First holiday week of the season

Lily yesterday, looking pretty

Yesterday, Lily took me out for lunch after we had a nice walk in Fairhaven. She reminded me that we have now known each other for eleven years! It surprises me in one way, but in another it seems like she's been part of my life even longer than that. She has the entire week off from her job, after having worked seven days in a row, and now she's trying to connect with friends she hasn't seen recently. That means me, for one. We went bowling a month ago, and that was the last I heard from her until she called yesterday to suggest a walk and lunch.

Although there was a hike scheduled for today, I didn't attend so that I could have a one-on-one meeting with a woman at the Senior Center who knows everything about Covid tests. She had me bring in the three I've had around here for awhile, and she took an expired one out and showed me how you use the test to determine if you're infected. We are getting geared up for a winter of possible season of colds, flu, and Covid. I still wear a mask whenever I'm on the bus or in a crowded room, but I've grown lax after such a long time without even a cold. I think wearing a mask has kept me from getting sick, but I know it's just a matter of time. I've received the latest Covid booster, the annual flu shot, and finished my Shingrix double doses awhile back. I vacillate about getting the RSV vaccine, since there's a shortage at present, so I will allow myself to wait. My doctor thinks they are a good idea for old people like me.

Remember when I put a picture up about this huge pumpkin and said I'd let you know when I found out how much it ended up weighing? Well, I forgot and then it was gone from the display, and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find out, but I did. It weighed 474 lbs. (215 kilos), or more than two of my friend John. Bet it was used to make some of those pumpkin pies I see at the store now, or at least I hope so. We are skipping the pies this year, but I suspect I'll be able to convince my honey to indulge in something wonderful to finish off our Thanksgiving feast. I haven't decided yet what that might be.

Our usual scene at the coffee shop

I always pull out my iPad (soon I'll have a new one, my birthday present to myself) and John's is almost identical to mine. Our glasses are on the side, since he uses them for close work and I take mine off for close work. You can see how low the angle of the sun is at this time of the year, and for the next month it will continue to come up later and set earlier, until we barely have nine hours of light for the entire day. The dreary times lie ahead, but I guess that's why we have all these holidays; it makes the long nights feel less oppressive. And then of course the sun will begin its long journey back the other way, until spring rears its lovely head. I will enjoy what's left of the fall season.

:-)

Lily and Lizard, and North Butte

Hat Creek, with hat

Today, a mere five Relaxed Senior Trailblazers went to the Upper Trailhead on Blanchard Mountain to make a loop including Lily Lake, Lizard Lake, and the North Butte viewpoint. I was so pleased to be part of the group, and we hiked upward at a pretty good pace. My pictures were rather sparse, since it was cold and I didn't much want to take my hands out of my warm gloves. However, we saw this sign, with a hat that stated we were looking at "Hat Creek," which is probably not on any maps, but it was worthy of a picture.

Lizard Lake

We hiked upwards until we got to the turnoff to Lizard Lake, where I captured this amazing picture of a still lake, reflections as clear as those on the actual shoreline. There is a small thin layer of ice on parts of the lake. From here, we took the turnoff to North Butte, were we would have lunch, and visit the iron bench once more.

View of the Bay from North Butte

Although the day was cold, it was mostly clear and when we were exercising, we were pretty warm. But it didn't take long when we stopped to get cold again. John had brought cinnamon rolls and hot coffee in his backpack, so we happily enjoyed the treat after we finished lunch.

The Five

It was such a pretty day that we weren't in any real hurry to leave, but our hands and feet got the best of us, so we decided to pack up, but not before Helen captured this picture of some of us with Gertie, her little gnome (tucked inside my jacket). I didn't realize that John had crept into the picture until I saw this.

Linda and me in front with Gertie, John lurking

See Gertie there inside my jacket? She is wishing me a happy upcoming birthday, it turns out. Other than the cold, the weather couldn't have been better: very light wind if any, and easy to follow trails. We couldn't have had a better day. I've been here in all kinds of weather, but this was one of the best weather days ever.

Mt Baker from North Butte

Since you need to get quite close to the edge to capture this shot, a sheer drop-off, Linda took this picture for me to share with you. I've seen Baker from many angles, and now I can add this one to my repertoire. It's so pretty!

Lily Lake

As we started over to Max's Shortcut, we passed close to Lily Lake, so I snapped this shot. There is a thin layer of ice on this lake, too, and when we got to the Shortcut, I didn't take any more pictures but just put my head down and followed the others back to the car. We covered somewhere around 8.5 miles and 2,000 feet up and down. A worthwhile day with great weather and even better friends. I'm tired but quite happy with our adventure.

:-)

He's BACK

John at the coffee shop today

It sure is nice to have John back where he belongs, after four days and nights at the hospital. He started having woozines and weakness and called his son (who lives nearby) and went to the hospital to find out what was going on. They admitted him and found that his potassium levels were all out of whack, and they ended up keeping him for that long before feeling he was well enough to go home. He lost a little more weight and has had his heart medications changed extensively.

Today he says he's not back to what he considers normal, but is on the way there. Hopefully he will, since being elderly means that every day is a gift. I saw a cartoon the other day about a man who had his 80th birthday and told his friends that he could "go at any moment now." It does something to your perspective when you pass that eightieth birthday, and John will soon be 84! But I think he's going to stay around for awhile longer; I hope so anyway.

I'm up there in the stratospheric age numbers myself. Soon I'll be eighty-one but don't feel that much different than I did a decade ago. I do have more aches and pains, but mostly they recede into the background once I get the old joints lubricated in the morning. I got plenty of sleep last night, and that always makes for a better day ahead. (I just had an image of the Tin Man's oil can squirting lubrication into my knees.)

Some dastardly vandal has trashed one of my favorite parks, I discovered this morning. I cannot imagine what devilish joy it must have given this jerk to drive his big truck all over the grass and destroy something so beautiful.

The entire lawn is mangled

Boulevard Park along the waterfront is one of Bellingham's treasures. I sure hope they capture him (it's almost always a him) and make him pay. Some people just cannot allow such beauty. But what the heck, it will grow back and at least we can be glad he left his AR-15 at home. 

:-(

Madrone Crest

Today's Group 2 hikers (I took the picture)

It was simply a beautiful fall day as twelve hikers spent the morning and early afternoon hiking across amazing yellow leaves, as we went from the North Chuckanut trailhead to Madrone Crest, following an interesting route: up the Hemlock trail to the Huckleberry trail, then across to the Salal trail and hiking it to the turnoff to Madrone Crest. 

Golden leaves

Almost all the big leaf maple leaves have fallen, creating gorgeous carpets of bright yellow under our feet; there are a few trees that still retain their leaves, but they have all turned brilliant gold. We had a few moments of bright light coming through the trees, but mostly it was overcast, however mild and dry we might be.

Flower-like mushrooms were everywhere

As usual, we saw lots of interesting mushrooms, a sure sign of our newly wet environment. Rain was expected by the afternoon, and sure enough as I sit here I can see that it has arrived. But we were spared any at all, nary a drop fell on us.

Madrone Crest, our lunch spot

We stopped at the place where we would have had a view, if the trees had not grown up over the years to obscure any sign of the valley below us. A sign at the last junction before the Crest had indicated there would be a view, but some disgruntled hiker had scratched that out. I've seen the view in past years, but it is definitely completely hidden today.

A mushroom beginning to change shape

It was a really nice hike, I must say. We returned back a different route, taking the Madrone Crest trail to the Salal trail, then taking the Lower Salal from there. We also hiked on the Lost Lake trail, and back to the Hemlock where we started. It was somewhere around 8+ miles, and around 1,700 feet up and down. Very enjoyable, not too long, not too short. And no precipitation!

For those of you wondering what happened to me on Tuesday when I didn't write a post, I have no excuse, other than I simply... forgot. I got so involved watching the election returns and then finishing my wine before heading to bed that it slipped my mind. It wasn't until the middle of the night that I remembered. Now that I am officially old, I blame my diminished faculties for my omission. It might happen again, so be forewarned!

I'm just glad I can still hike long distances and feel good afterwards. Now that I've written this post, along with my Tuesday mea culpa, I can relax and enjoy the rest of the day, watching the rain and wind from inside a warm and cozy home.

:-)

Sucia Island excursion

Leaving Bellingham Bay behind

Yesterday, 12 Senior Trailblazers went on an excursion on a cool boat from Bellingham Bay (Don looking out pensively) as we went out to Sucia Island, one of the San Juan Islands that I've never visited before. It was an all-day outing, with the two great owners of the Island Opportunity Charters, a water taxi service that took us there and back, treating us to an adventure I didn't even know existed.

The boat dock at Sucia

We were the only people on the island, which in summertime is usually overrun with others enjoying this lovely place, and it was wonderful. The weather was perfect, meaning of course no rain, mild temperatures, and a day to hike and explore the island.

Our lunch spot at Johnson Point

We first checked out Fox Point and then trekked a couple of miles to Johnson Point, where we had a lovely lunch, with a view of Mt Baker and plenty of open spaces just to ooh and ahh for around a half hour. We had walked around two or three miles by this point, and we were quite ready just to kick back and enjoy our surroundings.

Madrone tree along the trail

There were so many beautiful madrone trees on the island, some of the biggest and most healthy I've seen anywhere. There are so many bays and places to see on this island that we did have to pick and choose. After packing back up after lunch, we headed to the China caves. 

Cindy looking into one of the caves

The isolated coves and bays of Sucia Island once served the Lummi Indians in their seal hunting days. They later provided excellent hideouts in the 19th century for smugglers of illegal Chinese laborers, as well as for hiding illegally imported wool and opium.

 Wikipedia has a full page on the history of the island (which the above quote was taken from), and we sure did have a lot of fun looking into, and speculating on, the caves at one of the bays. We called the boat owners and the came and picked us up at this point, since they have a boat that allows for us to get onto the boat without a dock.

Getting picked up in style

From here we went around the part of the island that has an old lighthouse, one that gave us a perfect place to capture the entire group before making it back to Bellingham Bay. We had hiked somewhere around five or six miles and were getting pretty tired. Being on the water does that to me.

End of a great adventure

The owners took this great picture of the group, all twelve of us, in front of the lighthouse and, if you use your imagination, you can also see Mt Baker behind us. It was a wonderful day, an adventure I won't soon forget. Thanks to Barb for organizing it, and thanks to the boat pilots for taking us out and back in safety!

:-)

Galbraith Mountain

The view of the bay from Galbraith Mountain

Today, eighteen Happy Wanderers were directed to this viewpoint by our leader, Terry. She gathered the group together at the tennis court parking lot before taking us up (yes, it's definitely up) to this viewpoint. We managed to eke out over five miles round trip before we got back to our cars.

It was very cold as we started our hike at 8:30am, well below freezing, but mostly full sunshine promised that it would warm up considerably. It did, and we started by climbing up pretty steeply, which was welcomed by all of us who were cold, until finally we had been moving long enough that most of us were finally able to shed some of our heavy clothing. I was able to take off my warm hat and gloves and stash them away, but I kept my jacket on until later.

Sandy's selfie plus thumb

I took a picture, too, but somehow I managed to cut two people off the side, so this one is by far the best hot, even with Sandy's thumb taking out the lower right. It was a good group, and we talked and hiked and enjoyed the environment. I've been up Galbraith Mountain many times, but it's been years. Much of it is the same, but it was up for sale a few years ago and I wasn't sure we would ever return. It's a wonderful place to visit, and mountain bikers love the trails.

In July of 2018, the City of Bellingham, Whatcom Land Trust, and Galbraith Tree Farm LLC entered into an recreation easement that secured the public’s recreational use on Galbraith Mountain and protected​ the area from development. The easement covers 2,182 acres and adjoins 4,250 acres of public land managed by Whatcom County. (City of Bellingham)

 We saw plenty of mountain bikers on the trail, but mostly it was just our big group and the occasional cluster of three or four bikers. We were all courteous to one another, and the only surprise was (to me) wondering what these young people must do for a living, to be out and about on a frosty Tuesday morning. I'm glad they are able to get their exercise and thrills and chills on the trails, though. Everyone was having fun.

A quick snack break

We stopped for a quick bite to eat at around 11:00am, and then afterwards we made our way back down the hill to our cars. It was probably over 1,200 feet of elevation gain and loss in 5.5 miles, and I was happy to finally get off my feet and snuggle into Terry' warm car at the end. It was a very good hike, a good day, and great company!

:-)

A down sort of day

Bellingham Bay from Gates Overlook

Not "down" in terms of the day itself, I should clarify, but one where my down jacket and down comforter have made their first appearances to help usher in the cold weather, both outdoors (the jacket) and indoors (the comforter). 

Today's Senior Trailblazers (I took the picture)

Only six of us showed up in the chill (37°F) to make our hike to Raptor Ridge from Gates Overlook. We drove up to the Overlook to start our hike, which would take us on an out-and-back, going down the 100+ steps of the Rock trail, heading down to the South Lost Lake trail until reaching the North Lost Lake trail, which then took us to the junction to Raptor Ridge. It was somewhere around 4 miles to get there, with plenty of elevation gain and loss, but I don't really know how much.

The massive rock that gives the trail its name

There were two hikers, Don and Cindy, who had never done this route before, and it's always fun to see how much people appreciate the incredible beauty of this trail. The steps were dry but steep, and I couldn't have done them without my poles, but I did manage the entire hike without a spill.

The hikers on Raptor Ridge

It was another absolutely beautiful day, with little to no wind (which is unusual and twice in a row!), and after we enjoyed a leisurely lunch in the sunshine, we turned around and went back the way we had come. 

Mushrooms that look like bouquets

Similar to our hike on Tuesday, there were so many mushrooms sprouting up from the ground and on the rocks everywhere around us that I could have spent the entire hike taking pictures of the myriad types we saw, but we also had some distance to cover.

Big leaf maple leaves

Now that we've had a good bit of rain, which caused the mushrooms to flower, we have also had some wind that helped these leaves fall off the trees. They are so pretty, even on the ground, that I had to capture their abundance to share with you.

White buxom mushroom

I thought this mushroom captured the season perfectly, from her two eyes to her buxom arms, to the "skirt" she is displaying. I some ways, she personifies the season, and brings a smile to my face. By the time we returned to the Overlook, we had covered a long eight miles and plenty of elevation. I never underestimate those steps, and by the time we were done, I was quite happy to sit in the car as Owen drove us back to the Senior Center. 

It was yet another wonderful day in the beautiful forest, and as we said goodbye, I think everyone who came was glad for the adventure. I know I was. 

:-)