Longest and hottest hike of the year

Fred, Rita, Diane, Mel, Steve, Carol, Al

There are two people who were on today's hike (to what is whimsically called the Olsen Creek/Ogallala Loop) who are not in this picture. I was behind the camera, and Mike was coming up the trail after I asked him to please see if he could find my squirrel bar, which I inadvertently left by the side of the trail after I divested myself of my vest.

Rita and Diane entering the forest

This hike starts on some logging roads and finally turns off into the forest at a sign that says, "Ogallala 1,420 miles" which was apparently somebody's idea to mark the distance from there to his home in Nebraska. We use that sign as the place where we leave the logging road and turn into the dense forest on an infrequently used trail. We continue on this trail until we get to yet another seldom used trail on the south side of Stewart Mountain.

Stopping to rest before starting the final push to the top

It was downright hot today. We are simply not used to heat at this time of year in the Pacific Northwest. We steadily climbed upwards on this sketchy trail, and I must say that I did my share of complaining about the heat. Stinging sweat poured into my eyes and my ability to stay cheerful began to wane. There were beautiful trillium flowers all perky in the sunshine, and I did take a picture now and then, even as I grumbled about the heat.

Trillium turning pink with a wild bleeding heart behind

We continued to climb, knowing that eventually we would get to the top of the mountain and, hopefully on a beautiful day like this, have a great view. And sure enough, we did. My stomach was growling and I was really ready for a rest, but I couldn't help but admire our beautiful mountains from the top of Stewart Mountain.

Mt. Baker on the left, Twin Sisters on the right

Because there were high clouds making the view of the mountains not quite as spectacular as they could have been, these two pictures cannot quite tell you how much we enjoyed the view. But then we stopped for lunch, and I was more than ready to stop. We found a nice place in the shade to rest and replenish, and Carol asked if she could take a picture of me (I was sitting with Rita), so here you go.

Me and Rita, sitting on our blow-up seats and enjoying the view

By the time we started our return trip, I was just a tiniest bit worried that I might not be able to make it, I was that tired. But what do you do when you're already out there? You just suck it up and go on. By the time we returned to our cars, we had traveled ELEVEN MILES in the heat, and climbed and descended somewhere around 2,500 feet, or a half a mile of elevation.

Now that I have had a shower to wash off all that salt and sweat, am halfway through my glass of wine, and almost finished with my post, I'm feeling pretty good. Relatively speaking, that is. I'm not willing to get out of my chair, but Rita? She's already donned her dancing shoes after a quick shower. I'm not kidding: she's going dancing! Do I belong to a cool group of seniors, or what?
:-)