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Silver Peak Hike
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The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness. |
Thursday, August 26, 1999
One year ago: Helen Again
Two years ago: Dancing with Abandon
I'm exhausted! I was up way too late on Wednesday, then I went on a good long hike today. (That's why this entry is really being written Friday morning.)
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I went to the Century Ballroom Wednesday evening, for the first time (on a non-class night) in too long! "Hep Jen" Holland was back on the job as DJ, after traveling to Boston, Sweden, and then all around Europe for most of the summer. I'm glad she's back!
I got to dance with Jordan Hardy, a San Francisco dancer who will be teaching a workshop with Jen this weekend, down in Portland. He was fun and comfortable to dance with; very clear lead!
Jen told me that she and my friend Joe Ross broke up during the trip, which saddens me; they seemed like a good couple! I also heard from another source that she and Chris might not be teaching together this fall -- that would be a big change in the Seattle dance scene, if true! I've enjoyed taking class from them both. I just don't approve of all these changes; things should stay the same unless I say so!
I stayed until the end of the dance, almost. Then I did have some trouble falling asleep when I got home.
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The result of the late night was getting up for the hike today on about four hours of sleep! But I took the bus out to near Chip's place, daypack on my back, without a problem. He had handed me his cell phone the night before, with instructions to call him when I got off the bus. I rode the 263, which is the bus that goes through the Microsoft campus. Things didn't look too different, which isn't surprising after just three weeks.
We all converged at Chip's house: Chip, Kellie (our business manager), Kat (the content director), her 8-year-old son Drew, Marty (an almost ex-Microsoft guy and friend of Chip's) and me. In two cars (Kat and Drew drove separately) we drove up Snoqualmie Pass -- the same pass that messed up my car last weekend -- then up a Forest Service gravel road that intersects with the Pacific Crest Trail.
The weather was warm and clear, but not too hot. We parked, put on our packs, hats and suncreen, then set off. The first section was a clearcut, but soon we were in the woods. As we walked, we identified the flowers and plants that we could. I could have identified more if we'd been back in Virginia, where I grew up, but I haven't made a study of Washington wildlife. We met up with a Forest Service worker who was sawing a tree that had fallen across the trail.
We walked a mile and a half or two miles, to a side trail that's no longer maintained or marked because of political reasons. (It takes us a bit close to the Cedar River watershed, which is closed to hiking and camping because it's the watersource for Seattle). The bugs weren't too bad, this early in the day. I kept up fairly well, and Chip and Marty (the two hikers with the potential to go the fastest) were content to keep the pace down.
The side trail was steeper, as Chip had told us, but I still kept up. Kat and her son turned back partway through this section, while he was still enjoying himself. There were still snow patches around, even though the temperature was in the seventies. I was puffing a bit, but kept going, just taking breaks more often for water and gorp.
Chip had forgotten about one stretch of "trail" that was a scramble/climb over rocks. I wanted to continue, though, so Kellie and I went up first, so that Chip and Marty could catch me if I lost my balance or slipped. (My new boots, bought Tuesday afternoon, did well for me, with no significant blisters at the end of the day.) From there (we were almost at the saddle between the peaks) there were only a few more switchbacks. We were near the treeline, with patches of alpine meadow and grassy areas.
At the saddle, we went off to the southwest a short distance, so we could see Mt. Rainier. It looked huge! partly because we were farther south than we are in Seattle, and partly the optical illusion that makes the moon look bigger when it's on the horizon.
When we got to the talus slope (talus is broken up rock, not easy to walk on) I stopped. I decided to drink water, eat part of a wrap sandwich, find a place to pee, and rest for a while, while Marty and Chip went up to the true peak, and Kellie walked up part of the way. Kellie and I rested, but the bugs were getting bad. We set off down the slope, ahead of the other two.
I was especially proud that Kellie and I got down that rock scramble place without mishap. All these steep places are tougher when you have short legs!
Kellie said, "You know how when you are coming back on a trip, the return journey seems shorter? That's not happening for me today." It was true! I think because our minds had already started that editing process (the same process that had Chip forgetting about the bit of climbing we had to do, or the number of streams we had to cross), we kept thinking we were closer to the end of the hike than we were. We also were walking more slowly, being careful where we put our feet, and trying to keep from jamming our toes against the ends of our boots. We could see Chip and Marty up on the peak for a long time, looking like tiny specks.
They did catch up with us, though, before we got back to the car. I heard them long before I saw them. Chip asked me, "Well, has this been a pleasant walk in the park, or the Bataan Death march?" "Somewhere in between," I said. The hike had certainly been longer and tougher (more vertical change) than I'd have chosen for myself, but it was doable and I had fun. I'd picked the right spot to stop and turn back, since I didn't mind missing the long-distance views at the peak.
We finally got back to the car. Chip had a cooler with snacks and beverages in the back -- a good thing since I'd finished off my water along the way. We took off our shoes and Kellie and I had both escaped with no blisters! Pretty good for both wearing new hiking shoes.
Chip drove us all home, which was especially nice for me and far out of his way, then he went to the office and updated the site! I reposed myself, talked to Jack on the phone (I'll take the bus up to Bellingham tomorrow afternoon), then took a hot bath. I put myself to bed at nine thirty!
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