Thursday, October 20, 2016

What a fine, crazy hike

Eleven of the SIXTEEN who showed up this morning
When I arrived at the Senior Center up on a rainy, dark day for our Thursday hike, I sure didn't expect to see a crowd. One by one, Senior Trailblazers showed up on a day that was not only rainy, but was expected to stay that way for hours. As some of the others were getting ready, I captured this picture, with Al, Rich, Barb, Jim, and me missing. Does it look rainy? it was!
Misty forest
We decided to park at the North Chuckanut trailhead and hike up to Pine and Cedar Lakes. When Al suggested that we might take a short side trip up to Raptor Ridge, I thought to myself that it would add a little distance, but after all, we were out to get exercise, so why not? As we hiked, the rain did come and go, and some of us were even willing to take our raincoats off to stay a little bit cooler.
Raptor Ridge when we arrived
By the time we got to Raptor Ridge, to our surprise the rain had pretty much stopped, and the clouds parted to give us the tiniest bit of a view!
Looking out at the view from the ridge
Although it came and went, for a brief moment we even had sunshine illuminate the ridge, but it was very short-lived. No matter, it wasn't raining, it wasn't really cold, and we had all our friends to visit with. We headed from here to Pine Lake for a lunch stop. We saw this pretty fungi (or as one hiker said, a fun guy.)
Some pretty fungi
We finally made our way to Pine Lake for lunch right around noon. By this time, the rain had let up pretty much, and as we sat down to enjoy ourselves, we got a real treat: sunshine!
Pine Lake
The sun came out to light up the trees and the lake as we sat down on the soggy ground for a nice repast. We'd hike more than five miles and some of us were more than ready for lunch,
Making ourselves comfortable
Finally we decided it was time to start our return journey and leave our wonderful surroundings for another day. We had traveled over this boardwalk to get to our lunch spot, and now it was time to navigate these slippery boards again.
Proceed with caution
Since these boards were wet, we had to carefully pick our way back to the trail so we could return. Fortunately everybody was able to stay dry as we began the journey back to the cars. We decided to go straight back with no side trips, since we knew we would cover more than ten miles and more than 2,000 feet anyway.
Yellow leaves and the trail
Finally we got back to the cars, and we realized that we had been given a wonderful day with plenty of exercise, and a mostly dry afternoon. Everybody was feeling pretty good, and as we drove back to the Senior Center, guess what? It began to rain again! Somebody up there likes us, that's what we decided. Another wonderful day with some of the best people! What's not to like?
:-)

20 comments:

  1. wow, you die-hards got a really nice return for your investment! :)

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  2. Do you ever have a bunch of dedicated hikers out there! I'm amazed; hikers here are usually sissies when it's raining. That misty forest picture is stunning.

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  3. You seem to have incredible luck on your hikes when it comes to rAIN.

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  4. The tree trunks photo is my favourite but they are all gorgeous.

    Love that name Chuckanut. There are such great names there, Jan.

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  5. So glad the weather wasn't awful. It rained very hard here most of the morning. We did not get a walk in today, so I hope to get out tomorrow.

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  6. You are quite the troopers (literally), and I'm glad it paid off this time!

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  7. Oh my gosh! What an intrepid bunch you are! I'm glad the rain wasn't horrible and you did get a lovely view.

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  8. Altho the rain sounds and looks wonderful to me right now....I enjoyed the sunshine lunch you all had.

    What an incredible, beautiful journey you seniors had...glad you took us along.

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  9. Yup, someone up there must like you folks a lot. What a splendid day.

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  10. Raptor Ridge ... clearly, it was worth the trip!

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  11. I am always amazed at your determination and how you all refuse to let a little? rain spoil your day. Yes, someone up there does like you and enjoys rewarding your perseverance.

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  12. Thanks for sharing these beautiful photos! The terrain you traverse looks a little tricky in spots. As much as I enjoy a challenging hike, sometimes my knee prevents me from navigating over uneven terrain. So happy for you that this brings you such great joy!

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  13. Oh, how perfectly wonderful! And so very beautiful too. If I were closer, I'd love to go hiking with you and your friends.

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  14. Oh, how perfectly wonderful! And so very beautiful too. If I were closer, I'd love to go hiking with you and your friends.

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  15. Sounds like a good hike. Love the "fun guy"! I can't help but wonder how your new rain gear held up?

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  16. You and your friends were well prepared for rain! I'm glad the day turned out partially dry though. Such beautiful scenery - our PNW is sure a special place.

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  17. You had a good hike! I hope your new raincoat worked well to keep you dry. Such beautiful scenery:)

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  18. You are indeed intrepid hikers. I like the views from up high. Today, we hiked on snow covered and slightly icy trails - I was more comfortable climbing than going down in elevation because I didn't want my feet to slip out from underneath me. Sounds like you're still getting plenty of rain!

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  19. Looks to me like it was raining hard in that first photo. I am surprised to see you have no little bit of snow yet.. The weather sure picked up for you and great to see you DJan in posts over the summer. Great hike and I do like that boardwalk....water on both sides I presume. lol

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