We had a nice crisp sunny day in the northeastern Olympics, hiking the highest maintained trail in Olympic National Park. Starting from the end of Obstruction Point Road, the trail rises in wide open alpine terrain, eventually topping out at nearly 6800 feet on the gentle summit of Elk Mountain. Views extended from Canada to Mount Baker, and from Mount Olympus to Glacier Peak. We saw lots of wildlife too, including marmots, deer, eagles, and a coyote (but ironically, no elk).  

This was an exploration of a King County Parks property along the Snoqualmie River near Carnation. Tolt-MacDonald Park features nearly 12 miles of trails, a small campground, yurts you can book for overnight stays, a bouncy 500-foot long suspension bridge over the river, and plenty of nice scenery. We hiked some trails and old roads that led to a nice overlook atop a 400-foot-high bluff, and did the Cottonwood Loop Trail down next to the river, totaling about 4 miles of walking. It was a nice relaxing place to be on a busy holiday weekend.

Our scheduled hike to Palisade Lakes at Mount Rainier had to be scrapped due to the ongoing closure of the road to Sunrise, so I proposed this alternate trip near Mount Baker instead. Ptarmigan Ridge is accessed from the popular Artist Point Parking Area at the end of the Mount Baker Highway, and on this Labor Day weekend, there were hundreds of people out on the trails. We started out under blue skies, with great views of Baker, Shuksan, and the surrounding areas of the North Cascades. Clouds developed in the afternoon, eventually resulting in showers and a brief hailstorm at around 3:00pm. As luck would have it, the last of our group returned to the van at precisely 3:00pm. Other things of note: signs of fall are appearing in the mountains. There was fresh snow on the peaks above 7000 feet, and colors are beginning to show in the meadows. Oh, and we saw a bear crossing the Mount Baker Highway near Maple Falls.

We managed to get in a nice hike and boat ride on Ross Lake today, despite the nearby wildfires and the associated closures that remain in effect. I shifted our intended route from the west side of the lake (Ross Dam to Big Beaver), and instead we hiked the East Bank Trail on the east side of the lake. The Luna Fire, about 6 miles from the west shore of Ross, has forced the Big Beaver Trail to close, so we couldn't use that side of the lake. No poroblem, the East Bank Trail was fine, and made a pleasant forest walk for about 7 miles to the May Creek Boat Camp. The Ross Lake Resort water taxi picked us up at May Creek and zipped us back to Ross Dam area. A short uphill hike from there got us back to Highway 20, and I then hopped on my bike to return to the East Bank Trailhead and fetch the van. Sounds a little complicated, but it all worked out just fine. There was some smoke from the fires, but we still had some great views from the lakeshore and on the boat ride.

In August, I made a long-overdue trip to California to spend an extended period of time in one of the most beautiful mountain ranges on earth. For as much as I've been able to travel and enjoy the best mountains across this country, I hadn't spent much time in the Sierras. The highlights of the trip were three multi-day backpacking trips/scrambles. I first did a solo 3-day trip to the summit of Mount Lyell, 13,118 feet, the highest point in Yosemite National Park. Later, four friends and I did a 4-day trip to Mount Ritter, 13,161 feet, a prominent peak near Mammoth Lakes. The finale was a 4-day trip with two others to the highest peak in the US (excluding Alaska), 14,505-foot Mount Whitney. This was my second time up Whitney, the first being 25 years ago. The conditions in the Sierras were ideal:  sunny weather, great visibility, NO smoke, no bugs, low humidity, and fanastic scenery. 

Not much to say about this one. We attempted the hike, but did not reach the lookout. 

This was a rainy day hike to a nice little lake in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness south of Skykomish. It wound up being the wettest day in westerrn Washington since early June, so obviously the rain was sorely needed. Fortunately, this is just a 4-mile round trip, so it wasn't a long day out, and along with the pretty lake, there are some impressive old growth trees, and some tall valley walls rising above. Interestingly, despite the weather, this trailhead had nearly 40 cars in it, mostly backpackers who flock to the many alpine lakes accessed from these trails.

This was a hike near Paradise on Mount Rainier, starting from the parking area at Reflection Lakes. We started with some nice views of the Mountain right from the parking lot, and these would turn out to be some of the best looks we got all day. We hiked through forests that gradually gave way to open meadows, and eventually went high enough to get above the tree line. The flowers had pretty much all bloomed out, and most vegetation appeared very dry, after weeks with very little rain this summer. We also were treated to a bear sighting, and some very playful marmots along the trail.

On a warm August day, this system of gentle trails in an old growth forest near Greenwater made for a perfectly relaxing walk. The state park here was formed thanks to the Federation of Women Clubs of Washington, who had the foresight back in the 1930's to try and preserve some of the forest lands that were rapidly being erased by logging. This park is their legacy, and the huge firs, cedars, and spruce are a testament to their vision. Thanks ladies!

These trails are on Cougar Mountain just on the outskirts of Newcastle on the eastside. This was once a lucrative coal mining area, fueling the energy needs of the growing city of Seattle. Now it's a peaceful woodland with nearly 50 miles of trails for people to enjoy a slice of nature close to home. We hiked to the viewpoint on the DeLeo Wall Trail, and although clouds limited any of the views, there was still lots of nice forest to savor.

This is a peaceful trail that follows the rooute of an old 1890's mining road not far from Skykomish. Prospectors were busy here finding gold, silver, and copper for many decades, until the mines fizzled and the area was abandonded. But thanks to some caring volunteers, three miles of trail has been resurrected along the banks of the river, and it's a nice uncrowded hike that few people have discovered.

The North Fork of the Sauk River is tucked away in an out of the way corner of the Mountain Loop Highway south of Darrington. We cobbled together a day of hiking by sampling three short hikes in the valley. One hike featured groves of giant cedars, another went to a view of a spectacular waterfall, and the third dipped into the Glacier Peak Wilderness on the long valley trail alongside the river.