Week 113 Oct. 28 - Mystic Lake

Total Distance: Approximately 26 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 3500 ft. 
Time: 8:15 am - 5:05 pm
Weather:

Did 26 miles today.  Ran 5, hiked 16, ran 5 again.  Total time 8hours and 50 minutes.

The last time I did this specific hike was in July, back in week 99 (or 14 weeks ago).  It is the longest day hike I have ever done.  It kind of kicked my butt too.  I reread my blog entry, and I mentioned my sore feet. What I did not mention was my feet were destroyed.  The hike down from the lake back in July literally destroyed my to big toe nails.  The problems with my feet in the Wind Rivers two weeks later had been because of this hike.  In the last two weeks, I lost both toe nails finally, and this week I returned to the hike that took them from me.

It is a long story how this hike was picked.  Basically, Creighton had decided he was going to do it, and I tagged along.  I was a tad nervous, but I went anyway.  We were at the Carbon River Road trailhead early enough and geared up and walking by 8:15 am.  I have been running, and Creighton is a runner.  I looked at him and asked, "Doesn't make sense to walk this road does it?" 50 minutes later we were at the Ipsut Campground.

I took out my hiking boots from my pack, and I changed into hiking mode.  We then walked up at a good clip.  At the suspension bridge, half a mile below the glacier and 4.5 miles from Mystic, we took a snack break.  The sun was out, so was the glacier and the mountain.  We got going about 10~15 minutes later, and we didn't break again until the lake.

It is amazing how much stronger running has made me.  It is a steep hike from the bridge up to the lake, and we were breaking fresh tracks in the snow from Moraine Creek all the way to the lake.  We were at the lake around 12:30 pm, about 4 hours and 15 minutes after we started.  The lake was covered in a thin layer of ice.  The quiet solitude was perfect.

We took off at 1:15 pm.  The hike down was uneventful but perfect.  We were back at Ipsut around 4:15 pm.  I changed back into my running shoes, and we were back at the car 40 minutes later after we started running.  Total time was 8 hours and 50 minutes to do over 26 miles.

Orchid: Doing the longest day hike I have ever done, and feeling like I had more left in my legs.

Onion: Cold, wet, feet, the whole hike back down.

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Google Map

Week 112 Oct. 21 - Greenwater and Echo Lakes

Total Distance: Approximately 14 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 1600 ft. 
Time: 10ish am - 4ish pm
Weather: Cool, but clear and sunny most of the day. Rainy at the end.

I keep waiting too long to blog, and as a result memories fade.  

This was a hike with three students and my friend who has joined Creighton and I for every trip we have made to Dark Canyon together (3 of the last 4 Februarys).  What I loved about this hike was the slow, gradual climb along a river, and the soft trail.  I wore tennis shoes, and it felt great.  It was also exceptionally beautiful.  Not just because nature is beautiful, but it had snowed the night before.  The trail and surrounding trees were covered in a blanket of beautiful, soft, fluffy, white snow.  

We hit the Echo Lake soon enough.  By the time we got there, the weather had changed and it was snowing lightly at the lake.  We had a bit of a break and then slowly ambled around the lake.  We came across some cougar tracks in the snow too.

The hike back down was easy enough.  The weather was warm enough that the snow was melting fast, and it was basically gone when we got back to the car.

Orchid: Sharing a wonderful walk with a good friend and students.

Onion: Driving in snow.

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Google Map

Week 111 Oct. 14 - Royal Lake

Total Distance: Approximately 14 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 2700 ft. 
Time: 9:45 am - 3:15 pm
Weather: Gray, cloudy, rainy, overcast, dreary, a fall day in the Northwest.

I was going to climb The Brothers this weekend, but the weather was terrible.  I was going to go with a friend from work, but we didn't want to deal with all the effort for bad views and finding ourselves exposed on the top of a peak.  We bagged the plan, and I looked for a hike.  I thought of Royal Lake, a hike I did in week 63.  There are things happening in my life, and this place, for a variety of reasons, is a good place for me to think about those things.  Unfortunately (or fortunately), no one wanted or could join me, so I was off on a solo trek.  

I left Tacoma at 7:30 am, and I was at the trailhead by 9:30 am.  It rained almost the entire drive.  It stopped once I got on the other side of Blyn (small town right before Sequim), and it picked up right before I got to the trailhead.  There were a few cars, but I saw no one.  I took off and was immediately back into my memories of the trail and my previous hike.  It was a classic PNW fall day.  It was raining constantly.  Not always pouring, but wet the whole time.  I stopped at the Dungeness River crossing, fifteen minutes after I started, to take off a layer.  I was moving again soon.  I then hiked for the next two hours and twenty minutes without a break all the way to the other end of the lake.  It was great to feel strong and in shape.  The trail climbs only 2700 ft over 7 miles, but there are steep sections.  On the way up, one hiker passed me on his way out.  He had overnighted at the lake.  I was up at the lake by 12:20 pm.  While beautiful, it was cold, and I was soaked.  I had the whole Royal Basin to myself, which was amazing.  I looked at the lake from the south end as it continued to rain.  I said out loud, "this sucks, but it's beautiful."

After a 30 minute break, I took off for the car.  I cruised, reaching the car in two hours and twenty minutes.  I passed three other people, but it was after the crossing of the Dungeness river, within 20 minutes of the trailhead.  

Orchid: Quiet solitude and peaceful reflection.

Onion: Cold, wet, and not psyched for the weather.

Picture:

Google Map

Week 110 Oct. 7 - Crystal Peak & Upper Crystal Lake

Total Distance: Approximately 11 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 4000 ft
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Weather: Beautiful, sunny, clear.

The student in the outdoor club wanted to go for a hike, and I wanted to prove that the pace at which I hiked the previous week was a result of my illness.  For this reason, I hiked in the same place two weeks in a row, and it may have been the first time that has ever happened.  There were also the options of doing a 6 mile, 7.6 mile, or 11 mile hike.  

Three students met me in the morning, and everyone in the car wanted to do the 11 mile hike.  We took off for the peak first.  It was another beautiful day in the PNW.  The last weekend of summer like weather, the end of a glorious run of the best weather I can remember since moving here in 2005.

It has a been a little too long since the hike, so the memories have faded a bit.  I remember the 2.5 mile stretch that took me two and a half hours the week before only took me an hour and a half.  I remember loving the views from the peak. We walked back down, then up to the lake.  The lake was absolutely beautiful, and it was the first time I had been to the lake in exactly 104 weeks (or two years).  It was so gorgeous that I had to jump in and swim a bit.  

Orchid: Great hike with great kids.

Onion: Cannot think of one.

Picture:

Google Map