All at sixes and sevens

Chris, Mike, Dianne, Mel, Kirk (and me behind the camera)

Thirteen Senior Trailblazers showed up at the Senior Center to decide where to go today. We were originally scheduled to take the Mt. Baker Highway to the the Hannegan Pass trailhead, but the weather had turned rainy and cool overnight. After much confusion, we decided to break into two groups, one to go to the original destination, and the rest of us on a local hike, the Chanterelle trail and beyond. There's the six of us; the other group had seven, which is reflected in the title of this post. It is also an old phrase meaning "disarray and confusion," so it was a perfect lead-in.

Viewpoint at the top of the Chanterelle trail

We hiked up two-and-a-half miles to this overlook, and decided to go on up higher, which we've done many times before. Unfortunately for us, the side trails we usually take are blocked off, since the Forest Service is renovating the trail and eventually making a loop hike. We had to walk on the service road the whole way from the viewpoint.

Wide service road

We expected rain, but other than a very brief downpour, it was dry, although it was obvious that it had rained overnight. The road was lined with foxglove and daisies, making for some lovely views.

Lots of foxglove next to the road

The road goes pretty steeply up from the viewpoint, and other than the pretty flowers, we pass under some power lines, which buzzed as we trudged uphill, making our way upward, always up. I'm not a fan of service roads.

Closeup of foxglove

You can see from this closeup that it had definitely rained recently. We imagined bees seeing these pretty flowers and settling in for a drink. Foxglove is what digitalis is derived from, if I'm not mistaken.

Lots of daisies, too

We kept going up the road until one of us (that would be me) got a little grumpy from walking uphill and asked when we might turn around. We had decided to return to the viewpoint to have lunch, so we began our descent at 11:30.

Another part of the service road

It was quite lovely, actually, and a lot more fun to be walking downhill back to the viewpoint for lunch than uphill. We arrived there a little after noon and settled in for a nice break.

The viewpoint and our lunch spot (Mel's picture)

It was quite mild, with the temperature in the high 50s (around 14–15°C) and just a light breeze. The way back down to the cars was on the Chanterelle trail and beautiful. We covered eight-and-a-half miles total, with 2,100 feet elevation gain and loss. That would be just about the same distance and elevation that the other group must have made, but they also had a three-hour drive (an hour and a half each way) that we didn't have. When we returned to the Senior Center, their cars were still there, as we expected they would be. If I find out how their hike went, I'll put in an update. As of now, we six are back and happy to have had a good day together, albeit with half of our usual number.
:-)