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| Lower Salal trail |
Today Melanie and I headed up to the North Chuckanut Mountain trailhead, with hopes of reaching Madrone Crest, if I could manage it (more than seven miles and plenty of elevation gain and loss). And I did, with Mel offering me a couple places where we could shorten the hike, but I was feeling good.
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| Such a pretty day |
Unfortunately, there was little of interest to see, other than lots of trees, a nice trail, and a bit of snow here and there, as we gained in altitude. We didn't have any footgear today, but we didn't need it if we stepped carefully in the snowy spots.
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| On the way to the Crest c |
Once we left the Lower Salal and got onto the trail to Madrone Crest (having gained around a thousand feet in elevation), we began to see snow on the trail. You can also see that it's quite sunny, so we would run into places with no snow and others with quite a bit.
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| Trail in the snow |
It was pretty easy going, and other times I've been on this trail, we have had a torrent of water running down it. Today, it was actually quite manageable. I never felt like I should have brought my spikes, but I was glad for my waterproof boots.
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| Viewpoint at Madrone Crest |
When I first began to hike to this viewpoint, you actually had a pretty good view, but today the trees have made it less visible. You can still see the mountains peeking through. We stopped here long enough to have Mel's latest creation, a purple cookie with mochi in the middle. I loved it, but she said she spit it out, not liking the taste of the mochi. I helped her out by eating hers, enjoying it thoroughly.
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| Last of the snow for today |
As we returned to the main trail, the snow gradually grew less and less, until there was just a small remnant. We had hoped we might be able to see the first little shoots of our favorite flower, the trillium, but instead the only white we saw was the frozen kind. But as you can see, it was truly a glorious outing, and I have no doubt I will sleep well tonight. Kudos to Melanie for helping me get more than 20,000 steps!
:-)
Your pictures are striking (as always) but frankly I am blown away by your 7 mile hike. How do your feet survive such a journey? Congratulations DJan, and I'm sorry we didn't get to see the purple cookies! 😄💜🍪
ReplyDeleteI never heard of mochi. Your hiking trail looked pretty good through the snow there. I hope you slept well. :)
ReplyDeleteTrilliums there must be earlier bloomers than here.
ReplyDeleteTrails can sometimes be very slippery. Better things are ahead for hiking.
ReplyDeleteSeven miles are quite a feat, Jan! Well done! Those were well deserved cookies.
ReplyDeleteNice hike, nice photos. But me personally? I'm a flatlander. I would have avoided the hills and the snow. (And that's why you're in better shape than I am.)
ReplyDelete20,000 steps are a lot of steps. Good for you.
ReplyDeleteI will have to Google mochi when I publish the comment. 20000 steps is incredible D J
ReplyDeleteA Japanese pastry made with rice?!!
DeleteWhat? Melanie didn't like mochi? I LOVE mochi and it comes in different flavors too. Granted, I have to avoid it because it has too many carbs for me.
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