Predicting the weather

Today's trillium

Well, I sure wasn't expecting the fine weather day Melanie and I ended up with. When I left home this morning in a steady rain, raincoat and pack cover already in use, never did I think the day would turn out like it did. We almost decided to go to our go-to rain destination, Stimpson Reserve, but by the time we were ready to go, the weather gods decided that the rain would likely diminish within a few hours.

Woodland violets (yes, they're yellow)

We headed to a favorite hike even in the rain, the Chanterelle trail, which has a lovely viewpoint at the 2.5-mile spot, with another 2.5 miles possible if we wanted to go that far. By the time we started hiking, my raincoat and pack cover were stashed inside my pack. It had stopped raining, with all the greenery and trees covered with moisture, but it was actually pleasant and almost spring-like after the rain stopped.

Lake Whatcom from the viewpoint

I've shown you this spot many times, and it never fails to present me with a slightly different sky, and of course the plants are beginning to fill out as the weeks pass from winter to spring. We saw numerous trillium in bloom, which is always a treat for us. We also saw other spring flowers, and since Melanie is trying to get me used to longer hikes, we did keep going upwards after stopping briefly at this spot.

Turkey tail fungus

This pretty mushroom fungus is grown and harvested across the world for its health benefits. It has several immune-boosting properties. I once ordered some capsules to help my own immune system when it needed it. (Check out the link for more information.) We admired it and kept on going upwards.

Our trail

This is a lovely trail, and as you can see here, we actually had brief moments of sunlight appear before us. We traveled over six miles up and down, with an elevation gain and loss of around 1,400 feet. Not too shabby, and I think I did pretty well, all things considered. I was ready to turn around when we did, since the downhill makes my knees complain rather loudly.

Brand new bridge

We were both very pleased to see that the trail crews had finally built a new bridge over this spot. In past excursions, we had to delicately pick our way across the bridge that was destroyed when a large tree fell during a severe windstorm. They did a very nice job, and we complimented the absent workers for their hard work, even though they are probably somewhere repairing another trail, I suspect.

We did have a wonderful day after all, when we were expecting rain and discomfort rather than such a pleasant time. You just never know what you're going to get in the Pacific Northwest, and you just need to put on your Big Girl pants and head out, hoping for the best but being ready for the worst.

:-)