Slacking off

Lake Ann

Well, many of the Senior Trailblazers are heading to Lake Ann today, one of my favorite hikes of yesteryear. It's an almost nine-mile-long round-trip hike up to this viewpoint and back. I was told the first time I did this one that "it's uphill both ways," and they are right: first you start by descending around a thousand feet in shaded forest, but once you get to the Swift Creek section of the hike, you begin an uphill slog through rocks and full sun until you reach the summit at 4,900 feet of elevation. You've been baking in the sun the whole time going up to the lake, after having left the forest behind at Swift Creek. We are experiencing probably the last really hot part of the summer; it sure was enough to make me look at my pictures and be glad for my friends, but also glad I decided to skip it today.

The lake and Mt Shuksan view

It is a simply beautiful hike, and the views of the back of Mt Shuksan and the Coleman Glacier are also stunning. I didn't swim in the lake, but I did take off my shoes, rolled up my pants, and waded in the water for awhile before we started back. I think I last made this trip before the Pandemic, and now I am not only older but not in as good shape as I was then. And I still remember how much I suffered on the uphill sections.

I planned to take a nice walk this morning after leaving the coffee shop, but by the time I got home and changed into cooler clothes, it was already hot, so I skipped my usual walk. I was going to say that I would "rest on my laurels," but after looking up the meaning of the phrase, I realize that it's more accurate to admit that I'm just slacking off, taking it easy today. I am not going to allow my Apple Watch to admonish me, since I think it's perfectly okay for me to park myself inside while relaxing in an easy chair and enjoying the coolness of the indoors.

But I do hope those young whippersnappers are having a great day. Each time I do this, stay home, it gets a little easier, especially since I had a lovely hike in the wilderness on Tuesday, when the temperatures were at least ten degrees cooler than today's. Tomorrow will be another hot day, but then it is projected to cool off to more normal temperatures, just in time for my Saturday walk with my friend Steve.

Today would have been my first husband's eighty-third birthday, although he's been gone for decades, I still think of him now and then and hope if there's something after this life, he's having a great day, too. In the meantime, I'm basking in my continued ability to feel such gratitude for all my blessings.

;-)