A fine substitute hike

Victoria, Ellen, Kirk, Peggy, Al, Chris (waiting for Rich and Carol)

Ten intrepid Senior Trailblazers met today for our usual Thursday hike, although it rained most of the night and more rain was predicted for the day, especially in the mountains. What to do? Our scheduled hike would take us far south to walk in the rain, so after some discussion we decided to drive up the Mt. Baker Highway to the Excelsior Pass trailhead, even if it would be raining. This is the harder way to get to the pass, going ever upward on a wooded trail, but the easier way is not accessible because the road is closed.

Mist and the occasional sun break

The forest is really lovely, especially when it's glistening with raindrops, and since we are all hardy Pacific Northwesterners, we walked in light rain up the trail and didn't mind a bit. Plus it never really poured, just a light rain now and then.

Mushrooms, not flowers

I saw these pretty mushrooms that must have sprouted with the rain. I wonder what kind they are. We saw others, but these were the most interesting. Each "flower" is about the size of a small serving plate.

Our lunch spot

Finally, we broke out of the trees and by this time the rain had lessened considerably. We sat down to enjoy a nice lunch and speculate about going the rest of the way to the pass, but since there would be no view, we decided this would do just fine.

Ellen and Victoria looking out into the mist

Normally, we would be able to see Mt. Baker and it would have been very rewarding to climb the half-mile to the actual pass. Today, not so much. By this time, we had climbed almost four miles and more than 3,200 feet (1,000 meters) and were quite ready to stop.

Carol took this picture of me

I asked for a photo of me with our lovely non-view, and Carol was quite willing. I'm wearing my Snoqualmie Sombrero — my third rain hat this year and hopefully I won't be losing this one any time soon. And then after a nice lunch, it was time to turn around and head back down all that elevation.

Darth Vader—I mean Kirk—Ellen, Al

My knees did pretty well on the downhill, but I was careful to use my trekking poles to take much of the weight as I lowered myself down steep sections. Although we are still wearing our rain gear in this picture, it was mostly to keep ourselves warm after having stopped for lunch; it took awhile to warm up going downhill, but we finally did.

Moss and fern garden by Mother Nature

I saw Carol stop to take a picture of this beautiful scene on the side of the trail, so I did, too. It really does look like a master gardener decided how to arrange it so it would be perfect, doesn't it?

Our return to the cars

And finally we were all warm enough and dry enough to remove our rain gear as we made our way back down the trail. Although we had little view, it was truly a wonderful day, spent in company I always enjoy, and in a beautiful place. And it was relatively dry, too. Now that I am home and sitting in my favorite chair, I realize that my knees got a real workout but considering what they just did, they are going to be just fine!
:-)