day hikes
Twin Falls
Twin Falls
4 miles round trip
August 21, 2010
This was one of my favorite hikes of all time. The hike itself, was ok, but hanging out with the Counts kids on a hike made it a blast. Elissa thought it was so cool that JoJo was joining her on a hike. She just had to show him the ropes and hold his hand the entire time. Joey took on the role as the leader of the tiny kids. They spent the day jumping off of rocks, throwing rocks into the Snoqualmie River, and exploring the trail. Eventually we made it to the waterfalls, however, they were lame compared to the slug they found on the way to the waterfall.
Red Top Lookout
June 26, 2010
Red Top Lookout is a short little hike to a lookout in the Teanaway area (near Cle Elum). This would be Elissa’s first mountain summit. She even got a certificate when she reached the lookout by some Volunteer Lookout Members. I had to climb 14,410 feet to get a certificate and Elissa only climbs a mile or so and they throw her a party and give her a certificate. Oh, well, it was a cool certificate.
The trail was pretty basic and somewhat steep for a two year old. However, I learned that day that if I hold a small snack ten feet in front of her, she will continue to walk. The lookout was amazing and the views were of all the surrounding high mountains and volcanoes. The kids had a great time.
Romp and Stomp -2010
Elissa and I signed up for the Susan G. Komen Romp and Stomp for the Cure. This was a snowshoe 5K out at Snoqualmie Pass. This was a fun event and Elissa was loving that everyone was elaborately dressed up in pink. However, my princess decided after walking ten feet of this 3.3 mile walk in snowshoes, that she did not want to walk any further. Normally, I would have stood my ground, but we drove all this way and had already started the walk. So…..for most of the 3.3 miles, I carried a dancing 35 pounds on my shoulders. This is a lot different than a 35 pound backpack strapped to your back that doesn’t swing around and move a lot. When I reached the car, I had two half dollar sized blisters on the back of each of my heels. These blisters didn’t heal for weeks. Even though Elissa was tough to work with, the event was amazing and the gathering of so many survivors and those walking for lost love ones was overwhelming and amazing.
Camp Muir
June 6, 2010
Perfect day for hiking up to 10,000 feet. Camp Muir it is. We took off at 7 am and were back at the car by 5 pm. I was a little dehydrated and was feeling the altitude starting at 8500 but chugged lots more water and slogged through it. We glissaded from Pan Point toward Paradise.
Franklin Falls
June 30, 2010
We hiked out to Franklin Falls off of Exit 47, I-90. Easy hike for the kids. They enjoyed taking their shoes and socks off and running out into the stream/waterfall. There was a large crowd of kids here today and it was the perfect getaway for the kids.
Ellensburg – April 2011
We decided to hike the Ginkgo Petrified Forest Hike in Vantage this weekend. We only hiked about four miles, but it was a different type of geography than we were used to and learning about petrified rocks were pretty cool.
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Snowshoeing: Source Lake (Almost)
So we decided to take the kids snowshoeing up at Alpental (Snoqualmie Pass). They were both really excited about seeing a frozen waterfall (Source Lake Waterfall). When we pulled into the parking lot it was six degrees. Six degrees has a lot of meaning behind this cold temperature. With temperatures that low, a child is liable to cry, scream, throw one’s self onto the snow, refuse to get up, refuse to walk, and chase parents with arms reaching.
Lessons learned: Six degrees is no fun when you are three years old.
Lessons learned: Hand warmers can expire, and when they do, they do not work. Sorry Elissa.
We only ended up snowshoeing about a quarter mile down the trail. When reality set in for Elissa that we will not turn back just because she says so, she began to slowly enjoy herself. We broke away from the main trail and hiked up a hill. I was able to show the kids what snowshoes can really do. After climbing the hill we hung out in a secluded spot for a few minutes. We pulled out the shovels and the kids came to life. Joey was digging a trench or a snow cave and Elissa was learning how to throw snow at us with her shovel. So as usual I have my engineer working on his project in solitude and my socialite managing to tease us once again. After ten minutes or so, we showshoed over to and area where some kids had been sledding back down to the main trail. We took turns sliding down this twenty foot hill and we were back on the main trail. In time more tears followed, so we decided to bag this trip and wait on warmer weather.
Seven Peaks
For the last few years, I have been eyeing some of the shorter peaks and rock formations on Mt. Rainier. The majority of these peaks lie just beyond the Mowich Lake entrance to the Park. I decided this summer (August 2009) that I would take on seven peaks along a thirteen mile loop in single day. My youngest brother Shaun agreed to accompany me on this feat. The original plan was to head up Knapsack Pass and tag First and Second Mother, then Mt. Fay, Mt. Pleasant, and Hessong Rock. From Hessong, I would hike out to Echo and Observation. I now laugh to myself when reminded of how the trek actually unfolded.
The night before I sat down at the computer, guide book in hand, and mapped out my course. The process was reminiscent of a child gazing over a menu without regard for the size of their stomach. It all made sense, at the time.
We hit the trail around 7:30am, mindful of a 4pm deadline to return to the car in order to make it home on time. We wasted little time reaching Knapsack pass. The climb near the top of the pass was reminiscent of Aasgard Pass, the gut wrenching gateway to the Enchantments. Steep slopes and sketchy footholds were all too common. A good two hours later, we stood atop the pass. Our pace was not bad, but if I wanted to summit seven peaks we would need to step it up a notch. We turned left and walked straight up to the summit of First Mother. It was inspiring to be sitting at the summit of this little peak looking directly at the North Face of Mt. Rainier. At this point the sun was ascending just over the mountain.
With time slipping away, we cut our plans to just summiting Echo and Observation and left Fay, Pleasant, an Hessong for another day. From First Mother, they looked to only be a short half mile away. Upon later study of the map this proved to not be the case. Oh what a deceptive interpretation of distance the eyes can give. Blissfully deceived, we donned on our packs and headed for Echo. The route toward Echo lead us along a small pebble like trail down the other side of the pass. At the bottom of the pass we were greeted by welcomed the snowfields. By the time we crossed two distinct snowfields, I was growing unsure of our exact location on the map. From where I stood we had two options: a steep drop off or four other peaks that we could climb. Having no idea which peak was which I climbed about four-hundred feet up one of the peaks just to get some sense of direction.
We decided to climb a ridge a good click in front of us. We gained the ridge and followed a narrow trail to the top. Standing atop the summit I was able to gain some sense of direction and discovered the peak we were sitting on was Mt. Fay. I just had to laugh. With time fading, we decided to tag Mt. Pleasant and Hessong Rock and head toward Spray Park and catch the Spray Park trail back to the car. We eventually took the side trail to Spray Falls; they were very tall and beautiful. This was one of my favorite hikes of the year. We spent time in a beautiful area of Mt. Rainier with very different and dramatic scenery.
These adventures with Shaun have proved to be very enjoyable. I enjoy spending time talking about life and our individual adventures we normally don’t have time to talk about due to our busy schedules. I really enjoy getting to show him a part of my world that he likely would not have discovered on his own. Also, I have to say the encouragement to continue on hasn’t hurt either. Keeping up with a sixteen year old has definitely kept me honest and these hikes have become a wonderful way of making up the last eleven years we have been apart.
High Rock
In September of 2003, having just returned from ten weeks of Army training in Virginia, my husband and I decided spend a Saturday hiking near Mt. Rainier. I don’t recall exactly how I came to hear of this hike just south of Mt. Rainier. While not very strenuous, especially compared to some of the excursions I undertake these days, it does climb a surprising 1400 feet over a short mile and a half. Not too much to say about the journey, but the destination is amazing. From this jagged peak you are staring Mt. Rainier strait in the gut. As you stand atop this high ridge, a 400 foot drop off looming below, the sweeping valleys below rolls quickly up to the most awe inspiring presentation of the State’s largest active volcano. I would have to say it is the best seat in the house for taking in a full view of the mountain and its true measure. On a clear day, to the south four other spectacular volcanoes are in wondrous view: Mt. Baker, Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Adams, and Mt. Hood. I was surrounded! I was in love. In order to experience more of this, I would have to keep climbing. In that moment, I began to develop what would become lifetime love of this precious gift God was laying out before me – a desire to glorify Him from the wilderness and backcountry.
High Rock is my inspiration point. It is this hike that started a passion that I now cling to so dearly. Often, I expose new hikers to this trail in hopes that their first hike will have the same grand, explosive foundational moment that has inspired me so greatly. While many share my affinity and are excited for future hikes others, defeated by the steep trail, swear off hiking entirely. It’s funny how that works.