took the first 15 minutes or so to get into the run. Pepper was bursting with energy, but stayed behind me at heal. There is bear spore all over the place deep in the Beverley valley and the dogs paused from point to point to give it a sniff.

As we climbed the pace picked up and everyone seemed to be doing ok. We neared Beverley pass right about the time the sun went down behind the western range of mountains. The trail to this point is very well taken care of. Probably the best water bars in the whole state if you ask me. Someone, up to the pass, has made a number of trips to this section of trail to ensure that the maintenance gets done, and gets done right.

Mountains toward Stafford Creek

The trail down the back side of the pass toward Ingalls Creek is in good shape too, that is if you make it a habit of walking or running in partially eroded ditches with boulders sprinkled across them most of the way. This is not hyperbole. It’s really that bad. This segment of trail should not be attempted (up or down) by anyone who is not in good condition and who won’t mind slowing down a bit. The views are incredible so the passage is worth the extra effort. No photos from this segment I was navigating most of it in the dark.

We descended about half way toward Ingalls creek and Gigi was really starting to lag. I could hear running water off to the left of the trail and guiding my girls over to get a drink. We parked for a while I made up my mind what to do. I knew we weren’t that far into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, or even that far from the trail head, and I really wanted to see some meteors falling. Gigi looked refreshed after her drink and so we decided to turn back to the pass and make a go for some exposed ground up high.

Unnamed Peak to East of Beverley Turnpike

The slog back up the backside of the Turnpike was an effort in the dark. Gigi soldiered on, but I could tell by the time we had ascended the pass that she was due for a good long break. I got out my space blanket and prepared to bivouac for a while. Gigi took up guard position at my feet and Pepper, who was cold, curled up inside the space blanket with me. The three of us watched meteors fall and sniffed the air for a good long while.

Finally, I was getting down right cold. I could have repositioned and been warmer, but I knew the truck was only a few miles down the trail and both the dogs were starting to show their discomfort. The moon was coming over the eastern mountains. We packed up and ran down the trail. Gigi and I tried something new on this segment. I put a small head lamp around her neck and turned it on thinking I’d at least be able to spot her in the dark. Instead she used it to find her way and seemed excited that she had a new toy. Pepper grumbled, but with both girls at my heals all the way down, I wasn’t the least bit upset. She can use the flashlight next time.

“Riddle me this Batman, how can you eat your goo after you DEET your legs?” Anyone who’s ever sprayed DEET anywhere on their body knows that even with the Bat applicator it gets all over your hands. It’s a solvent and has a tendency to cover your hands when you apply it even if you don’t use your hands to spread it out or apply it.

Now that you’re well protected from being eaten by the numerous mosquitos buzzing around your head it’s invariably time to grab a bit of goo from ye ol’ ruck and give your legs a little energy to move you down the trail. The DEET on your hands is now on your packet of orange-vanilla goo, although you don’t suspect this malignant association until you use your lips to squeegee the last bits of your tasty treat from its little Mylar packet. Now you know how a mosquito must feel when it’s been stupid enough to buzz on down and try dining on your flesh post DEET application.

Sputtering and drooling I made my way back down the trail. At least you’re immediately reminded of the nature of your existence out in the boonies by moments like this. It gets you out of that mode of wishful thinking and into your real and present condition immediately.

Fox Glove along the way

Yesterday’s trail run set me forth on the Pacific Crest Trail headed south from Snoqualmie pass. This segment is a really cool lesson just waiting to happen. It gets a bad rap because it’s a part of the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie forest that has been turned into a commodity. There are clear cuts, there are logging roads, the water bars could use the back side of a Pulaski and a little sweat equity and signage can be misleading or nonexistent in places. It’s the bad side of the tracks (literally) and none of the cool kids play here.

Here’s where it starts to get good if you ask me. No one wants to play here. Yesterday I ran nearly to Mirror Lake, I saw one guy looking for a place to pitch a tent at Olallie Meadows and that, my friends, was it. Nobody at Lodge Lake. Nobody eating the copious amounts of native blackberries, thimbleberries, huckleberries and such. Nobody climbing any of the peaks. Nobody other than that one dude who was gone by the time I ran back.

Granite Peak Lookout

Last Saturday’s run up Commonwealth Basin is just on the other side of I-90. I suspect that the Forest Service may put in a parking garage at this trail head to service the weekend crowds that descend on the location in the summer. Most people who park here are headed up to the Kendall Catwalk, some will camp out at Gravel or Rail lakes and come back down the following day, and a few are just working their way north or south on that segment of the PCT. But it’s good to know that if you’d like to get out into the open, where you can still have a little elbow room all you have to do is cross the street.

The fist mile and a half you’ll be working your way up into the forest by crossing the ski slopes. This hill is tiny considering you could be climbing up the other side. After a bit of running through dense, old forests full of berries you’ll come out to several boulder fields which overlook the Interstate. Yes you can hear the traffic below, just keep moving and all will be well. Soon thereafter you’ll pass a couple of lumbering sites and start to head south and up between Silver Peak (west side) and Mt Catherine (east side).

Silver Peak off on the right side

When you encounter a wet, peat bog with wildflowers blooming all over the place you will have reached Olallie Meadows. You won’t be able to hear the traffic any longer. And you’ll probably be surprised at your good fortune because this is pretty darn beautiful and you’re most likely the only person looking at it.

I got to the Meadows yesterday evening early and so I pushed on toward Mirror Lake which sits up high just behind Abiel Peak. Next time I’ll probably spend the time to finish the run the whole way to Mirror Lake, last night I turned around and looked back down on Olallie Meadows and realized that the storm which had been content to drop rain on Seattle earlier was now moving up my hill and threatening lots of wetness in the dark if I didn’t high tail it back down.

Abiel Peak

High tail it I did only stopping to snap a couple more photos. Wet I became, the clouds weren’t dropping a lot of moisture. Rather they were upon me and the run became a kind of chilly, high mountain swimming event. Under the trees there was almost no light or what was there was diffuse enough to be completely useless, I got out my headlamp to help me see in these spots. By the time I came to the back end of the ski resort the sun was going down and the clouds were so thick they required fog lighting to run through. At some point I lost my way and ran off the trail, but getting down at this point was not a problem. Just follow the sounds of the ski resort and I was there.

Olallie Meadows in the clouds

Wool clothing is very helpful on trips like these, I was never cold and I didn’t worry about my safety in the wet and dark. I could have stayed out over night with what I had on and been comfortable and warm. In my experience you don’t get the same kind of insulation from synthetic clothes and cotton is completely useless in scenarios like this. As the cool, wet weather starts to become normal please keep this in mind as you head out into the open.

This last week has been surreal. I’m not complaining or anything, but seriously I can’t imagine how people who are actually famous deal with their fame. I live in the middle of a big square state where there are relatively few people. I work from my home office most days and play where there are notoriously even fewer people. Maybe I lead a sheltered life, but it’s set up the way I like it.

This last week has taught me that there are a lot of you out there. In particular, yesterday lead me to believe that despite my best efforts there may actually be too many of you to deal with at any given moment in my life. It was a busy day that’s for certain.  Don’t take it the wrong way, you’re all really nice.  I just like elbow room. 

Stage One

Tess and I took off early headed for Harborview Medical Center on Saturday morning. We arrived, parked and went in an end wing. Wondered around until a nurse pointed us in the right direction and then knocked on Jim’s door. Here was the highlight of my day. Jim was laid out on a hospital bed with his girlfriend Kate and his son Jason at his side. It was a little bit emotional for all of us, but the good kind that we’ll remember when we are too old to go hiking up high mountain trails. They’re taking good care of him and he’s in good spirits. His loved ones are happy that he’s still with them and I think that they’re all enjoying each other a great deal.

Jim is scheduled for a surgery on his right leg on Monday. We’re going to try and meet up with him again soon thereafter medical situation permitting. I made sure to relay as much of your good wishes as I could retain and he really appreciates all the encouragement. If he could, he’d already be back out on the trail I suspect. Tazul’s friends are looking forward to that day.

Stage Two

Next up, the centennial celebration at North Bend, Wa. Tess and I drove from the hospital first stopping in Issaquah to complete a couple of errands and then to North Bend. That little town was boppin’. We ended up parking in the paid Boy Scout lot, loaded up our packs, and entered the fray. There was a band playing, people eating, dancing and talking, and a sheriff’s deputy here and there. Finally we found a deputy who pointed us in the correct direction and we approached a gaggle of suited or dress shirted men. Wow! Was I ever out of my element? I approached a couple of individuals having only the name of the City Manager Duncan and no clue what he looked like. I stopped Joel Moreno from KOMO 4 and asked him if he was Duncan. Oops! (It should be noted that I haven’t had a television for years and I’m sorry guys, I couldn’t name any of you in a line up even if I did have a TV. No offence, just not my thing).

 Link to video here

Finally, after wading back and forth in through the crowd, I encountered Duncan. We shook hands and soon thereafter Duncan, several other dignitaries and I were standing before the band stand talking into microphones. Duncan said some really nice things about the Search and Rescue folks, the Sheriff’s department, and medical teams. He especially said some really nice things about me. I’m glad I have a tan going this summer because I was flushed red after Guardian helicopter did a fly-over (you guys rock!). Then it was my turn.

I did my best to thank the real heroes who do this kind of thing every day, and indeed were just waiting for the next thing to go wrong. I said my part about Washington Trails Association’s fine work on our trails and encouraged everyone there to support these volunteers. And I tried to convey the thanks I’ve heard from Jim and his family to those who deserve it the most. Short and probably not the most articulate speech ever delivered, but that’s what I’ve got folks.

Stage Two and a Half

Now the media interviews, not something I could prepare for nor really anticipated. Kind of like walking into a bar brawl in an old western movie, but without the beer fizzing everywhere from broken casks and the clenched fists flying. Well, mine were clenched, but I tried to hold them out of the camera’s view. The interview must have taken a while because it was about three when all the microphones were pulled from beneath my shirt. I dug into my pack, found my phone, and sure enough Marlene had called.

Stage Three

We met Marlene at the North Bend Post Office, which I suspect she chose because it was close to the centennial, but had free and open parking. The three of us drove over to Safeway, grabbed some more water and a cup of Joe, and then headed up the pass. The intent today was to climb up Commonwealth Basin to Red Mountain Pass with the possibility of summiting either Red Mountain or Lundin Peak. We arrived at the PCT-North trail head nearing four o’clock, made a few adjustments to packs, and headed up the trail with Tess in the lead.

I’ve never been up this way, but every time I’ve passed the turn off it’s made me wonder. It proved to be a great choice on this very busy Saturday. There was almost a constant stream of people headed down from Kendall Catwalk so by the time we came to the left up Commonwealth basin I was ready to start making tracks where the crowds might thin out a tad.

Sure enough the crowds did thin, we encountered a couple of more small groups and then no one for the rest of the climb. There are plenty of really interesting flowers still blooming up this way. We came across a medium size marmot town on our climb and then its citizenry came out for a while to serenade us as we climbed on past them.

At one point we heard a very strange sound. “Errruuuppppp, errruuuppppp, errruuuppppp,” it came from the trees and almost sounded like an ape or a monkey calling in the dawn. Everyone paused to listen and speculate. “Is that a bear?” “Nope, I’m pretty sure it’s a bird or something.” “What if it’s an ape, what do you do if a silverback charges?” “Probably best to call the zoo in that case.” We climbed on not really sure what it might be, but content to speculate nonetheless.

Soon we arrived in Commonwealth Basin at the little unnamed pond right below the bench. The clouds were thick and low overhead and felt like a cold blanket as the roiled overhead. Part of me yearned for fall to come and bring this kind of state of meteorological grace as the norm. After poking around the lake for a bit we set off to complete the climb hearing the periodic squeaky toy calls of the Pika among the rocks.

When we reached the bench we paused in a dry spot behind the rim of the north wall. Thick, wet clouds obscured both Red Mountain peak and Lundin Peak completely and ran and cloud condensation were falling everywhere around us. Both Tess and Marlene were cold already so we ate a little sitting within that big white room and then decided to head back down.

Three amigos in the White Room

On the way back down we heard the noise again, this time it was much closer. This time around we saw that it was a wild turkey asking if he could come over for dinner that night. He strutted back and forth under the tiny trees and was insistent to say the least.

KMZ to Commonwealth Basin

Later on down the descent we heard the Pika again, Tess and Marlene had never seen one and everyone had more or less given up hope of seeing anything as the cloud cover had dropped beating us to the trail head. But sure enough merely a mile from the trail head there was one sitting under a rock right of the trail contentedly munching on ferns. That was super cool and I’m pretty certain that Tess and Marlene liked it a lot.