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| Today's leader, Joe |
Joe is a regular leader on our Happy Wanderers hike, and today he brought fourteen of us to the Lookout Mountain Forest Preserve, a lovely 4,400-acre area on the west side of Lake Whatcom. He has several versions of today's hike, but this one is his shorter version, which took us about five miles up and down 1,100 feet of elevation. His much longer version, with additions at the beginning and end, covers more territory and is on his list for the near future. I hope to be on it. I sure enjoyed today's adventure, but I was not really ready for a long hike, just a good one that would give me a reasonable workout, and this just fit the bill.
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| Some Happy Wanderers |
It was quite cold when we started out, well below freezing, and it took quite a bit of time before I felt really warm, but once we started upwards, I got warm quickly. Although it was at least a few miles before I could take off my gloves, I did finally feel exhilarated by the cold and not uncomfortable at all. We had little to no wind and kept seeing signs of hair ice, the thin strands of ice protruding from dead branches along the trail. I've written about it before, but I didn't see any that were worth removing my gloves from my cold hands.
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| Viewpoint and Mt Baker |
We ascended to this point, where we got to see a little bit of Mt Baker along the horizon, and in a few places we saw low-lying fog that came and went for most of the day.
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| The viewpoint bench and time for a snack |
We had climbed enough so that most of us could remove some clothing and pull out a bit of lunch. After a short break, we descended on a different trail that we went up, which is a bit steeper (but it was mostly downhill).
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| These signs were placed at all the junctions |
It was truly a lovely way to spend our Tuesday Happy Wanderers hike, and we were all feeing pretty good by the time we returned to the starting point. We covered right around five miles, maybe a touch more, and 1,200 feet. It made for a wonderful way to get exercise with my fellow seniors. I look forward to the longer version next time.
:-)
Cold, clear, and crisp, a good day for a hike in a forest with mountain views.
ReplyDeleteAnother great adventure! Love your hikes, Jan. This woman can dream!
ReplyDeleteOne thing, when you,re in the trees you don't have to worry about wind. Wind changes a hike very quickly,
ReplyDeleteYou wouldn't have liked to hike here today, I can tell you, but I'm happy for you that you had a good one.
ReplyDeleteGreat hike! Five miles is still a far piece as far as I am concerned.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you enjoyed it - and that you are looking forward to a longer hike. Five miles would be more than enough for me.
ReplyDeleteChilly but such a nice hike! :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good hike on a cold day. I don't do well in the cold. but you seem to adjust to it really well.
ReplyDeleteDJan, I know it is not your custom to answer questions on your posts, but maybe you will tell us in a future post … When you and the Happy Wanderers are out on a hike are folks constantly in conversation or do you hike along quietly? Looks like another fine hike and I like that photo that includes Mt Baker on the horizon. John
ReplyDeleteYour Joe looks like a real trailblazer mountain man. I've never seen hair ice, but it sounds so intriguing.
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