Two Dollar/Rock Trail loop

The first snow we saw today

Thirteen Senior Trailblazers went on the hike today, with some rain and snow mix coming down as we got to the Two Dollar trailhead. The weather forecast said that we would have some early showers, with possible sunbreaks later in the afternoon. I took this picture (above) because I thought it might be the only snow we'd see on our hike today.

Our trail with snow-covered ferns

Nope. It was just the first snow we saw. Although the temperature was above freezing (not by much, but still), it is obvious that it had snowed here recently, more than we experienced at sea level. We were not cold as we hiked along, mostly moving upward, and the still air allowed me to shed my coat and gloves quite soon.

Soon the trail had fresh snow, too

By the time we had traversed both the Two Dollar trail and the Lost Lake trail (which takes us to the Rock trail), the snow had increased, as  you can see here, making for a beautiful walk in the forest. As many times as I've seen this spot, this was one of the prettiest. The lack of wind meant that the snow-laden trees looked decorated for the season.

Al ascending the Rock trail steps

I'm not sure exactly how many steps there are on the Rock trail, but it is more than a hundred like these. (I've tried to count them but never get the same number twice.) I like to walk behind Al on these upward trajectories, since he goes slow and steady. Probably half of the group was ahead of us already, but Al knows how to pace himself, so I take advantage of staying close by.

Kirk and hikers

I stopped to take a picture of the others who were following us, hoping to capture the beautiful environment. We had put our gloves and hats back on, since the temperature fell as we gained elevation and the snow got thicker. There was probably no more than an inch or two, but it made for lovely scenery as we climbed to our lunch spot at Gates Overlook.

Bellingham from Gates Overlook

When we got to the top of today's hike at Gates Overlook, we saw low clouds over Bellingham, with a bright spot through the fog, where the sun was shining, but not where we were. Not long after we sat down for a rather brief lunch break, it began to snow lightly. We had reached the highest point, and then the task was to finish the loop by hiking down the road to the trail leading us to Fragrance Lake, which would then allow us to access the Two Dollar trail for our return.

Fragrance Lake reflections

As we made our way back to the cars, we saw some peeks of sun, and the exertion of moving meant that we warmed up considerably. Plus, we were losing altitude and the snow was disappearing. Before long, we had to stop and remove clothing again.

The bay from the Two Dollar trail

Soon we could see more blue sky and the islands in the bay, which were obscured on our way up the trail. We were almost back down to the cars at this point, the snow gone and a fine 8.5–9.5 miles of hiking under our belts for the day, and around 2,100 feet of elevation up and down. (The discrepancy in the length is due to inconsistent readings on various devices.)

It was a wonderful day, and I'm so glad I went, even though the forecast wasn't all that promising. You just never know and have to take a chance. Now I can enjoy a wee bit of wine without any guilt.
:-)