50 Days, 500 Miles, and 5 States When I Turn 50

Ms Frizzle to the Rescue (Winchester Mt)

2026-10-12T17:01:13.050-07:00

I used to get all my hiking inspiration and information from a single book -- "100 Classic Hikes In Washington" by the late greats, Ira Spring and Harvey Manning. Things were so very different 26 years ago! I've marked off many of those 100 hikes, but when I went to Twin Lakes in 2017 we chose the High Pass Trail instead of the classic Winchester Mountain.

Of course I meant to return sooner, except that road is quite the deterrent. But when the idea to go back popped into my head out of the blue last week, my first thought was, "Ms Frizzle will be up for it."

Naming cars is a thing of mine, therefore that is the moniker I christened Heidi's giant yellow-ish Toyota FJ Cruiser as soon as we met, because it reminded me of the Magic School Bus. And I know Ms Frizzle had a blast on those last two miles to the Twin Lakes trailhead...I could almost hear her say, "I was made for this!"

I swear our color coordination was pure accident

We found the huge parking area much less full than I did last time, though still plenty of folks were there with cars that were definitely NOT made for it.

I'm not going to give my usual "Things to Know" list, because besides that horrid road, there is not much to tell. Though maybe a word of warning that there are a couple of small sections of the 3.5 mile trail that might be problematic for those with a fear of heights.

Oh, there is one thing I found interesting that I will mention. When I was gazing down on the far away road leading up to Artist Point (it was cool to be able to see it so clearly) it suddenly occurred to me that this must be the lookout Adam and I were seeing shining like a beacon as we were finishing the Chain Lakes Loop a few weeks ago. When the shutters (not sure what else to call them?) are open and the sun is hitting the windows, it creates quite the floodlight!

The really zoomed in pic I took from Artist Point

I will leave you with my YouTube compilation of small video clips along with my trail blessing of happy "one more classic hike off the list" trails.

My well loved book...it has missing pages because I ripped them out to use as maps! Things really have changed in the last decade

P.S. One more thing, if you want to know more about my hiking partner Mama Walker, she will be featured on an upcoming episode of the podcast ElkShape and she is also a contributor on the documentary series The Curious Case of the Doomsday Cat Cult as well as the podcast series The Opportunist. She's kind of a big deal!

Four National Parks, Two State Parks, A Monsoon, and a Tarantula

2026-10-08T21:06:00.815-07:00

I thought I was the queen of the complicated plan, but Heidi has got me beat. This girl's trip was in the making for over a year, and she made sure to cover every base. In fact, it's such a jam packed itinerary that I'm just going to go straight into it. No attempt at a clever little pre-story this time, because I know it's going to take a lot just to try to sum up each day's activities. So here we go:

Salt Lake is HUGE!

Day One: Heidi, Julie and I met Janet at the Salt Lake City Airport, and after getting our massive rented SUV, we were on our way. We originally thought this would be an RV escapade, but the person we had rented from cancelled on us. Ken and I had this same situation happen to us last year; and after realizing how doable it is to tent camp out of a suitcase, the girl's and I decided to do the same. It's just SO much cheaper!

We had about a 4 hour drive to our first RV campground, which of course didn't want us tenting with the RV's. Thankfully Heidi had called ahead to let them know we were now RV-less, so they had found a spot to stick us - over with the cows.

I will give a shot out to the Wonderland RV Park, because they worked really hard to make up for it. We were given a picnic table, and a gas fire pit complete with a full tank. We made the most of it.

Day Two: Our first National Park was Capital Reef where we did the Cassidy Arch hike which was just a half hour drive away.

Perfect choice -- start to finish views with a price of just under 4 miles and 700 ft of gain. Word of warning though: every hike we did on this trip could be deadly in summer heat. We were thankful for mild weather and to be finished at 1 pm.

Can you see tiny Janet?

Then it was the must stop at the Gifford Homestead for their famous pie. Another reason to get an early start; they often sell out by late afternoon.

Our last hike of the day was the Sunset Point and Gooseneck Overlooks, which share a trailhead and together only add up to about a mile.

Sunset Point

Gooseneck Overlook

Our last stop was at the Chak Balam for a wonderful Mexican dinner and then the short drive back to our awaiting tents at the Wonderland.

Day Three: Up and packed before dawn, we made the hour drive to Moonscape Overlook. This is a "secret" place Heidi had read about which MUST be seen at sunrise. We had the place to ourselves when we arrived in the dark, but had a handful of people join us as the sun came up.

Our next destination was Goblin Valley State Park, with a quick stop in Hanksville to walk amongst the crazy artistry at the roadside attraction of Carl's Critter Garden.

Sammie wanted to be in more pics, but this is all she's getting ;)

Goblin Valley has no real trail, so I can't tell you how far we walked. Exploring here feels a little like you fell down the rabbit hole and may run into the Mad Hatter at any moment.

Then it was another near two hours to Dead Horse State Park where we looked down on the Thelma and Louse final cliffside scene. Heidi really wanted to drive the Shafer Trail Road to get to actual said spot on our following day, but the weather had other plans.

Day Four: We were supposed to be leaving our campsite at the Sun Outdoors RV Park well before sunrise to get the iconic shot of the sun coming through the Mesa Arch...instead we were desperately trying to keep our stuff from drifting away.

Literally...when I zipped open my tent to peak out and assess how bad things were, I saw Janet's flip flop floating by. I mean, it may not have been technically a monsoon, but it felt like it to us. Needless to say we got a late start getting to the Canyonlands Island in the Sky District, though we still did the under a mile walk to see the Arch.

I don't think water is typically in this shot, haha

Then we drove to the end of the road to do the 2 mile trail at Grand View Point. None of us were feeling very ambitious after the morning's ordeal, so as soon as we finished we called it good and drove the hour back to the hot tub. Thankfully we found our campsite was no longer a lake.

Except we weren't quite done for the day. Janet and I both have the birth order of last born...which means we are hams. 😆We had a whole set list ready for Woody Tavern's karaoke night, but by 9:30 pm we were just too beat to do any more than one song. I'm sure everyone there was heartbroken to see us leave😜but the next day was another sunrise chase, so it was best to get to bed early.

You can see some of this masterful performance on my Youtube

Day Five: Even thought we got there in plenty of time, the sunrise through the North Window Arch just didn't materialize. The sky behind us though was staring to clear, so we retreated to do the Double Arch and got some beautiful morning light.

We were thankful to have the clouds and an early start because our next real hike of 3 miles RT to Delicate Arch would have been very unpleasant in direct midday sun.

This is the most famous arch in all of Utah - I mean it's on their license plate for heaven's sake! And though we of course had plenty of company, it wasn't too crowded that Heidi couldn't get a shot standing beside it.

The funny part was that she left her apple sitting next to our group for just those couple of minutes, but that's all it took for a raven to swoop down and snatch it! So be careful with your snacks here...these smart birds are on to us!

Our next stop was Sand Dune Arch to Broken Arch. When we got to Broken Arch, we saw that the trail went up and through it - though it was a bit of a climb.

Heidi and her not quite fully activated super knees stayed down with Janet, while Julie and I scrambled up.

From the backside...the climb is on the other side

Down is always harder than up in these cases, so when another hiker mentioned the trail just looped back around to the parking lot we quickly yelled down to the girls that we would "see you at the car." After just a few feet of hiking I decided I should actually look at the trail on my app.

Oops. The loop added an extra mile at least, but luckily we got a text out to let the other's they would be waiting for a bit. I did add that "we will run"...because y'know, I'm a trail runner now! 😄 Turns out we were thankful for our blunder, because although we did very little running, the rest of the trail was amazing. This lollypop loop is about 3 miles in total; but once again, I wouldn't recommend it on a hot day.

There are many places to just pull over and take a picture in Arches, which of course we did...

but we all agreed we had one more short hike in us. Park Avenue Trail is the only trail without an arch (I think?) but it is uniquely stunning with all it's building like towers. (Hence it's name.) Roughly a mile in and then out, and we were ready to call it a day.

We love Heidi and her coordinating outfits :)

Day Six: It was sad to leave our home at Sun Outdoors. When it's not flooded, it's a great place. But the show must go on, so it was off to another district of Canyonlands. In case you didn't know, it's the biggest National Park in Utah, and it has FOUR districts. "Needles" was next on the agenda, and I must say in comparison to everything we had already seen, it was slightly underwhelming. We were mostly just fine driving through it, as you see so much from the car. Though we had to do at least a LITTLE hiking, and the Slickrock Foot Trail fit the bill.

But it was hot, and we were kind of over it. Even though this is only a 3 mile loop, I think we turned around in a half mile. We had driven nearly 2 hours to get to this trailhead, and we still had an hour of driving to get to the Mountain View RV. We all agreed getting to our campsite a little early and relaxing sounded like the perfect plan.

Stopping for wine first...you can't do that at a grocery store in Utah. We felt like real sinners going in here 😏

But we sure did have fun that night! 😂

Day Seven: Another packing up in the dark morning, but we had to make our 9 am appointment to tour the Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado...a 2 hour drive.

We got the best tour guide - she played the flute for us! (That's on the YouTube video too.) It's not much walking though, and so we had to throw in another hike.

The Soda Canyon Overlook Trail is just over a mile and on the way out from Cliff Palace. The cool part is they have a free observation telescope at the first lookout that you come to, and you get a great view of Balcony House using it. (Another cliff side dwelling, and more difficult tour than the one we chose.)

We thought we would also do the Petroglyph Point Trail that is found right at the museum; but once again, we were hot and over it. I seriously can't imagine visiting any of these parks during full summer.

So we drove the hour to our final camp at Mesa Verde RV Resort. Because we were RV-less, we had to pitch our tents way out back in a grassy field. Sigh...I decided to walk the long way to the bathrooms before setting up, and on my way back and barely within ear shot I could hear Janet yelling "OH F*** NO!!! NO NO NO, OH HELL NO - I WILL SLEEP IN THE CAR! F*** NO!!"

Yep, this guy was chillin' out right where Janet was going to set her tent up. The owners were very understanding and let us move. We chose the spot furthest away from spiderland.

Day Eight: Condensation woke me up several times with drips to the face. This is a high desert thing - the high temps changing to low temps can be a real issue when you are in a tent. We were all thankful for the community gas fire pit to warm up by before we made our 7 hour journey back to the airport.

I will end this by saying the Salt Lake City International Airport is now my favorite. It was beautiful flying in, beautiful flying out, and over all just lovely everywhere you looked. I don't think I'll ever beat this final sunset...it went down...then came back as we flew higher! Finally, it went down again in a blaze of glory. I have never watched a sunset for as long as I watched this one. And with that I bid you adieu until next time.

No Drugs Needed for this High (Frog Mountain)

2026-09-19T12:40:35.175-07:00

When Adam told his co-workers he was going to climb Frog Mountain, they asked him with all seriousness, "Is that a drug thing?" 😂 Admittedly it's a strange name for a trail, though we did actually find the frog.😜

Hiking season will be closing soon, which is such a shame when you have finally gotten your legs in top form. I wanted to challenge myself, and see some fall color; so when I saw a TR on my favorite hiking website for Frog Mountain, I knew it was the perfect fit.

Not only was it the perfect amount of miles and elevation, but it was also almost a perfect half way meeting point for Adam and I. (Between North Seattle and Skagit Valley - we actually met in Monroe and car pooled from there.) Because Adam is always ready for a punishing workout, especially now that he's training for a marathon, I knew he would be down for it.

I should probably take the time to explain Adam (who does not do drugs, btw) since I did get a question on my IG post of "who is replacing Ken?" No worries, people, I am no cougar. Adam is my son in law's brother, and like another son to me as well. And even though his normal fitness bar is far above my top fitness bar, he is patient enough to hike with me.

Though I will say he is making me think I can push my bar up a couple notches. On the way down, out of nowhere I just started doing a little jog. Adam was like, "what is going on here?" 😄Honestly, I don't know what got into me because I am NOT a runner, much less a trail runner!

Sammie is sitting in a mushroom cup😍

But let me tell you, this is the trail for it. It's a gradual grade the whole time, and it actually felt quite comfortable. I was able to keep at it until we were almost the whole way down, when it started to get a little too rocky and dark.

So nearly 4 miles at a jog! Look at me - the slowest hiker has now become the slowest trail runner! Haha, I am almost certain it will not become a thing for me, but it was good I tried it out for this hike because I got home WAY past my bed time as it was. Happy "ribbit ribbit" trails! 😜Things to know list below.

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT FROG MOUNTAIN:

1) It's a newer trail, so it' a hidden gem at this point. We saw 4 people total.

2) It's just past Skykomish, with a 13 mile forest road drive once you turn off of Hwy 2. About half of that is paved, and the half that isn't paved is still pretty nice. A few potholes, but any car can make it easily.

3) Our navigation brought us to a huge parking area (actually it's Jack's Pass) but the trailhead is just a bit further up the road. Huge parking area there too, so even if this trail gains popularity (which is should!) parking should never be a problem.

3) A very straight forward 4 miles up with about 2k in elevation. Took us close to 3 hours I think, including picture taking and some rest up top. Total of 4 hours on trail, so down was of course way faster.

4) As is obvious from the pictures, the fall colors are really popping this time of year! I gave this trail a full five stars, which I think is my first time. I just couldn't think of one thing wrong with it.

Perfection. I tried enhancing some of the photos, but nothing could make them any better.

Eight Mile Trail

2026-09-07T12:21:53.463-07:00

First off, this trail is not 8 miles. I was like, "Why are Washingtonian's always naming things Eight Mile for no apparent reason?" - so I finally just Googled it. Turns out, just like in Leavenworth, one thing is named Eight Mile because it is actually that distance from town, and then several things (like Eightmile Lake) get the same name. Seems people are not very creative when it comes to naming things.

But I digress; I didn't choose this hike because I was looking to hike 8 miles. I only wanted to take advantage of a beautiful day and I didn't want to drive more than 2 hours. Because I don't typically like to re-do hikes, I did my scavenger hunt on the WTA website to try to find something that suited my needs.

Sammie loved the big stumps

As I explained on my Pharmaceutical Hiking post, this is a technique where you bring up the Hike Finder Map and just start clicking. It's not efficient, but it's surprising what you can find this way. I was very intrigued to find this "Squire Creek Pass via Eight Mile Trail" off of the Mountain Loop Hwy, because I really thought I knew all of the hikes in that area.

A beautiful biggie that is still standing strong

I wasn't expecting much...I mean if it was any good I would have already heard about it, right? The first review I read on Alltrails confirmed my assumptions by saying "Views at end are nice but I don't think it's worth the major effort to get there." But how can a 5.2 hike with under 3k elevation be a major effort? What a baby 😉...so with just an hour and half drive from my house, I went to check it out.

You'll get some nice views mid trail too!

I was glad there was at least one car at the trailhead because after driving the 6 mile forest road it really felt like I was in no man's land. The trail started off really nice, but progressively got worse and worse. I used my hands in a couple places to climb the root ladders, and tried not to think about how my legs and knees were going to feel on the way down.

Finally getting out from the trees I came across the other two hikers. "Enjoy the view at the top" they said as we passed each other, but unfortunately that put in my head that I was almost there. And in actuality, another half mile is not all that far. But if you are a hiker, you understand just how far this can feel.

A tradition on my Intragram

I started doing my "this has to end, this has to end" chant. Partly just to make noise (this really feels like bear territory with all the blueberry bushes) but mostly because it's what I do when I'm in a bad head space. (Last time was just before the Desolation Peak Lookout.) I was fully expecting the smattering of clouds in the sky to be covering the "nice" view of whatever mountains may have been visible from this pass that felt like I was NEVER going to get to. What a baby.😆

Sammie needed a rest by the infinity pool ;)

I do love when you get your mind blown in a situation like this; I was almost brought to tears. Though I also had to ask myself, "why is nobody here?" Yes, it was a bitch of a hike, but no worse than Mailbox Peak's old trail, and everybody is clamoring up that thing. And IMO, this view is far superior. How amazing to have it all to myself on a glorious Labor Day weekend.

Driving through Darrington on my way home I passed what I teasingly referred to on my IG story as a "sign from God" and stopped for my post hike treat.

It says "BEER" in case you can't see it

The River Time Brewery is a really cute place with great outdoor seating that I highly recommend. Happy "don't be a baby" trails! Things to know list below for those interested.

Things to Know about Eight Mile Trail

1) You should have navigational assistance unless you are very good at reading a trail. It's not that it's super unclear, there are just a couple tricky spots that are easy to miss.

I almost missed a right turn here because I was so distracted by yet another huge tree ;)

2) A couple people mentioned in comments that they believed the mileage to be longer than stated. Normally I would just say they are being babies 😜but I do have to agree this feels closer to 6 miles RT.

3) You could make this a thru hike with two cars by hiking out the Squire Creek Trail, but it doesn't sound worth it to me. That trail is even less maintained and has an added 2 mile road walk due to a wash out.

4) Alltrails will tell you that you are at the TH when you actually have about 15 more minutes of driving to do. I'm guessing this is because the road was blocked at some point, but as of 9/6/2026 it's clear all the way to the TH and as far as forest roads go, it isn't that bad.

5) I personally cannot imagine doing this with a full backpack, but there is amazing looking camping at the pass. Maybe in a few years I'll forget how brutal this hike was and go back, because seeing that view at sunrise and sunset really might be worth it.

You'll need to know big rock/little rock to camp here

6) There is a rock climbing area about a mile in. Bring a rope if you are so inclined.

It's called 3'o clock rock...looks fun, right?

7) I have to point out that you can actually see the Three Fingers Lookout at the pass! I thought it was pretty cool, since I'll never be doing that one. Well, never say never, but I highly doubt it.

5) Not trail related, but The Oso Memorial is not far from Darrington. You should stop if you can; they've done a really nice job with it. Hard to believe it's been 12 years since the tragedy, but it needs to be remembered.

Sucks Getting Old

2026-09-01T20:52:43.937-07:00

We humans grow old. It's a tough pill to swallow. But it's a reality none of us will escape...unless of course we die before we get the chance to age. I used to teasingly use the mantra "die young, stay pretty," when I was a teen. How dumb is that?

Thankfully my years of worrying about retaining my youthful beauty are behind me. In fact, age itself has become quite beautiful to me - it's given me perspective and wisdom that my childish self could only mock.

Though there is something about becoming old I could really do without: having your body fall apart on you. My dear friend, Heidi, has really had to deal with this lately. But thankfully, with the help of modern science, she is being rebuilt! Back to back knee replacement surgeries. Ugh. It's been a really tough summer for her. I know Julie has had her health struggles too. Sucks getting old.

Though Heidi has been completely out of commission for the entirety of this year's hiking season, and I know it has added tremendously to her already large amount of pain. So I've been trying to think of ways to help her enjoy the summer that don't involve double digit miles and sleeping on the ground. I know my friends will help me out too when life decides to put me on the bench.

So if you are a person that for whatever reason wants low miles and no tent, this trip report is for you. I didn't think I'd write anything up for this short girl's weekend getaway, but both trails we did are in my Alltrails App so I figured, why not?

A trail is a trail, no matter how short. Happy "for creaky and healing knees" trails. Oh, and stay tuned for Heidi's master plan for adventure requiring no major hiking coming up soon. It's going to be good!

LOG:

1) It's a long drive to Squamish, so a stop at The Beach House in West Vancouver for brunch is a nice break. There's some very nice boardwalk beach walking you could do here, but we opted to just be ridiculous instead.

We chose to stay at the Howe Sound Inn and Brewing Company in Squamish because of it's proximity to the Sea to Sky Gondola, NOT because of the beer 😉though if you do have a couple beers, there is a bus you can catch just a block from the Inn, and it's free on weekends! Plus it's much easier than dealing with the parking at the Gondola.

You could actually hike up to the summit and take the tram down, but you can also go after 4 pm and get 40% off a round trip fare, which is of course what we did. Our only hiking was the less than half mile Spirit Trail Loop you can walk after crossing the very cool suspension bridge at the summit. I think it may even be wheelchair accessible? I know you can at least get a chair across the bridge because we saw it done, though it took a few helpers and did not look easy.

2) We tried to stop at the Shannon Falls Lookout on the first day, but it was a madhouse with not a parking spot in sight. But now that we had mastered the bus system (and knew it was free!) we used it again and went to see the falls after all. This is also only about a half mile of walking (maybe wheelchair accessible too?) though there is a short side trail that is mostly stairs that will take you up for a closer view. Heidi pushed herself to do that too, even though her knee was really hurting. She is such a beast! An old beast 😆but still a beast.😍

Heidi's bionic knees will be fully activated in no time!

To end I'll give a shout out to the Copper Coil Still and Grill as being a super cute and quirky place to eat, and a warning that even though you see a line out the door at the Fox and Oak doughnut shop all weekend making you think they must be amazing...they are not.

I even did some rock climbing! I just needed to push the children out of my way first 😉

Scott Paul Deserves the Best

2026-08-17T17:10:37.786-07:00

How cool would it be to have a trail named after you? I mean, I would settle for a bench...heck, even a port-o-potty (reference to an old story of mine) but having your own trail puts you in the big leagues. So I did a little "research" -- which is simply asking AI nowadays -- on why Scott Paul got his own trail.

"Scott Paul was a dedicated Forest Service ranger, visionary trail builder and coordinator for the Mt Baker district." No shocker there. But what I was surprised to read was that the Scott Paul Trail is a secondary tribute to his name. His main memorial is a plaque at the 240 feet suspension bridge at Drift Creek Falls in Oregon, where Scott lost his life while helping build it.

A private construction company finished the bridge after the tragic accident - and get this; the company was owned by Scott's close friend and fellow trail builder, Carroll Vogel. Around the same time, Vogel's crew secretly put an official looking sign renaming the Sulphur Moraine Trail to the Scott Paul Trail, and the Forest Service kept it.

Sammie says, "Take a right!"

Unfortunately, Scott Paul has to share his trail with the HIGHLY popular Park Butte Trail. At only about a tenth a mile you make your turn to get on the Scott Paul, though hardly anyone does. You will have another chance at the two mile mark with one more intersection, but the masses continue on to the left...either to Railroad Grade (and maybe a Mount Baker summit) the Park Butte Lookout, or even all the way to the ocean if you are doing the Pacific Northwest Trail.

But I would encourage anyone and everyone to get off the well beaten path and try out this beauty of a trail for themselves. The only hiccup with doing the full 8 mile loop is that a pretty important suspension bridge is gone.

After hearing Scott Paul's story, this seems...I know ironic is not the right word, but I can't think of one that fits. So I'll just say it seems wrong. I don't think he would be too happy with having his trail missing a bridge that could possibly put someone's life at risk. (Some years it gets put up, some years it doesn't...although one of the supports is gone, so that will need to get fixed before it gets put up again.)

One of the few people I saw on the loop

I was thankful the water was low enough this day that I could cross without incident, but I would recommend you try and ford it earlier in the day; which means going clockwise. But I would also suggest that this trail would be just as good as an up and back...maybe even better.

In fact, next time I do it, that's what I plan on doing. Make the early turn, avoid the crowds, get up to those amazing two miles at the top where Mount Baker is in your face the whole time, then turn around well before the missing bridge and enjoy those views for the second time before heading down.

IN YOUR FACE!

I think this would only be a mile longer than the traditional loop - and I think it would be more enjoyable. I rarely do trails more than once, but I can actually see myself doing this one multiple times, I was that impressed by it. Thank you, Scott Paul; and I hope that bridge gets put up again soon. Happy "well named" trails.

Backpacking the Duckabush with my Sis

2026-08-12T19:45:13.233-07:00

I've hit the double digits! Ten backpacking virgins are now under my belt. Taking someone for their first time is one of my greatest joys - but this trip was extra special. I'm still pinching myself that my sister actually came with me!

Vicki has been toying with the idea for quite some time. Our walking holiday on the Cotswold Way proved to us both she could hike 11 miles in a day; but could she do it with a full pack?

Gotta have at least one pic of Sammie

Though maybe even more importantly, could she face her fears? Getting mauled by a bear or attacked by a cougar, slipping and breaking an ankle, tripping and falling off a cliff - or even getting impaled by your trekking pole - these are all real possibilities. Albeit they are unlikely, our minds like to fixate on them. We play out the whole scenario and imagine every detail so we can be prepared...just in case.

I learned a long time ago (lesson #55) that this is a mistake. Of course we should have knowledge about survival; but the disaster movie that we play in our head is something else entirely. It takes time and practice to tame the imagination beast. You just need to get out there and have experiences that didn't include the misfortune you were worrying about, and eventually sleeping in the woods becomes a new normal. And the struggles you did encounter during your adventure...well, you got through them...and felt proud of yourself for doing so.

I'm so pleased that Vicki got out there; and even if she was afraid during the night and slipped and scrapped her knee on day two, I know she still had a great time. It's important that you moderately set your goals when you first start (my first backpack was a whopping 7 miles total) so you can have the feeling of accomplishment that is so vital to overcoming fears and having a good experience. Thankfully Vicki declined my first suggestion of doing 30 miles on the Sunshine Coast, as I tend to get a bit overly ambitious these days.

Instead we both agreed the Duckabush River Trail was a perfect fit. Number one reason was no smoke (we are really getting hammered with forest fires here in the PNW) but also it's well maintained and relatively easy to get to. The entirety of the trail is 22 miles (later miles are not well maintained FYI) to Marmot Lake (where you can keep going on other trails) but if you are doing an up and back like us, you can do however many miles you want.

I'll give our specifics below, but end here with this encouragement: the outdoors are for everyone. And though us humans enjoy making goals and pushing ourselves to do ever increasingly difficult things, being in nature doesn't need to involve any of that. It can simply be enjoying the beauty around you with the people that you love. Happy "from your first to your hundredth" trails!

TRAIL LOG:

Day 1: A little over 2 miles to our camp with around 400 ft elevation gain. I originally wanted to go to the camp at 5 miles in, but I'm happy Vicki insisted she would rather play it safe with the earlier spot. There are three along the river; the first one being the best.

It was taken, so we continued to the third, which is the largest. It does not have a river view though, so we went back to the middle one. FYI, I did find a single spot close to the river that is behind the last largest spot when I went exploring the second day; you just have to search a little for it.

We loved our spot

Day 2: We left our camp set up and did an up and back to the 5 mile camp for a total of around 7 miles and 1600 ft gain. You have to go over what is called the "Big Hump" which feels more like two humps, and then back down to the river before turning around to do it again.

Five Mile Camp is very nice, but not as private as our spot was. When we were just above Five Mile Camp, I was too far ahead of Vicki for her liking and she called out to me, "where's the fire?"

I saw the men sitting below us having lunch look up at us with concern, and sure enough asked "what fire?" when we arrived. We explained, but they teasingly chastised us for using that word in the backcountry. Everybody is a bit on edge about fire at this time; which is understandable.

Having a little fun with AI on my IG story

Day 3: Out the 2 miles back to the car with around 400 ft gain. We left camp at 8:30 am and were through the pot hole maze (driving the road was the hardest part of this day) by 10:30 am. This was perfect because we made it to Harbour Public House just before the noon rush, and that place is POPULAR.

Scored a great table outside

Then we took a little detour to visit Pia the Peacekeeper before getting on the ferry and heading home. There are 4 other Trolls in Washington, so now we have a new goal! 😉

Mount Rainer looking ethereal from the ferry

Monte Cristo and Beyond

2026-07-30T15:14:41.960-07:00

The Timberline Trail is just one of the many thru hikes I bailed on. But it's the last one I need to go back and finish. Therefore, I drew up a plan to do an up and back for the missed section, secured the days off of work well in advance, got Julie on board (Janet already got er' done) and so all was set.

But then came the trip reports for that specific chunk of woods with very discouraging tales of dead-fall woe. 350 downed trees to go over or under between Elk Cove and Cloud Cap...and with an up and back, we'd do them twice. Obviously, finishing the TT was going to have to wait.

So, now what? With four whole days, it seems you should have lots of options; but nothing felt like a good fit. Monte Cristo to Twin Lakes has been on the list for a long time, but four days seemed like overkill.

Now that it's done, I know this is not a place to be rushed. This area is absolutely stunning - but also rugged, wild and unforgiving. Humans tried to tame and claim this wilderness in the past...the mining and tourism history here is fascinating! Except Mother Nature said "nope" and took it back. We visit with wonder and humility, and hope she is merciful while we are there.

Hard to imagine this was all there once

We were so grateful she smiled kindly on us. I'll confess I was in my head pretty hard over some of the drop offs on these trails. This screen shot of the last bit before getting to the view of Twin Lakes had me terrified; though it wasn't nearly as bad as Alltrails made it look. Even so, as a somewhat clumsy hiker, the thought of falling still made me quite anxious.

But facing fears is a big part of what hiking means to me - fear of crossing icky, steep washouts (check) fear of walking across high logs (check) fear of looking stupid trying to do a bear hang (check) - The Henry M Jackson Wilderness has got you covered! 😉Happy "stay out of your head" trails. Trail Log below, and YouTube video here.

Granted, not that scary...but my clumsy self still doesn't like it ;)

TRAIL LOG:
Day 1: The abandoned road section is an easy 4 miles, but was harder than I expected; probably because of the heat. We made camp there just before town and hung the food (sorry about that tortuously long video if you watch my YouTube...I do believe I'm done with bear hangs from here on out😜) then took our day packs into "town."

Julie wisely decided it was too hot to keep hiking, but was okay with me going up and back to Glacier Basin and meeting her back at camp. This is a 4.5 mile and 1,700 ft elevation gain side trail you'll find at the end of the town. The trail reminded me so much of the AT...going up rocks without a switchback in site. I tracked myself for a total of 9.5 miles with 2,228 ft and 6 hours of hiking for the day.

Day 2: I originally thought we'd go to Twin Lakes this day - I mean it's only 6 miles. Thankfully we decided on Silver Lake instead, because the rain hit us right after we put up our tents. (And because we never would have made it to Twin Lakes! More about that on day 3.)

Some mood on the way up

Silver is supposedly only 2 miles from Monte Cristo - felt much longer with the 2k gain and obstacle course. (Handful of BIG trees to get over, but all doable.) We had a good portion of the day to stay in our tents...but who cares with this view?

I did later in the day try and follow the climber's trail shown on Alltrails up to Silvertip Peak, but a climber I am not. I could not find that trail to save my life!

As far as I got

Silver Lake from the beach...crazy how the lighting changes the color

Day 3: I could not have underestimated the up and back to Twin Lakes any more than I did. I tracked myself as having done 4.48 miles (and I didn't even go the half mile down to the lake) with 1.5 gain and it took over FIVE HOURS! And this is with a light day pack!

Though a couple passed me who where going up to Columbia Peak AS A DAY HIKE -- so I guess this is all relative to your fitness level and speed.

The couple on the left. They were actually celebrating their engagement!

Celebrating by going up there! People are nuts 😜

I actually heard from an elderly gentlemen that his first backpack was Twin Lakes! 70 years ago when he was like 10...all I could respond was "parents sure raised em' tough back then." If you read my previous blog post, you'll find the story of my grandkids first backpack at about the same age. Three whole miles 😆and they acted like they were going to die, haha.

Day 4: Another benefit of camping at Silver Lake was our hike out was a shorter 7 miles. An 8:45 am start meant we were at Playa Bonita in time for a delicious late lunch.

Old Sammy was a post hike beer kind of guy; but new Sammie likes her Margaritas :)

And one last pic because I liked it but didn't know where to stick it

Grandkids First Backpack

2026-07-07T15:27:56.094-07:00

I've gone on a hiking trip over the 4th of July holiday every year since 2022 simply because I know I will have a handful of days off work that I don't have to ask for. This year I was excited to finally see Garibaldi Lake (last year's fail here) and doubly excited that Ken had agreed to come with me. These permits are not easy to get, nor are they cheap...so it was doubly hard to cancel for the second time when the weather forecast once again turned iffy. But hauling ass up that mountain to only look at misty fog would probably have insured Ken never came with me again. Except I still had the days off, so another pivot was in order.

Being it was the historic 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we decided to take the grandkids to their first big fireworks show - and throw in their first backpack while we were at it. So a very big pivot! From British Columbia to Wenatchee!

Waiting for the big show

The only thing giving us pause was thinking about the drive over Hwy 2...if you are a Washingtonian you know why. Any summer weekend is bad, but a holiday weekend? Ugh. One word of advice: don't trust Google Maps when it advises you to take side roads to avoid the jam. You may think you are getting ahead...until you have to merge back in. Lesson learned.

Sammie made a new friend

Another lesson: if attending a massive festival where everyone leaves at the same time and you are staying at a hotel just a mile away, take the bus there and then plan to walk back. That was our plan, but then because we had so much stuff, we just drove and hoped for the best. The "best" was an hour in the car. The trains that go directly through town and block everything compounded the mess. Though the show really was worth it.

But back to the backpack; the Clara and Marion Lake hike is only a half hour drive from Wenatchee; though it is almost a four hour drive from where we live, and we were headed there first. The hike starts right in the Mission Ridge Ski Resort parking lot, but The Chair 5 Pub is also there; and after that horrible drive (which felt twice as long with two antsy kids in the car) we decided a beer was in order. They have lovely outdoor seating, and yes, kids are not only welcomed but catered to with games, coloring supplies and a great kids menu. HIGHLY recommended.

The hike itself is only a 3 mile up and back, so I don't think many folks bother backpacking it. (Though it does have a near thousand foot gain, so it's a good challenge for kids.) I had read reports that there were several spots "between the lakes" so when we got to Clara Lake we didn't even bother looking.

Instead we pressed on with eyes peeled for the perfect spot. We kept saying "maybe over there"...but nothing. When the trail split I was sure they must be up where it looked to be a flat area, but nope. The split was just another way back to Lake Clara. No camping spots whatsoever.

The view if you scramble up the scree past Lake Marion

When we got to Lake Marion and saw what looked to be a little island I could tell right away that's where the camping spot was. "Between the lakes" must have meant the two bodies of water on either side - the clear side and the marshy mess that looked to be a mosquito breeding ground.

But it wasn't!! Hardly a bug to be found...miraculous! We had such an amazing time with the whole lake to ourselves. Both kids caught their first fish - one had the biggest and the other got two, so thankfully we didn't have to deal with too much jealousy.

For anyone interested, after trying the other lake in the morning, the consensus was that Marion is better for fishing, even though it's smaller. But there are camping spots at Lake Clara; you just have to take a right when you get there. I would say either lake is hard to beat if you are looking for a first time backpacking experience. Happy "generational" trails!

Deception Falls by Steven's Pass makes a great driving break

Another Birthday on Trail

2026-06-15T20:09:45.619-07:00

It's been almost two years since Adam became my ninth backpacking virgin to deflower. He was looking for some solace in the outdoors back then; and life being what it is, another immersion into nature was in order. Last time he mentioned that a campground instead of a backpack may be more to his liking, and so I took a quick look on recreation.gov to see what might be available on a summer weekend near Seattle - with very little hope if I'm honest.

One lone green dot in the Easton Lake State Park Campground...and low and behold, it was just 10 minutes away from a hike that has been sitting in my "to do" list forever. And it was on my birthday! A definite trail gift, so I grabbed it before it disappeared, and prayed Adam had the day off.

He was game for the adventure, even though he had to be at work in Seattle at 9 am Saturday. Time was not on our side, as I had to work Friday, the day of our reservation. But we were determined to make it happen.

Rushing out of work a little early at noon, I was able to pick up Adam and get to the campground just a half hour after check in time. We threw up the tents and got to the trailhead by 4 pm.

I had read that the Easton Ridge hike was a very popular one, so I was relieved to see just a couple cars in the small lot. The trail shares it's start with the also popular Kachess Ridge Trail, which the other hikers must have been doing because we saw not a soul for the four hours we were there.

Do I look slightly over heated? ;) Thank you Adam for carrying my pack!!

"Not for couch potatoes" is how the Washington Trail Association webpage describes this hike, and they aren't kidding. I would compare it to Mount Si, only shorter but steeper - and WAY prettier. One thing to be aware of; you will come to a nice view point with a rock to climb on and it will totally feel like you are done.

58 and feeling great! But you ain't done girl ;)

But you're not. Thankfully I was using my All Trails, and though we both had a hard time believing that going just a short distance further would get us a better view, we wanted to say we did the whole thing. So we braved the mess of a trail to the official end and WOW. Do not be fooled by the false summit and be sure to push on! (I got a total of 7 miles tracked, though it's stated as being a 6 mile up and back with 2,270 feet elevation gain.)

NOW you're done

Adam did say his mind felt clear and calm while we hiked, but unfortunately the nature therapy ended when we got back to camp. Though the Easton Lake Campground has a great wilderness feel, what you don't see is the train that runs ALL THE TIME that boarders the park. Ridiculous for what I think is a stupidly expensive price of $50 a night, so I'm going to be sticking with my backpack for any future trips in that area. I will also give you the tip that it looked like there was plenty of dispersed camping options on the road to the trailhead. (Though probably not quiet either, as it looked like a dirt biker's playground.)

I'll confess I did pay that same ridiculous price for another campsite that I drove to after dropping off Adam and picking up my husband (going over both Snoqualmie and Stevens Pass in one day!) but the birthday celebration had to continue! Except I had used this Hipcamp in Plain before, so I knew this one was worth the money. I hate to talk too much about it, because I would hate for it to get too busy (as if I'm some huge influencer) but you can watch my short YouTube video mashup if interested. I'm going to end with the same trail blessing I used last time...Happy "always bring the earplugs" trails!

Sammie made a friend

Lunch Ladies on the Sunshine Coast Trail

2026-05-27T19:35:46.405-07:00

I am a proud lunch lady. At least I try to be, even though it's hard when people make comments like "isn't that just cutting up carrots?' But it helps when you hear someone announce without hesitation when asked what they do for a living, "I am a lunch lady." And that's exactly what my hiking partner, Sarah, did when we sat for breakfast at the picnic table on top of Manzanita Bluff with several other backpackers.

Sarah was barely able to come with me on this adventure, as I asked her sort of last minute when my sister WISELY decided a 3 day excursion into Canadian black bear territory was probably not the best plan for someone's first backpacking experience. And because Sarah couldn't give me a definitive answer until only a few days before, I reached out to a few people on a public Sunshine Coast Trail Facebook group to say that I may be able to join them on their trips. (Getting to the start of this trail is not cheap, and so sharing expenses is kind of a must. Especially if you're a lunch lady!)

As we were waiting for our final Boat Taxi to take us to Sarah Point (it was destiny for her to go there!) I was chatting with another passenger and quickly realized he was one of the people I had reached out to about possibly joining forces with. "Looks like we were meant to hike together!" Alex said with a smile.

And so there we all were on the morning of day two, with another sweet couple who also shared the boat taxi with us, trying to enjoy our meal as we swatted mosquitoes while asking questions to get to know each other. And as soon as Sarah (who is also a massage therapist) declared she was a lunch lady, Alex lit up and practically shouted, "ME TOO!"

I understood why he then had to explain how he used to work in restaurants and such until he couldn't stand it anymore and now he loves what he does...nobody usually believes working at a school and serving kids is a respectable occupation that someone would enjoy. But when I said "I'm a lunch lady too" you could see his pride smile come on strong. Hell yes, we are the fucking lunch ladies and we rock!!!

Lunch Ladies Unite!!

So this is why even though there were TWENTY EIGHT kids camping there with us (SURPRISE!) as part of a nature experience group of some sort, I just couldn't be upset. (Though, it took me a minute, I'll admit!) Working with kids is hard and under appreciated- but SO very needed. And these kids were just as sweet as they come...although loud and obnoxious too...as all children are.

A quiet moment

So here's to all the lunch ladies, camp counselors, crossing guards, school bus drivers and the like -- hold your heads up high!! But Rusty (the brave man leading the nature group) I do hope for next year you decide to split into smaller groups or go somewhere else, because 28 kids at the Manzanita Hut is way too many! Happy "always bring earplugs" trails! Hiking itinerary below for anyone interested, as always. Oh, and my YouTube video too.

This is what happens when there's not enough space! Yikes!!

TRAIL LOG:

(I apologize to all Canadians that I'm using miles instead of kilometers. It's embarrassing that the metric system just never took with us Americans, but my old brain is now stuck in it's rut.)

Day One: After picking up Sarah at the school she works at, we drove across the border to our first ferry at Horseshoe Bay. Canadians are not messing around with their ferries!! I mean TOP NOTCH! Though because we were so enthralled and excited, we forgot to take note where we parked. Usually this is not something to worry about on a ferry, but these ones are HUGE. Thank God we finally found the car before we landed, because nobody wants to be that person. Then you catch another ferry at Earl's Cove, and by the time you disembark, it's going to be too late to start hiking. So we got a campsite at Kent's Beach Campsites which is just a half hour from where we needed to be next day.

Day Two: After leaving our car at the Shinglemill Pub where we would end our hike (I always say that I love a hike that ends at a bar!) we walked up the road to catch the bus. It's a half hour ride to Lund, where the boat taxi is. There is also the option of booking a shuttle from just about anywhere on the trail, and actually that might be your only option because water taxis are reliant on tides and weather and not always available. Speaking of the water taxi...although beautiful and fun, there is another reason this might not be for everyone. There is no dock or beach to disembark on...the captain has to maneuver right next to a big rock ledge and then you have to hurry off while he carefully keeps the boat close enough so you don't fall in the water. Then he throws you your backpack. Don't tighten it he says - not until you climb up the rock to the trail...y'know in case you slip. Don't want that backpack to pull you to the bottom of the ocean! I mean shit...this was not in the brochure! ;) Anyways, then it's about 10 miles to the hut. It felt like more. And I don't know the elevation...somewhere around 2,000 feet I think. Again, it felt like more. My sister would have killed me.

The only sign I could find that said Sarah Point!

Day Three: Originally we planned to do the 10 miles to the next hut, and then another 10 out so we had an extra day to stay at a hotel before the long trip home. But before we left I cheaped out and changed it so we would camp just 4 miles from the end so we would have time to make it home same day without the hotel. So this day was going to be 8 miles. But the hotel stay got back in our heads. So it was back to 10. Then we got to the place where it's a big elevation gain for the last two miles and I was done. Hiking is always about adapting and making the pivot. So I camped, and Sarah continued because she knew she didn't want to do those extra miles in the morning. It worked out perfect for both of us.

I love being alone...I guess because I'm a Otrovert?

Day Four: I got up early and made it to Sarah while she was just finishing breakfast. Even though we had off and on rain, this was my favorite day. I was not expecting much, but this section is so beautiful. Mossy and magical with streams and pools and waterfalls...pure joy.

Until the decent from Scout Mountain into town...then it's pure hell. But then there's a burger and beer to make it all better! So, I did around 12 miles and Sarah did 10-ish. Alltrails has this section at 30.3 miles with 6,620 feet of gain; but we all know Alltrails can't be trusted. But I can tell you this--the elevation is not PCT kind of gain, but the AT type of gain (steep ups and downs over and over, which I think is way harder) so you really want to be sure to have trekking poles for this one. I do hope to go back and finish the whole thing next year, which is around another 80 miles. I am keeping my "never finish a full trail in one go" non-thru hiker status going strong, haha.

I have to have at least one pic of Sammie! This was at the first campground.

Rerouting on the Arizona Trail

2026-04-22T17:37:00.000-07:00

I must have at least five sheets of paper with scribbled down daily mileage of different AZT plans. Maybe even more. When I sent a picture of yet anther rendition of our itinerary to my hiking partners saying "I think this works better," Mary's response was simply "rerouting...rerouting..." 😜

But as I explained to Janet as we were hiking along on day two or three, I need to "massage" an idea for quite a while before it feels right. Therefore, before this expedition became a reality, it was a fall trip switched to spring; then a NOBO changed to SOBO.

I do believe the AZT is the easiest trail to make (and unmake) plans on. From a couple days to the whole enchilada, the Arizona Trail Association's excellent website has everything you need to come up with a strategy that works for you. Plus you'll be hard pressed to find a trail with better (or more beautiful) signage along the way.

(Plus a few creative unofficial signs 😄)

And so our Mormon Lake to Pine outing was a complete success! Adding this trip's miles to last year's gives me a total of 151.5 towards my 500 mile goal. And I've already started several sheets of notes on my hopes and dreams for a Grand Canyon adventure next year. Fingers crossed! Happy "well massaged" trails! Daily log below for those interested.

Day One: We switched to SOBO for one simple reason...it was easier. Mostly flat miles in Passage 29, which is super helpful when you are carrying 7 days of food. We started at the forest road 240 intersection which is just before the Double Springs Campground. (This forest road is not bad BTW, and easier than going all the way around as Google Maps "prefers.") Mary's husband was kind enough to pick us up at the airport and drive us straight there.

This meant a late start and therefor a short day of just 5 miles to Navajo Spring. If you watch my YouTube video, you'll see we found a charred downed tree here that the winds had kicked back into flame! After doing our best at extinguishing it, we got enough reception to call the fire department who actually came out to make sure. They explained that "controlled" burning had been done in that area a week prior. Winds are good at making something that seemed "out" suddenly not at all out. (And actually not suddenly--I mean a whole week later!)

Day Two: 11.8 miles to Shuffs Tank. I expected an actual "tank" of some kind, but was thankful to have a pond instead. These are designed and created for animal use...which of course makes them a bit nasty. (Be sure your filter is in good working order before doing anything on the AZT!)

When finally catching up to Mary, who was already set up, I was SO ready to be done for the day...except when I went to put up my tent, my poles were not in the pocket I always keep them in. PANIC! We discussed a plan for me to take minimal gear and go back to find where I could only guess they fell out at a break 3 miles back. I would camp, then catch up the next day. I was so proud of myself for not crying. But then I picked up my TYVEK sheet that I had thrown on the ground, and lo and behold, my tent poles were hiding underneath. I must have taken them out with ZERO memory of it. WHAT RELIEF! Plus a little worry at my malfunctioning brain.

Day Three: 11.4 miles to Dave's Tank, which is a half mile off trail, so 11.9. My idol, the great Twig herself, was heading NOBO and would be meeting us there for the night. She had to slow her gait to a mere 20 for two days in a row so we could have this rendezvous, which made us feel quite special.

I swear I did not plan this trip to stalk her! It was pure coincidence...or maybe fate? I say that because I ended up loaning her my extra puffy vest (yes I was being a baby because of the cold and decided last minute to bring it along) since she didn't have one. She had been hiking in triple digits for most of this trail, so a puffy did not make the cut for her ultra-light pack. But DAMN it was cold, so she was very grateful for the extra warmth. Two other awesome thru hiker ladies joined us and we had a wonderful girl party until the wind/sleet/snow sent us to our tents.

Twig messaged me a few days later to say she was "living" in the vest 😄

Day Four: From Dave's Tank it's 15.3 (15.8 with the half mile back to trail) to the Blue Ridge Campground. The wet from the night before had turned the trail into mud that stuck on your shoes like Velcro, so the first half of the day was quite challenging.

If you haven't guessed already, Mary hikes almost twice our speed, so she was once again all set up and waiting at the end of the day; but this time with a cozy fire all ready. The CG is not officially open this time of year, so you need to have your own water. (A cache can be found a mile away that is stocked by the wonderful trail angels...another benefit of going SOBO was we were able to grab some just before getting to the CG.)

Day Five: 12.5 miles to the General Springs Canyon...or something like that. There are many spots in this beautiful area and I'm unsure exactly where we stopped for the night. Mary claimed it, as she was always our scout.

She also had to be our water manager because both Janet and I were worried our filters had frozen the night before. We passed quite a few "celebrity" thru hikers this day...yet another perk of going SOBO was they were all coming our direction. "Smiles" was my favorite and I'm convinced I need to give out "slowest hiker" stickers from now on! (With Sammie on it of course!)

It's fun getting stickers on trail! Thank you, Smiles!!

Hiking Super Stars...Milkman, Hiking Viking and Jolly

Lieutenant Dan

Anything you need will be in Life Saver's pack!

Ran into Rooster when we got out of the car to start

Sonic with Mary (Dime Bag)

Day Six: In just a mile or so we came to the General Springs Cabin area which would have made a good camping spot the night before if I would have noticed it as an option on the FarOut app. (My other major tool for planning.) Strangely it is not marked with a water waypoint so you have to read comments to know water is there. Also, despite comments saying the cabin is open and would be a great place to camp, that is prohibited; though there are plenty camping spots around. (You can see the cabin in my video...I didn't get a picture of it.)

It would have been nice to shorten this day by that mile, but regardless, the 13-ish miles to Bear Spring were not bad at all.

Day Seven: Only 12.6 to the trail town of Pine where the local pub was like a magnetic pull making us faster than ever. Mary's husband was waiting at the trailhead to rush us to our beckoning burger and celebratory beer. A big shout out to him and also Janet's hubby who drove us to and from the airport in Portland. I am so very grateful for all the help.

Done! Until next time AZT :)

Also...WILDFLOWERS!!!...

Celebrating Like it's Our 40th in O'ahu

2026-03-11T16:40:00.000-07:00

It's been 17 years since we've been to Hawaii. Our 39th anniversary is this month, so we decided to go back to celebrate.

It seems like a big trip like this should be saved for a 40th anniversary, doesn't it? Well, let me tell you why it shouldn't.

While sitting on the deck of our North Shore accommodations and enjoying my morning coffee, a beautiful rainbow appeared.

It felt like a smile from my mother, and suddenly their 40th anniversary party came to mind. You never want to start your first day of vacation crying, but I couldn't help it.

My mom wanted so badly to go to Hawaii to commemorate that big milestone, but she was in a fight for her life with stage 4 cancer. So instead, we brought Hawaii to her.

Sadly, she never got to see a 41st anniversary. Life is too short; so I say go now. Although...life is also hard; and so going where we want to go is not always possible.

But if you can make it happen, don't wait. Don't hesitate, don't make excuses, and don't feel guilty. That's what I'm trying to tell myself, anyway.

Beauty and pain...that's the deal while we are here. I say drink in the beauty whenever you can. Happy "glad to still be here" trails. Our week's itinerary is below for anyone planning a trip and looking for ideas. Aloha!! (Also some short video clips are on YouTube)

Day One) Got in late to our hostel on the North Shore. I kinda wanted to keep this place a secret so it doesn't get too popular (as if I have some huge audience) but I doubt many people will be very into it. Sharing a bathroom is not everyone's cup of tea. We were fine with it for the price and great location.

Not exactly luxury

Day Two) It's a half hour to the farthest point west you can drive, and then you can walk about 3 miles of the trail there to the actual furthest spot at Ka'ena Point. It was a cooler day, which you want to choose because it's surprising how hot you'll get hiking even on flat ground with a nice ocean breeze. We saw whales spouting in the distance, a monk seal taking a bath, and tons of albatross nesting! (Which only happens in March - how lucky were we?)

The toppled lighthouse has been decorated

Day Three) Snorkel day!! Three Tables Beach is literally across the street, so we went first thing while the tide was favorable and the swells low. (March is not ideal here, unless you're a surfer.) Then it's walking distance to Shark's Cove which is an amazing spot with large tide pools that are easy and safe to snorkel with tons of fish. If you keep making your way east you'll come to the more open cove and this is where we came across the two sea turtles. We swam with them for a solid 10 minutes. One of the most magical moments of my life. Then we drove further east to the Turtle Bay Resort where you can just walk on through their pool area and order at their bar even as a non guest. Great service and beautiful seating looking out on the ocean. We still had time before sunset so we drove to the apropos Sunset Beach - it didn't disappoint.

Day Four) Check out is at 10 am without exception (and 3 nights is their minimum btw) but that worked out for us because low tide at the Mermaid Cave was at 11 am and it was an hour drive. During my internet searches while planning I came across this "secret place" (ha ha) which was made famous by IG posts and is somewhat notorious because people don't check the tides and have gotten themselves in trouble. (Or killed, as the many memorials there attest to.) Normally it's not something I'd be into, but it was close to where we were camping, and like I said, the timing was too perfect.

Then it was a trip to Walmart (my favorite thing to do on vacation - ugh) to pick up some camping supplies and because we had time to kill we went to Ko Olina Lagoon 4 which is part of the Disney Resort.

Our one rain shower was thankfully short lived

Again, all are welcome, even non guests (Hawaiians are so generous!) but what I didn't realize is that we were supposed to check into our private campground before 4 pm. (oops!) When we got to Camp Palehua not a soul was there! It all worked out, but it was a strange experience. But cool too -- and what a view!!

Only a chicken to welcome us ;)

Day Five) We packed up and drove to the other side of the island to pick up our kayak at Active Oahu Tours. Micheal was amazing and gave us lots of tips and helped us get the kayak on top of the car. He showed us on a map where we were supposed to launch, but also pointed out that Lanikai Beach would cut our paddle distance in half if we could find a parking spot there.(Not easy, but we did it.) Thank God because holy cow it was windy and that was a bumpy and exhausting one mile ride! Low and behold, March is not ideal here either. Though the plus side was we had Moku Nui Island all to ourselves! Well, except for the THREE monk seals laying on the beach (including a pup)...the magic just kept coming.

Zoom in to see seals behind us

After returning the kayak, we drove a hour north to the Malaekahana Beach Campground where I had gotten a site online. This is a very economical way to visit Oahu, and they are not difficult to reserve.You do need the kind of gear you can fit into a suitcase, but that's already taken care of if you are a backpacker like me. I will warn you that the wind on this side of the island never stops this time of year, which will wear on you. I don't think we could have taken it for more than one night...oh and there are no hot showers. But there will be roosters to wake you up in time for the sunrise, which I promise you don't want to miss.

They are ON THE JOB ;)

Day 6) I really wanted to do another hike, and the Kahekili Trail was right on our way back to Honolulu. This is another place famous for people dying, but as long as you are not planning on doing the thru hike up on the ridge and back down to Crouching Lion, it's pretty safe. I only had to go up about a mile for these views.

Then it was to Waikiki Beach to soak in some non-windy sun. We were clueless where to park, but got a tip that the International Market is easy peasy and reasonably priced, which it was. Our room at Aston at the Executive Centre was a huge upgrade from our other nights and a great way to end our trip. (HOT SHOWER BABY!)

Day 7) Nothing much to note, except that the international airport in Honolulu is the most beautiful I've even been to. Take time to visit the gardens if you can.

Wrecked at Elfin Lakes

2026-02-17T20:30:00.000-08:00

I usually like to tell a story when I write up my trip reports, because I live to entertain. Then at the end I'll give a "things to know" list for day hikes or a daily itinerary for backpacks. Amusement first, then information.

Our second snow camp! Click here for Crater Lake

But after this quick one nighter, I'm just too beat to do anything but give the basic deets. Doing over 14 miles with two and half thousand feet of gain (or 22 kilometers and 752 meters - it was in Canada after all) will wear me out...but now I know that doing it in snow will absolutely destroy me.

You know how when you go to get a burger and beer after your trip and have to get up to go to the bathroom and suddenly you feel like your legs won't work? But then you suck it up and at least fake like you are not dying so as not to draw attention to yourself, right? Well, I couldn't even do that. I hobbled thru the restaurant* like I had broken both my ankles. Also, I literally had to use my arm to pull my leg up into the car. Bathtub Lakes was my #1 ranked hike as most painful...but this one beat it.

Though folks do it all the time. Lots of folks. The Diamond Head area in Garibaldi Provincial Park is POPULAR - but for good reason. It's a skier's paradise (if you don't mind leg power over lifts) and only a 20 minute drive from Squamish. I actually didn't know much about the skiing when I purchased our permit to camp at Elfin Lakes, though I knew the hut there was totally booked with what I assumed were mostly skiers.

We did go in to warm up, but it was extremely packed

Though I certainly didn't expect to have skiers and snow boarders galore passing us from almost the moment we started up the trail. It looked so fun and created some jealousy - plus it made the idea of hauling ass up the mountain just to walk back down instead of gliding a really stupid one.

So anyway, enough non-story telling. Here's what you need to know if you feel like destroying yourself too:

1) Permits are obtained here. Scoring camping is easy in winter, but you'll have to fight for it in the summer. I'm not sure if the hut is always difficult to get, but it certainly is on a President's Day weekend.

2) Bring chains, and put them on in the chain up area even if there is no snow there. We really thought we could make it in our car, but just about 300 feet from the parking lot we got stuck. Putting on chains on an icy hill is a bad idea -- I would have been in a really bad situation if my husband wasn't there to help.

3) Once you get to the first warming hut at about 3 miles in you need to follow the orange snow stakes because Alltrails is not going to help you.** We were doing that, but then they just stopped. We got lured into following the skiers short cut, which is a really bad idea in snowshoes. You want to go around to your right instead of straight across (I think we missed a sharp turn) - if it's not obviously stomped down, you are probably off trail. Oh, and FYI the warming hut has a large pot and gas you can use to melt snow for water. We did this on the way down because we were totally out.

4) If it feels like this is way longer than you expected because Alltrails has it as a 12.9 out and back, just know that Alltrails cannot be trusted. Plus you should always tell yourself (and your husband) 13 miles instead of 12 because you know 12 sounds better and you couldn't help focusing on the lower number. (Marketers always play to this weakness by advertising prices as $12.99 instead of $13 and I'm a sucker for it!!) So prepare yourself for a total of near 15 miles because I really think it's closer to that.

Sammie is over it! ;)

5) Besides the hut you can stay in, which has heat and beds and everything,*** there is another shelter for the campers to use for cooking. It is actually fully enclosed, so it's a great place to hang out to get out of the snow and change your wet clothes. It is not heated though, and camping inside is prohibited. There is a nice bathroom (by backpacking standards) right next to it.

Good thing the bears are sleeping! ;)

*Shout out to The Watershed Grill in Squamish. Great service, good food, decent prices, nice view and casual enough that you don't feel awkward even though you look like hell.

** Actually, if you download the Red Heather Meadows to Elfin Lakes Winter Route, it will help you. I used Elfin Lakes Trail via Round Mountain which is the summer route and not all that helpful.

***Not everything; I just found out the bunks don't even have mats! Important to know if you plan on staying there--don't forget a sleeping pad!

Disappointmentless at Long Beach Washington

2026-01-21T21:35:00.000-08:00

"Disappointmentless" may not be a real word, but I'm using it anyway. A title of "Cape Disappointment Did Not Disappoint" sounded lame to me. Plus it's not entirely true. We found the famous Washington lighthouse to be a bit of a let down. But only the first one. Maybe I should start over.

My friends and I planned this little girl getaway over the MLK holiday months ago. Winter can be a rough season for hiking addicts (sorry, I mean enthusiasts) so we knew we'd be desperate for an outing come January. A snow camp maybe?...but the beach just sounded so much better. Staying at a cabin with a hot tub looking out on the ocean is adventurous, right?

Hats make it seems more outdoorsy ;)

Okay, not really. And the hiking options in the Long Beach area are not exactly thrilling either. Though we knew if we timed it right, we should at least be able to get some good sunset pics at the reputable landmark of Cape Disappointment.

After less than a mile's walk you'll come to the lighthouse and it's...okay. I guess I had high expectations. We took the short jaunt down to Dead Man's Cove for a few more shots of the setting sun, and then Heidi mentioned the other lighthouse.

Other lighthouse? "Yeah, there's the newer North Head Lighthouse. We should drive back tomorrow and check it out," she says. "Well, where is it?" I ask. "Oh, just a couple minutes drive," she answers. A couple minutes?! We all agreed to get a move on while there was still a little light left!

As far as getting our photography fix, this was the highlight of our trip. On our last day we did stop to check out Waikiki Beach where you can get the iconic shot of the older lighthouse; but with no giant waves, it's pretty underwhelming.

A classic shot I stole off the internet

Way less impressive in person

Our other attempt at a hike was pretty much a total bust. The "Bearberry and Bay Loop" at Leadbetter Point started out as a nice beach walk. Then it got mushier...and mushier... (Heidi's new shoes were getting quite the baptism) until finally I hear Heidi say, "Oh Hell's Bells, no way!"

Woo hoo, this is great!

Hell's bells, this is not ;)

I convinced her we could make it over the water by balancing on all the deadfall, because none of us wanted to trudge back through the mush. This worked, until we came to yet another "hell's bells" situation that we could not find our way around, try as we might. (I actually started to feel a bit panicked because it was proving very difficult to find the trail again. My solo trip from Whatcom Pass to Ross Lake kind of gave me PTSD when it comes to getting lost.)

Our VRBO's private beach was the place to be

But let me be clear: I would not call any of the above a disappointment. Even soggy feet are fun when I'm with my girls. Obviously we made it out alive; though after that little adventure we decided hanging out at our rented beach cabin was excitement enough. Actually it was more than enough - it was pure heaven. Happy "hanging with your gals can be better than hiking" trails...or maybe I should say non-trails.

You MUST drive on the beach! So fun!

And fly kites! We bought ours right in town

And Sammie says not to forget to visit Oysterville

Goodbye 2025

2025-12-28T20:17:00.000-08:00

On 2025's New Year's Day I watched the sunrise because I had just learned about Hatsuhinode--the Japanese tradition that believes this practice ushers in renewal, hope, and good fortune for the year ahead. But I was skeptical; not only because I don't give much weight to these types of traditions, but because it felt like life in general was getting really weird...sort of like humanity as a whole might be going off the rails.

And honestly, it still sort of feels that way; but when has it not? And the truth is, even so, it's been an amazing year. This is my 23rd post for 2025 - a record! All wonderful memories of trips and adventures where things somehow always worked out in the end.

And this last little outing for the year proved the same. I had some ideas for staying at a campground in Newhalem...bad ideas...but I put them out there anyway and asked if anyone wanted to join me. Surprisingly I got three brave ladies who said yes.

First I confessed to them I felt guilty planning something fun in an area that had just experienced such trauma, (this is where the recent flooding hit hard) and warned there was no guarantee the road there would even be open. But we all agreed to just go and see; and to stop along the way and patronize a few businesses that might be happy to see a customer or two.

First stop was the 5 B's Bakery in Concrete which is 100% gluten free. I'll confess I didn't expect to experience the best carrot cake of my life, but I am now a believer that baked goods don't need gluten to be delicious.

Though gluten or no gluten, calories are still calories, so we stopped at the Rockport State Park for a quick hike to burn a few off. I introduced my friends to what I have deemed the "Grandma Tree" (who I had met in February) though we made it quick because it was DUMPING and we still needed to find a place to put up our tents.

Goodell Creek Campground supposedly has sites open in the winter, but unfortunately when we got there we found it closed due to what we could only guess was flood damage. We gave up any hope that the winter sites at Colonial Creek would be open and retreated back the way we came, keeping our eyes open for another establishment to patronize. The Rockport Bar and Grill turned out to be a perfect place to escape the rain and discuss a plan b.

Dispersed camping can be found at the end of Baker Lake, and it was hopeful the rain would turn to snow sometime in the night; so it seemed to be the best alternative. Though I think we were all imagining how wet, cold and miserable we'd be after putting up tents in the absolute downpour we were witnessing out the window. Snow sounded magical in the morning - but the price was a long, cold, dark, and soggy night.

Then Julie mentioned the possibility of staying at a family member's cabin that was nearby. A few texts later and it was all set...no sufferfest payment would be required for a magical morning of snowy beauty.

So even without total faith in Hatsuhinode, I've sure had my fill of good fortune this year. I may need to get my butt outta bed early on Thursday to bring blessings on 2026...but even if I don't, I'm going to keep believing that no matter how crazy life looks, things are going to all work out in the end. Happy "weird and wonderful" trails to everyone in 2026! A couple "things to know" about our next day's hike on the East Bank Baker Lake trail below for those looking for info.

Things To Know:

After making the long drive to the northern end trailhead, we were planning on turning around after about two miles of hiking, but this got cut short when we found the river had taken the trail out at just about a mile in.

I guess we could have checked out the Baker River Trail on our way out, but we didn't. (I hiked it MANY years ago.)

Instead we drove to the other end of the Baker Lake Trail (I have done this as a 14 mile end to end as part of my PNT miles) but found ourselves at another washout...once again at only about a mile in.

We named this one "Grandpa Tree"

It wouldn't have been too hard to scramble down and get across to the other side, but we knew we'd hit the Anderson Creek crossing just another half mile further, which has had it's bridge gone for I don't know how long. So we turned around and got to eat lunch all the more quicker at our final establishment to patronize - the Birdsview Brewery has always been a favorite and their Ditzy Blonde beer never disappoints!

Until next time my brave ladies!

Bargains, Good Luck and Two More National Parks

2025-12-05T16:28:00.000-08:00

(No edit to this photo whatsoever in case you were wondering)

I'm a sucker for a bargain, and I'm an extra sucker if it includes getting something for "free." This is why I have TWO airline credit cards..."60,000 air-mile points to join?! Where do I sign?"

Although, as we all know, something is only a good deal if you actually use it. Ever seen the old Monte Python "I bought a piston engine" routine? This was 100% my mother (we teased her unmercifully for it) but I have inherited the same disorder. So I decided it was time to cash in my points and fly somewhere for our new "see a National Park on Thanksgiving" tradition. But where?

I've crowned myself the "Queen of the Complicated Plan" for a reason, and this trip proved no different. Picking up a car in one city and dropping off in another, four different camps in four days, hours of driving with only prayers we'd actually find a site - but everything came together beautifully, with a cherry on top lucky win of over $200 in a Vegas nickle slot before flying home.

And now I have earned two new stickers on my National Park Thermos. I mean, if you are going to go to Joshua Tree, you really need to throw in Death Valley too.

Poor Ken only earned two massive blisters - one on each foot. You can't always have perfect luck. But he's a good sport, so I think he'll still be in for next year's trip that I've already started planning. Do you happen to know any airline credit cards I need to sign up for? ;) Happy "deal or no deal, hiking is worth it" trails. My complicated itinerary is below for those interested.

TRAIL LOG:

Day 1: Got our "free" flights out of Seattle to LAX on Frontier, though if you've flown with them you know you'll need to pay for EVERYTHING else. Well, except the 14" x 18" x 8" personal item; so it's always a "how much can I possibly shove in here" game...which of course if not enough if you're car camping for several days.

So I bit the bullet and paid for one checked bag which somehow we managed to fit all our camping gear in. We originally had reserved an Escape Camper Van (which we've done a couple times before) but sadly they went out of business. So instead I rented a car I thought we could at least sleep in the back of. (Though we never needed to, thankfully.) After surviving the craziness that is LAX and picking up the car, we drove as far as we could and stayed at a random hotel.

Day 2: Stopping at Walmart is not the way to start a vacation, but it had to be done. Word of advice: check to make sure the phone charging cords you brought are compatible with the car you rented BEFORE going shopping...ugh, but otherwise we got the supplies we needed. Ken even found a large cooler bag that got us through all four days for only $6! He's a pretty good bargain hunter in his own right.

40 pounds of ice is too much even for a large cooler tote, haha

With a second stop to find the correct cord, I had given up the idea of doing our first planned hike; though because it was so close to our reserved campsite at the Cottonwood Campground on the south side of Joshua Tree, we were actually still able to make it happen. "Lost Palm Oasis Trail" is a 7.4 out and back with 1K gain. We added on a quick detour to Mastodon Peak for sunset which added another 2 miles and 500 feet. It was the perfect reset after surviving Walmart hell.

Ken on the peak--I was happy to stay down and take the pic

Day 3: You can actually get to the Lost Palm Trail straight from the campground by another route that takes you up Mastodon Peak first. I would recommend just going in and out this way, as there is nothing special about the first mile from the official trailhead. I decided to do this alternate one mile access to Mastodon as a sunrise hike and began in the dark with my headlamp. It is well marked and easy to follow (though I'd still recommend having GPS downloaded) and it takes you past a really cool old mining relic.

When I got back we packed up quickly so we could make the hour drive to Hidden Valley Campground and get there hopefully just as people were leaving. It's the most popular campground, and it is first come first served.

I really wanted to see Skull Rock, which was on the way and about a 2 mile hike. I figured 10 am would be the perfect timing for scoring a campsite, so I thought we'd have time. Turns out there is no hiking required to see Skull Rock (literally right off the road, though there is a trail you can do) so we skipped the hike. Thank God because we would have missed getting what I'm pretty sure was the only site available right at 9:30...lady luck was definitely on our side.

We cowboy camped both nights in Joshua Tree - the stars were amazing!

As a former hard core climber, Ken was excited to revisit his old stomping grounds, so we spent this day exploring straight from our campsite; which is central to much of the major climbing routes.

I'd advise to stay off the popular trails - you don't need them. We made the mistake of walking to the official Hidden Valley Trail because we could, and Holy Moly! Trust me, you can see all the beauty around the park without having to wait in a hiking line.

Not Ken's happy place

Day 4: After leaving our coveted spot to a cute climbing couple (we seriously must have had 30+ cars drive by looking for a site) we drove the nearly 5 hours to Death Valley with the plan to stay at the 106 site first come only campground of Texas Springs that "never fills up."

After driving past the "road closed" turn off to said campground, we stopped at the Visitor Center where we learned they couldn't keep Texas Springs open because of the budget cuts. Uh oh. The ranger was very helpful and made a call to the Stovepipe Wells Campground to confirm they were not full...yet. Hurry!!!

We didn't see a lot of wildlife, but we sure loved the Ravens

True to our lucky theme, I think we got the last site. (There were a few RV sites left, but we were really wanting the picnic table and fire ring. Seems the camping sites are the ones that fill up first.) Even this last minute change of campground was advantageous for us, because it put us closer to where I had planned on hiking the next day. Plus it was only 5 minutes from the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, so we hurried there after putting up our tent even though the sun had already set. The colors of the after glow were still so beautiful. You can wander wherever you want here; there is no trail, just a lot of sand.

Day 5: Another early pack up, and then just a 10 minute drive to Mosaic Canyon Trail. This is a 3.5 up and back with about 1K in gain. It's not as popular as some of the other places (a rough 2 mile road going up there may be part of the reason) and it was nice to have a less crowded experience.

At about a half mile before getting back to the parking lot I noticed people hiking up the side of the canyon from where we originally came up. It looked impossibly hard, but the closer we got to it I could tell it wasn't so bad. I could see that this side trail showed up on my Alltrails map, so we decided to take it. I'm glad we did, as it was fun to look down into the canyon, along with the sweeping view into the valley.

Thankfully we already had a reservation at Furnace Creek Campground for that night so we didn't have to rush or worry. After we set up our tent for the final time we took our sleeping pads out to sunbath in the last rays. It wasn't hot, but us Washingtonians appreciate any warmth with our much needed dose of vitamin D.

Day 6: We had agreed Ken would sleep in and I'd take the car to do a sunrise hike at Zabriskie Point. This turned out to be my favorite views of the whole trip. My advice is start hiking as soon as you have light - you'll have plenty before the sun actually crests the horizon. I had the whole trail to myself because everyone is up at the point waiting for the official sunrise. It was pure magic.

I did the full Badlands Loop, which is only about 3 miles, and I was back at camp around 8:30 am, so we still had time to explore more of the park. The Badwater Rd had just opened up after having been washed out, so we drove down to see the Devil's Golf Course and Golden Canyon. We discussed on the way how fun it would be to name all the roads and places here. We'd pick "Last Breath" or "No Hope to Live"...we agreed that Golden Canyon seemed far too upbeat.

Many side roads are still closed

We only hiked about a mile of Golden Canyon, but there is a "secret" side trail about a quarter mile in that I really wished I could have explored further. (I only noticed it because someone was coming out - I have no idea how far it goes; I only went in about 20 feet.)

That finally wraps it up! The only other thing to say is that a stop at the Area 51 tourist trap is worth it just for the stupid photo shot opportunity. Until next time! YouTube video of trip here.

Gotta get probed ;)

An Otrovert's Overnight on Lookout Mountain

2025-10-15T21:51:00.000-07:00

Have you heard of the proposed new personality type named "otrovert?" Even though I hate labels, I have to say it describes me pretty well. I want to connect and be around people, but only meaningful one-on-one means much to me. I may appear like an extrovert, but in truth group settings and casual interactions are exhausting for me.

So the thought of spending the night in a fire lookout with complete strangers was both thrilling and terrifying. If they liked me and we connected and had this mutual bonding experience -- heaven! If I could tell they didn't want me there and we had to fake at niceties and force small talk all night -- hell! Such a risk...though I do crave terror and suffering for some odd reason.

Even so, when I got to the "register" at the beginning of the Lookout Mountain Trail and saw that nobody had claimed it yet, I was super relieved. I actually would have gone home if someone's name was there - not because I assumed they didn't want to share, but because I would have to make them share whether they wanted to or not. And of course, that's a bit asshole-ish.

I left work at noon on Columbus Day because I had found out a couple days earlier that I randomly had Tuesday off. A midweek outing with fantastic weather and having strong end of season legs, I knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Except leaving that late in the day with a 6:30 pm sunset meant I had no plan B; so if someone was in the lookout even though they didn't write it on the register, they would be sharing with my asshole self regardless.

Staying in a lookout has been on my bucket list a very long time. I knew this particular one was my best best; far better than Hidden Lake, Park Butte, or of course Mount Pilchuck; all which are extremely popular and near impossible to get to before someone else. And even though hikers are some of the best sharers in the world, who wants to chance it?

Though as an otrovert, I'm always hoping to find a soul sister (or brother) - so when I "claimed" the lookout I also wrote "don't mind sharing." I knew the lookout "fits 4 easily" from the previous person's note, and I didn't want anyone coming after me having the same stress I was having.

Also, "going to be crowded"...apparently some people aren't worried about assumptions

About half way up I met my first hikers and asked them if anyone was at the lookout. They told me there was a group of SIX (must have been because of the holiday) but only two planned on staying the night. At that point I was too committed to turn around, so I just prayed I'd be getting heaven instead of hell.

I was so committed, in fact, that even a warning from the next descending group couldn't stop me. "Be careful, it's super slick and one of us had to grab onto branches to keep from falling," he cautioned.

"Would I fall off an edge to my death?" was my question.

"I don't think so, but you could get really hurt...though you should be okay with your poles," was his not so reassuring answer. It was good enough for me, however.

For the last half mile all I could do was kick myself for not bringing my micospikes or even my crampons. I had considered it, but I was too concerned with staying light because of the extreme elevation gain. Stupid. I kept imaging how the people up there would react to my appearance: "What is wrong with you coming up this late without proper gear and no plan B?" The other imaginations of spending the night crumpled up in the trees groaning in pain I refused to let in.

And you know that going up is one thing, and going down quite another, so I was also really worrying about what the next day was going to look like. Except I was all in; plus I knew I could wait until late morning when hopefully it wouldn't be as icy.

To say I was relieved to finally make it to the lookout would be an understatement - but there's no word strong enough to describe the feeling of deliverance that came over me when I found nobody there. Confusion too...where the heck could they have gone? But whatever...I GOT THE PLACE TO MYSELF!!!

Maybe I missed out on some heavenly bonding time, but avoiding a hellishly awkward night was a bigger desire. Plus, I love being alone - another sign of being an otovert.

The next morning's descent was painfully slow and not pretty, but I got it done. (Butt sliding is bad form and terrible for anyone coming after me, but it didn't seem I had a choice.) And even though it was pretty terrifying and probably foolish and definitely cold AF, I really did love every minute. Happy "if it's October, just put the spikes in the pack" trails!

Things to Know About Lookout Mountain Lookout:

1) It's 4.5 miles to the top, with 4.5k elevation. Better have your trail legs.

2) I had great cell phone reception inside the lookout with T-Mobile, which was nice to Face-Time with my husband and helped me not feel too alone.

3) Though it's in the North Cascades, it's outside of the National Park, so you don't need a permit - not even any sort of parking pass. Though the other area you can camp at (Monogram Lake, about a mile off the main trail) you do need a permit for because it must just fall within the boundary.

4) If you're uncomfortable using the pee container provided, you had better bring your own because I promise you that you will not be going down the stairs in the middle of the night. I do show you what it looks like in one of the video clips - I'm a little embarrassed to share this trip's movie, but I'm doing it anyway because I'm a otrovert who "needs no validation from others" bahahahaha. (I'm not actually showing myself peeing in it for heaven's sake if you are thinking that!)

5) At about 2.5 miles there's a good stream, and actually a place you could pitch a small tent - maybe even two. I'm assuming this is outside the boundary and okay to do, though I'm not positive. It could be a late night save though for sure.

It's bigger than it looks here, plus there's a little space on the other side of the trail as well

Walking the Coltswold Way with My Sis

2025-10-04T11:17:00.000-07:00

It's done! The big plan with my sister, Vicki, that I was so afraid I'd jinx by even talking about is now in our rear view. And what a trip it was! Near perfection. I'm so grateful for all the work Vicki put in pre-booking the buses and trains to get us from here to there; I commented several times that we'd surely be dead if we attempted to drive ourselves anywhere. (Have you seen the roundabouts in the UK?!)

But of course "on foot" travel was what we were there for. Vicki came up with this idea when she wanted to go on a hiking adventure with me...without all that backpacking nonsense. The British call this a Walking Holiday and you can book them through several different travel companies.

We used Mickledore, which I was pleased with despite one encounter I'll expound on in my usual Trail Log below. They were more affordable than I expected, though if you have your mind set on luxury accommodations, this is not the holiday for you.

For me, a quaint old B & B with a bed and shower is a huge step up from a sleeping bag and tent - even if the place does have sloping floors, crazy steep/skinny stairs, and low hanging beams you are continually bonking your head on. That all just adds to the rustic charm, right? ;)

Maybe it's a bit mushy or sappy to conclude by saying the best part about this whole escapade was getting to experience it together - but it's true! Having a sister that loves you and that you love back is one of the biggest blessings in life, and one that should never be taken for granted. Happy "family bonding" trails!

Trail Log: (Or a video mash up here if you don't feel like reading.)

Day One: Travel day, because getting across the pond is no easy task. We stayed at "Premier Inn Heathrow Airport Terminal 4" -- and though it took us a good 40 minutes of walking and train riding, you do get there without ever officially leaving the airport - which is the 5th largest in the world!

Day Two: A pre-booked bus (that was completely full, so thank you Vicki) took us to Warwick where we planned on visiting the tomb of our distant relative, Warwick's 13th Earl, Richard Beauchamp. After our dad died, we found a book in his belongings that traced our lineage back here; which is the main reason we chose the Coltswold area. (We also toured The Lord Leycester, which I would highly recommend.)

One of the most elaborate tombs you'll find anywhere

The Lord Leycester felt like a movie set

Day Three: Castle day! Because of above stated ancestry, we claimed Warwick Castle as our own...though as hard as I tried to make jokes about getting a family discount, nobody was amused. It was totally worth the entrance fee though - it's like a Castle Disneyland! Maybe a little over the top touristy; but we ate it up - along with all the treats from our high tea splurge.

Sammie thought booking the tea was worth the extra pounds

Day Four: More public transport to Chipping Campden where we would stay two nights. Ideally you would walk to each night's accommodations, but often this is not possible as many of the towns only have a handful of rooms to offer. Therefore it is common for the travel company to book two nights and then arrange transport back and forth from the trail.

I loved all the old towns, but I think Chipping Campden was my favorite

Day Five: (First hiking day) 10 miles from Chipping Campden to Stanton. A wonderful way to start off our walk - so beautiful. We walked the grounds around Broadway Tower, but didn't do the paid tour.

I already ordered this as a new canvas for my work kitchen

Day Six: 7 miles from Stanton to the White Hart Inn in Winchcombe. Our shortest day, but whenever you have a mindset of "this will be easy" it always turns out harder than you expected. Stopped mid-day for our first ever Scotch Egg...can't say we were big fans.

British food is not our fav

Huh?!? Thankfully we never saw him

Day Seven: 11 miles from Winchcombe to Dowdeswell. Our biggest mile day, though the large section of golf course walking was a good distraction. Not like any golf course you'd find in America, that's for sure! (The video explains.) We had to take a cab into Cheltenham for our night's stay, which was a crazy ride and more proof of why trying to drive ourselves would have probably proved deadly.

Winchcombe...I couldn't get enough of the cute towns!

Day Eight: The best part about using a travel company is they transport all your luggage from place to place for you. Except we spaced and brought our luggage out to the curb while we waited for our cab...can you imagine if it hadn't clicked before he got there and we actually put it all in the car? Thankfully we didn't have to hike these 10 miles with our suitcases in tow, as this was a very hilly day. Met some really nice people on trail, and they even forgave me for convincing them to take a "cheat" to avoid some elevation...which actually resulted in even worse elevation.

Hard to appreciate steepness in a pic; but the railing is so you don't fall to your death ;)

You should follow the signs and not the Alltrails App...well, except for the last mile; which either one will guide you into Birdlip on a very dangerous road. We avoided this by going completely off trail and climbing a dangerous hill instead, ha ha. All around a pick your poison kind of day.

After the "thrill hills" we were glad to have a real hotel this night...another crazy staircase would have done us in! ;)

Day Nine: This was stated online as being a 9 mile day, but I'm pretty sure we didn't even hit 7.5. We got very fixated on finding our midday pint, and ended up going on a bit of a goose chase to get to the golf club (yes we were hiking through yet another course) only to find afterward that we would have basically ran into it if we would have just stayed on trail.

"A pint a day keeps the doctor away" was my motto for this trip

Eventually ending our walk in the quaintest town of Painswick at the adorable Saint Ann's B & B really seemed so perfect...until the proprietor made a rude comment about "right leaning" folks while checking us in. This made my sister feel unwelcome and a bit suspicious - so she checked his reviews and found two recent ones from Jewish people who had been refused lodging. We did bring this to the attention of Mickledore, who took it seriously and if proven true said they would stop using this establishment. I know we are living in extremely divisive times, and each side feels strongly they are standing on the higher ground. I personally am not following politics closely because I just can't - but even if I'm more "left leaning," I'm sure I could never grasp how discrimination like this is justified.

I took a "beautiful church" pic in every single town - very hard to choose just one

Day Ten: The Cotswold Way ends in another 56 miles at the City of Bath, which we really wanted to see but were out of walking time - so we took the train. We spent our first day there pampering ourselves in it's famous ancient waters at the Thermae Bath Spa - an absolute must do if you are going there. (No cameras allowed inside...below is the Roman Baths, which nobody is going in obviously.)

Day Eleven: We had just enough time to tour the Roman Baths then stop for one last tea before catching our bus back to Heathrow where we would fly out the next day. I could write a whole blog entry on my nightmare travel day home of 34 hours - but instead I'll just be leaving some nasty reviews wherever I can about Icelandair.

Our last tea, right on the famous Pulteney Bridge

One of only four bridges in the world to have shops across it's full span on both sides.

Letting Go of Middle Sister

2025-09-04T14:36:00.000-07:00

Heidi has her list of volcanoes she wants to summit. It's her thing. I can't really say it's my thing; but I'm thankful it's hers, or we never would have met. (Story here)

I relate to her desire to have goals - we need them to push us. And getting to put the check mark after an accomplishment is a great feeling. She has supported me in mine, and so I try my best to support her as well. Even though, as I said, I could live without peak bagging.

So I agreed to a trip to summit Middle Sister; BUT if we are driving all the way to Oregon, we have to do some regular hiking too. There are almost endless options in the Three Sisters Wilderness, so it shouldn't be too hard to come up with something, right?

Well, it shouldn't be too hard to pick a flavor at the Baskin-Robbins ice cream counter either, but most the time it is. Therefore, coming up with a plan to see as much as possible within our 6 day time frame was a difficult task.

Our final itinerary will be laid out below, but I'll tell you right here there is one thing we missed...summiting Middle Sister. Is Heidi disappointed? Not really. And honestly, I'm more proud of her for that than any of the goal check marks she's ever made.

Knowing when the drive to accomplish something is pushing you too hard and making you unwise takes a different kind of strength and courage. Ambition can easily turn into obsession, as the classic tale of Captain Ahab in Moby Dick tries to teach us. Letting go of the need to "win" can be hard, but once you're able, it is also very freeing. (My own lesson here) So whatever your goals in life are, I wish you success...but also the wisdom to realize when they are not serving you well. Happy "sometimes you need to let the whale go" trails!

TRAIL LOG:

Day 1) It's almost an 8 hour drive for us to get to the town of Sisters, so this was just a travel day. When we summited South Sister in 2023 we flew into Portland, so we were able to do a little hiking on day 1 that time. This time a spot at The Sisters Creekside Campground was in order. It's walking distance into town, so we made the most of it.

"The Barn" is the place to be in town

Day 2) It's a half hour drive to the Tam McArthur trailhead, which is where you start the Broken Top Loop. Thankfully it's not at the Broken Top TH (which it seems like it should be, doesn't it?) because we heard it is not very drive-able. We left poor Reba right there on the side of the road and hoped for the best because there is no parking lot. It's 4.7 miles and about 2K gain to get to Broken Hand, and then you have to decide to go left or right.

Can you see tiny Heidi about to go around Broken Hand?

Left is the standard way...but right looked shorter. Looking down on the snow field from above it looked really easy, but once there I was very uncomfortable with it.

Taking a slide down would not be good

Maybe I let my ambition get the best of me, but I followed Heidi across anyway. You keep gaining from here - I'm not sure how much, but we were really over it. Then you see No Name Lake and WOW.

So worth it. Heidi had her heart set on camping here, but WHERE? We passed a couple small spots along the ridge, but there was NO WAY we were walking down to the water and then back up. We half considered being bad and trying to camp within the half mile restriction from the lake, but wisdom prevailed and we kept going down until we found a legal spot. It must have been about 7 miles for the day.

Day 3) Most people said doing this loop CCW was best, but because we weren't doing the whole loop and avoiding the burn area, we went CW. As we went down, down, down for the day, all I could think of was how miserable it would be to go up - plus we loved seeing No Name Lake from the top and enjoying the views from then on; so I think I'd advise CW even if you are doing the loop.

Anyway, we passed the Green Lakes, then started climbing again for a bit. We decided to go ahead and take the short detour to see Golden Lake, then continued on to camp at Park Meadow. It might have been close to 9 miles total including our detour, and I don't know the elevation number, but it was pretty minimal.

One of the Green Lakes

Day 4) This day started with Heidi's sleeping bag giving itself a bath in the adjacent stream...you'll need to watch my YouTube video to get that story. After that excitement, we made sure to veer off the loop right after leaving camp and took the Green Lakes trail for 5 miles where we would meet Janet at the Pole Creek intersection.

Janet, who lives near Portland, made this whole plan possible because she had Sunday (this day) and Labor Day off. She's crazy enough to want to drive the 3 hours just for one night - plus then drive us back to our car...but we know hiking addicts ignore drive times. Anyway, we were all trying our best to figure out when to be at said trail intersection and hopefully not make the other party wait too long. (Janet had 2 miles to hike on the Pole Creek Trail) Unbelievably, we all arrived at the EXACT same time! Then it was up another 5 miles to stay at Camp Lake, where we were greeted with a naked man doing yoga on the beach. Never a dull moment! 10 miles for the day, with the just over 1k elevation at the end.

Sloth reunion!

Day 5) Thankfully, we had all discussed before bed what the logistics of going for the summit this day was going to look like, and had all agreed it was too big a whale to conquer in our time frame. People have summited from this lake (instead of the more common route you can find on Alltrails) but we learned from our previous trip together just how much our navigational skills are lacking -- it really does add on A LOT of time. Instead we had a leisurely morning, and then did an up and back to Chambers Lakes.

We were a bit shocked as we looked at the trail leading up there...I know we were all seriously considering backing out...but many people do it WITH FULL PACKS; so we didn't want to be babies.

We gotta go up that?!

Ugh though! Not fun. But the rest of the 2 mile up and back was quite nice, and then it was pack up the stuff and head the 7 miles back to Janet's car. Nine miles total for the day, and then a whole lot of driving to pick up Reba (she was so dirty and not happy - but thankfully still there with no flat!) and then go to Janet's for the night.

There were several stream crossings

Day 6) Drive the 4 hours home. There is no way I could have driven 8 hours after a full day of hiking - so THANK YOU JANET!!

Here's to not doing Middle Sister!!

A High Note Pivot

2025-08-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

The art of the pivot is something I am embracing more and more in my life. Instead of seeing the situation that is "not going as planned" as a bad thing, I try to see it as an opportunity for a new plan - possibly even a better plan.

This is a big help in dealing with disappointments; because let's face it, "not going as planned" happens quite frequently. And of course if we are talking about hiking, the factor that is most likely to wreck any plan is weather.

And so it was last weekend, when our aspirations of seeing Garibaldi Lake went belly up after the forecast went from "maybe it will be okay" to "hell no." It can be hard to make the pivot when you've struggled and invested in getting competitive permits and also payed for a place to stay in the incredibly overpriced tourist town of Whistler BC.

In fact, because the Whistler RV Park (the only place we could afford) does not offer any sort of refund for your first night's stay, our pivot was going to have to include still going there. There has to be a good day hike close by that would still make the trip to Canada worth it, right?

Was there ever! Yes, it involved spending even more money because it was right in Whistler and required a lift ticket...but "when in Rome" as they say.

Thankfully the forecast for Sunday looked far better than Friday/Saturday (when we had our defunct permit) so we were hopeful to maybe stay dry and get to see the views instead of just clouds.

Heidi taking pics of clouds. Wah wah.

The Cloudraker Sky Bridge was super cool though

And not at all scary, IMO

Okay, sometimes there's no avoiding disappointment; though honestly it was very minimal. The mountains played peek-a-boo all day, and it was exciting to have them reveal themselves slowly...kind of like a burlesque show where you are wondering if a nipple is going to finally pop out.

Sadly, we never got the full monty from most the peaks, but it was still an extremely beautiful day. I may even argue that Cheakamus Lake is as vibrant a blue as Garibaldi - but I do hope that someday I'll know for sure. My "things to know" list about the High Note Trail is below if you're thinking about making the comparison yourself. Happy "only slightly disappointing" trails!

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HIGH NOTE:

1) As I mentioned, you need the $75 Summer Alpine Experience Pass. There is no cheaper option; but the good news is this gets you unlimited access to all the lifts, including the Peak to Peak. You can buy it online, but you still need to pick up the ticket right there at the Whistler Gondola, so I'm not sure if it saves you that much time. (Though there is a "paid in advance" window, so it might. For us it didn't, as the line was short for any of the windows.)

Nothing says Whistler like this guy!

2) You need to take the gondola up 20 minutes to the Roundhouse Lodge, and then hike down a bit to the other lift which takes you to the tippy top. The second lift does not open though until 11 am, so we had some time to kill.

Second lift (Peak Express) is short, but kind of thrilling! No kids under a certain height though

We decided to take the Peak to Peak over to Blackcomb Mountain and do the short one mile Alpine Walk Trail. I'm glad we did, because we would have been too pooped if we waited to do it until after doing the High Note. And if I was going to pay $75, you know I HAD to do the Peak to Peak Gondola! It was really amazing and Sammie loved the glass bottom. (See video of the day on my YouTube.)

3) The High Note Hike is stated as 6.4 miles with 2.5 K in elevation. There are shorter or longer variations you can do though, like the "Half Note" or the "Musical Bumps"

4) There is a little section (after you pass the turn off for the shorter Half Note) I had read about that sounded sketchy, and it probably was at some point. But now it has "reinforcements" and isn't scary at all.

5) There is a small section near the end where AllTrails wants to take you where you shouldn't be going. There's a big sign at that intersection that is trying to make sure you don't take this stupid detour...we ignored it of course. ;) We made it down okay, but it was dumb. Trust the sign.

Smile! This is marmot central...we must have seen at least 20

6) You know I love ending a hike at a bar, and the Umbrella Bar at the Roundhouse Lodge did not disappoint! (Except for the prices...ugh) There were signs saying it closed at 4:45 pm, but thankfully we walked up there to check it out anyway and found it's open later on the weekends.

7) You should stop to check out Brandywine Falls which is right off the Hwy near Whistler. It's less than a mile round trip, but most importantly it's FREE PARKING! A miracle! ;)

It's Okay Being a Medium Dog

2025-07-31T15:53:00.000-07:00

My friend, Heidi, once owned a shirt that said, "If you can't run with the big dogs, then stay on the porch!" She has been hiking and backpacking since childhood, and she's one of the most bad ass people I know. So when I suggested we switch her Tanks Lake trip plans to the extended Alpine Lakes High Route, she of course didn't blink an eye.

It seemed a logical thing to do. We had three days - so instead of gaining all that difficult elevation and then turning around and going back, why not do the loop and enjoy the high country while we were already up there? We had two cars, so leaving one at each trailhead meant cutting out the three miles of road walking required. In total we would only be adding a couple extra miles to the itinerary while gaining more than twice the amount of scenery.

The trip reports for this loop made it sound SO amazing...but there were also a few concerning warnings like, "straight up going to kill somebody." Eek. Though maybe those are just namby-pamby "little dogs" yipping. Stay on the porch you babies! ;)

So I turned to my favorite website of NWhikers.net to ask the opinion from the true Big Dogs. The information they gave confirmed that indeed the Alpine Lakes High Route was over my pay grade. I hated wimping out on Heidi after I got her all pumped up for this amazing trail; but I know and accept I'm a medium dog and I don't really aspire to enter the hiker big leagues. Plus Janet was coming along, and though she is a stronger hiker than I am, I was pretty sure several miles of navigating through talus and "brush-covered ledges with cliffs above and below" was going to be out of her comfort zone too.

Instead we thought we'd try our hand at the smaller "easier" loop suggested by the folks on NW hiker. We could leave our stuff at Tanks and go around the back side up to La Bohn and then down the waterfall and back up again to Tanks. Except after taking a look at that waterfall as we made our original way up to Tanks, we knew that was a hard no.

Though, what would it hurt to see if we could make it to La Bohn? It was only a couple of miles after all. Medium Dogs should at least be able to do that.

The above picture of Williams Lake is where we waved the white flag. With no real trail to follow and some talus to get over, it took us two hours to go a mile. Go all the way to La Bohn?! HA!!! Can you imagine if we tried to do the full Alpine Lakes High Route with it's 8 mile section of nothing but difficult route finding, talus fields AND 3k of elevation gain? Holy shit, we'd probably still be up there!

The part of me that really wants to prove it's bad-ass-ness sure got put in it's place on this trip. And that is well and good, because having fun (along with the benefit of not dying!) is much better. You'll find our itinerary for an enjoyable 3 day trip (actually it was 4 days in my case) for anyone else in the medium dog category. Happy "know your limits" trails!

Sammie wanted to play Lion King ;)

TRAIL LOG:

Day 1) Because I had Saturday off but both Heidi and Janet didn't, I decided to start without them. They would just meet me at my campsite in the morning which was at about 5 miles in.

It took me only two and a half hours to hike it, so I assumed they would do it in just 2. Of course there is zero cell service, but I knew they expected to be starting at 7 am, so I planned to be ready and waiting for them by 9 am.

Day 2) At 9:45 am, there was still no Heidi and Janet, so I assumed there was a problem. I forced myself not to imagine the "they were killed in a car accident" type of situation but a more reasonable "the alarm clock didn't go off" type of situation...but y'know, sometimes it lingers in the back of the head. But whatever the problem was, it wasn't going to help if I just sat there. So I came up with this solution:

I figured they would catch me, because I'm so much slower; so when I made it the 3 miles to Jade Lake with still no sign of them, I began to worry a little. But this is quite a climb of about 2.5k, so they were doing it just as slow as me. In fact, they made it to my campsite just minutes after I left and were not far behind me the whole time!

This gal recognized Sammie! So I made her take a pic to prove I have a fan ;)

Fortunately they knew I was waiting for them at Jade because these nice guys let me use their Garmin to send a message. I know, I know, I just need to bite the bullet and buy one.

Recruiting more Sammie fans, haha. Thanks guys!!

The next mile is a nice break with not much gain and pretty meadows, and then you get to the rock scramble. This turned out to be not as bad as I was expecting, though the hardest part is figuring out the best route because there are many cairns guiding you in different directions. We had a couple young guys coming down advise us to just "go up the gut" which I still have no idea what that means. (Must be a Big Dog term ;)

When we made it to Tank Lakes I was pretty beat, but Heidi and Janet were extra beat because of their extra miles and very early start. Even so, Janet had the energy to push up the hill on the far side of the lake because she was sure there had to be a good spot up there. Heidi and I were groaning, but we obeyed and followed her up and found she was right. This is about a 12 mile day with 4k if you do it one shot. For me it was only 7, so splitting it up is really nice.

Day 3) We slept in and didn't get going on our day pack outing until 9 am. I don't think any of us were super gung-ho about getting to La Bohn, but we were curious about trying. The challenge of route finding was actually really fun until we hit the serious talus...then it was like "this sucks."

Making our way back was WAY faster, so we decided to keep going on the Alpine High Route (it goes the opposite direction from the intersection to Tank) and just go as far as felt comfortable.

Right around Iron Cap Gap felt good enough - maybe a mile? We got back to camp to have plenty of leisure time cooling off by the lake (which we had to ourselves!) and enjoying a cocktail before making dinner...it was so nice to be relaxing and not scrambling over rocks and wondering if we were going to die.

After dinner we felt like exploring more, so we followed the trails that meander out and about. As we were looking at our maps and trying to figure out what lake we were looking down at, we noticed a "Tank Lake" that was up further and behind us. Hummm...this must be what makes it "Tank Lakes" instead of just "Tank Lake." Should we try and find it?

It was actually not that hard, but dang, the mossies up there were super excited we showed up. So after a short photo shoot, we headed back. In total we probably didn't even hit the 5 mile mark, but what a fun day we had.

Day 4) I taped my knees before we even started because I knew the hammering downhill was going to be murder on them. But of course it was much faster than going up, mostly because we took a different route and eliminated almost half of the rock scramble. We didn't even realize it until I was taking a video of Glacier Peak and saw the rocks we came up were to the right of us. I tried to take videos from then on of the places which would lead you to the easier route, but it really is hard to see unless you are going down.

AllTrails will get you there, but to the right is easier

But you can watch them on my YouTube if you think it might be helpful. The last five miles felt like forever as we knew they would, but the promise of a burger and beer at The Whistling Post propelled us forward at lightning speed. Except, no burger to be found there; which is probably for the best because I'm trying to eat better due to a bout with diverticulitis. Sucks getting old.

It still tasted good!

Side note: my friends had the rest of the week off, so while I headed home they were doing the long drive around to the Marmot/Jade/Dip Top hike. But when they went to start the next day, Heidi realized she left her boots in the parking lot at this hike's trailhead. (East Fork Foss/Necklace Valley is where you start to get to Tank Lakes) They were brand new, so if by chance someone finds them, please leave a comment! (UPDATE: shoes have been returned, thanks to the cutest hiker couple responding to my plea on my other favorite site of WTA. The hiking community is the best!)

They still made it happen, just a later start than expected

Marmot and Jade Lake with Sara

2025-07-15T16:04:00.000-07:00

"Wow, I'll be able to revisit some of the PCT's section J on this hike," was what I was thinking when I started reading up on this trail we decided on. "I wonder if I'll remember it?" I pondered.

I had never met Sara, but I have had nothing but good luck making friends from Facebook hiking groups. She contacted me saying she would be visiting Seattle, and would I be interested in a backpacking trip. "Does the Pope wear a funny hat?" is what I always think when someone asks me that question, but I just told her yes.

We settled on going to Jade Lake for a few reasons, but mainly because we could meet at the trailhead after I got off work Friday and get a jump on the miles by going in to camp at Hyas Lake. It's only a couple easy miles, and it meant we could get an early start on the next day's more difficult numbers.

It also made sense for us to meet in the nearest town of Roslyn and leave one of our cars. It's an extra hour to the trailhead from there, most of it on a forest road, and I warned her that I really wasn't sure if Reba was up to the task; being she is still taped together. (You'd have to read about my California road trip to understand what that's all about.)

So we agreed on the Coal Mines Trailhead that was near town to leave my car at, since it seemed an easy, legal and safe place to do so. It was so strange that my GPS navigation could absolutely not get me there; but thankfully I was able to call Sara and we changed it to the nearby Safeway. (Turns out you can leave a car there as long as you talk to customer service. I would have just chosen to meet there in the first place had I known.)

I've said before that I have a hard time saying "things happen for a reason" even though I do hang on to that belief. Meeting Twig was one of those crazy coincidences that felt like fate, and wouldn't you know, she contacted me letting me know she was doing the PCT (again, as a SOBO) and somehow it all worked out for me to drop off her resupply because I'd be driving right past the place she wanted to pick it up at.

So when Sara and I got to the PCT intersection of our trail on Saturday (all 30 feet of it, haha...not so much reminiscing happening there) I thought it would be fun to leave Twig a "twig a gram" - though unfortunately it was already trampled upon by Sunday. I should have known it could never last with the amount of hikers going through there.

At least I got a picture of it

I know I'm not giving any helpful info about the hike, I'll do that below as always, but I wanted to wrap this part up saying it was a good thing we were parked at Safeway. Exhausted and famished, we headed there to pick up my car on Sunday and noticed a bunch of smoke VERY nearby. I was telling Sara how I am now always paranoid of finding Reba with a flat (after it happened twice last year! Here and here if you want those stories) but as we got closer I joked that maybe this time she was actually on fire!

But no, the fire was probably about a quarter mile away on I-90, which was just one left turn out of the Safeway parking lot. We opted to hold our bladders and get the hell out of dodge - barely making it past the flames before the fire engines turned up. (It did get contained after burning about 5 acres, thanks to all the amazing people who labor so hard doing that invaluable work.)

Fate? Providence? Just coincidence? We will never know for sure. But I'll continue to hold on to the hope there will be answers on the other side. (My spiritual blog is here if you are interested, and video of hike is here.) Happy "serendipitous" trails!

TRAIL LOG:

Day 1: Finding parking at 6:30 pm on a Friday was not too difficult, though there were plenty of cars in the 3 (I think?) lots. Many different hiking options here, so thankfully not everyone is going to the same place. I had read that any car could make it, but we did pass someone who was turning around at a place where a considerable amount of water was crossing the road. Like I already mentioned above, we only had to hike a couple miles where we set up at the first site we came to. FYI, the best campsite is the third one (I think? Right next to the sign for the toilet) and the largest ones are about 3 miles in, right before you start to go up.

Hyas Lake from our campsite

Day 2) It was about a mile from our camp before the trail started gaining elevation, and then it gains about 1K in the couple miles to the intersection with the PCT. I was surprised to see people using a couple stealth spots on way which looked not so great; but Sara said she heard people hiking in ALL night, so I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. After revisiting the PCT for two minutes we made our turn onto the Marmot Lake Trail. It's easy breezy for the next 2 miles; I was surprised to even loose quite a few feet in elevation, which I knew we'd pay for on the way out.

There's a really nice water source before you start gaining again, which we took full advantage of. Then it's another nearly 2 miles of steady up to Marmot, but it's very gradual. We got there around 1 pm and found a great spot. We left for Jade around 4 pm and it took us almost 2 hours to get there. It's about a 700 ft gain, but it's all in the rock scramble. It reminded me a lot of my last hike, except it wasn't as bad. Still didn't love it though. But Jade was worth it.

Fun times climbing rocks

Worth it

The mile back was much faster of course. I am pretty sure every single site was taken by then. Maybe not the first one which is before you get to the lake as you are coming in. It's away from all the others, so if you are coming in late on a weekend and that one is empty, I'd take it if I were you. Anyway, around 9 miles total with about 3k of gain.

Day 3) I was kind of annoyed I packed my own DIY wag bags (because I had read you needed them) when I saw there are toilets at all 3 of the lakes. But on this morning I figured out why...waiting your turn for the toilet could be disastrous. I mean when the coffee hits, it hits everyone. Plus the toilet (box with no sides) is right next to a bog; so the mosquitoes, which were bad enough everywhere else, were "you can't breath without sucking in a mouthful" bad. Good luck pooping in that situation! (I was desperate enough to make it happen, but not recommended!)

Overall we were bit up pretty bad, even after we used a whole can of deet! There is a blood sacrifice required for this experience in July, but I honestly didn't really notice most the bites until I got home. The beauty really is an amazing distraction from the pain.

See me in the corner, not noticing I am being eaten alive

We hiked the 9-ish miles out with that 900 foot of gain we lost the day before, dripping sweat the whole way. It must of been approaching 90 degrees, so we were very grateful to be heading out instead of in. I know most people want to go all the way to Dip Top Gap on this hike, but we were both just fine skipping it. I'm very thankful to Sara for reaching out, and for rolling with all the punches. My lucky streak with Facebook friendships continues!

SHHHH...It's a Secret! Sort of?

2025-07-09T16:30:00.000-07:00

"Can I ask you ladies how you found this place?" was the question asked us by a couple young men as we were half way up the secret trail.

Heidi lit up because now she could tell her story: "About 30 years ago, an old friend told me of a beautiful area that was his secret place. I asked, 'How do I find it?' Looking into his piercing ice blue eyes, he said 'I won't tell you, you'll have to find it yourself!' He called the area the 'Poor Man's Enchantments' and he would only tell me I needed to start on the Pinnacle Lake trail. I kept coming back and rooting around until I finally figured out where to go, and now all these years later I wanted to come back."

Impressed, the guys said they had only found it because they saw all these lakes on Google Maps and figured there must be a way to get to them.

Then I answered, "I found it on AllTrails under Herman's Peak." Wah, wah...way to spoil the fun, KellBell!

It's sad we have so few secrets or mysteries anymore. All the information all the time makes Jack a dull boy. Sorry that I am giving all the info out too; but if the only thing you need to do is search "bathtub lakes" on an app and it pops up complete with navigational assistance, the cat is already out of the bag, isn't it?

So instead of trying to keep the "Poor Man's Enchantments" a secret, I'll instead give you a few reasons why you don't want to go there, which you'll find below on my usual "things to know" list. There is also a video mash up on YouTube. Happy "secret's out" trails!

Thing to Know about Bathtub Lakes:

1) The half hour drive up the forest road is one of the worst I've ever been on, if not the worst. If you don't have a high clearance vehicle, don't even think about it. And expect to get scratches along your car's sides.

2) Even with navigational assistance, you are making your own way up. And when I say up, I mean literally climbing rocks.

3) Did I mention rocks? Like a lot of them? And the kind that are easy to dislodge and have come down on anyone who is below you?

4) I know I'm slow, but this is SLOW territory. It may only be 7 miles, but we were on the trail for 9 and a half hours! Alltrails has us moving for only 7 of them, but I swear we barely took a break. I think the majority of our "not moving" time was just staring at the "trail" and trying to figure out the best way to maneuver over it.

Sammie thinks we did a perfect sloth speed ;)

5) What goes up must come down, and lowering myself over and over again down the very big rocks and then finally roots absolutely destroyed me. Seriously the most sore I've been in years.

6) If you still want to do it, there is still snow in "Iodine Gulch." You'll want to veer to the right of it...and when I say veer I mean claw/scramble.

If you've made it to here, you're golden! Until it's time to go down, that is!

Desolation Reclamation

2025-07-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

Desolation Peak is one of the most legendary hikes in the Pacific Northwest, which is why it was one of the first ones I was determined to get under my belt. When I stopped at the ranger station 12 years ago to pick up my permit he asked me, "Are you sure you're going to make it?" Well of course I was going to make it! He clearly does not appreciate the strength of my will!

"Desolation Decimation" tells the story of how I did not make it. Though, I waved the white flag because of rain, not because I pooped out. I've been certain all these years I would have proven that ranger wrong had the weather cooperated. Now that I've actually done it, I'm not so sure.

Elevation gain is something I've worked so hard over the years to wrap my head around. I'm pretty sure it's a deep need to stay in denial that keeps me from fully comprehending beforehand the sheer agony of gaining 4,534 feet in 4.5 miles. My brain can't let me grasp it, or I'd never attempt it.

I'm grateful. Sometimes denial is our friend. And even though I cursed in the air and almost started crying when I saw the trail continuing to go up when I thought I'd made it, I'm of course so pleased to have finally done it. And I know my friends are too - though they both agreed it's one of the hardest hikes they've done.

Below is the specific deets for anyone wanting to cross this off the list themselves (or those who are just entertained by my suffering, haha) and I'll end with my blessing of happy "redemption" trails!

And new Sammie made it too! Her first trip! Old Sammy is hopefully enjoying his California life

Trail Log:

Day 1) We had to make arrangements with the Marblemount Ranger Station to have them hold our permit past their usual "pick it up by 11am or you lose it" time because we wouldn't get there until after noon. It would have been really nice to start our hike earlier, but we were taking the Ross Lake boat taxi to get to the trailhead and the only time available was 2:20. They also rent boats - the little kind you can drive without a boaters license - and the resort lady had convinced me over the phone that we should just drive ourselves so we didn't have to worry about a time table. And we almost did...but ultimately none of us felt comfortable with it. It honestly probably would have taken us two hours because we would have been nervous and those boats can only go so fast. We opted to just go late - even a 3 pm start meant we should make the sunset in time. And we would have made the sunset, except our boat driver was a half hour late due to an emergency on the lake (tipped boat he needed to assist - no injures) but Alec pinned it for us, so we still were able to start hiking at 3:15.

Hold on Sammie!

There is an unreliable water source about a mile before camp, and I opted to bank on it being there and only brought two liters with me. Thank God it was still running, because two liters is what you need just to make it to said water source. On a hot day like we had, and if you are camping like we were, you would need something like 6 liters at least. If you can carry that kind of weight, good for you, but I certainly can't!

Getting that water was the only time we stopped until we got to camp, and it was only long enough to fill our bottles and have a quick snack. That is a major factor in why we were so destroyed - that and the heat.

Janet is behind me because Janet is DONE...but she made it happen like I knew she would

Doing 2 more miles after FINALLY finishing those 10 last grueling switchbacks to camp was unthinkable...but it was either that or get up SUPER early and do them in the morning. Our boat was coming to get us at 1:45, and I of course just had to change our pickup last minute to the Lightning Creek location and add 3 more miles to our last day.

So as soon as those tents were up, we grabbed our dinner and headlamps and started again. It's only a mile to the lookout, and we don't have our heavy packs...how hard can it be? Denial is our friend.

Hurry!! It's going down fast!

We were told to say hi to Jim the lookout guy, but he was nowhere to be found. I guess firewatchers need a break every once in awhile; but does he have to hike out every time? Anyway, it was kind of nice having the whole mountain to ourselves. We ate our dinners and took our pictures and finally relaxed for a few minutes. This is when it's worth all the pain. 6 miles for the day with that unrelenting 4.5K gain.

Heidi is faster than us and made it in time for the last ray

Going down was SO much easier!!

Day 2) We were all SO glad to not be setting our alarms and having a leisurely morning. From camp to the intersection with East Bank took us just two and half hours, and from there it was easy breezy to the Lightning Creek Stock camp in about another hour and a half. We were specifically told to pass the Lightning Creek boat ramp and head to this beach, but do they just pull right onto shore here?

Yep, that's exactly what they do, and they might even come early if they are ahead of schedule! (They will come back at your appointed time, so don't worry - but get there early if you can! We were thrilled to not have to wait as long as expected.) And don't forget, you still have that mile back to the parking lot after you get off the boat, and no matter how many times you've done it before, it will always feel endless. Close to 9 miles for the day with probably around 600 feet gain, mostly just from that last mile back to the car. Video mash-up of trip can be found on my YouTube.

My favorite burger and beer stop!