 |
| Starting our hike in the early morning light (what there was of it) |
Eleven Senior Trailblazers started our hike today at 8:30am, since the trailhead is only a short distance from the Senior Center. It was supposed to be cloudy all day (it was), with a possibility of showers early on. We only had a few minutes when it was wet, which was relief from last week's very wet hike. There wasn't great light for pictures, but I tried to capture the day.
 |
| Some of the local flora and fauna in the mist |
There are some spectacular views on this hike on days when it's clear. We saw only mist and whiteness when we got to the viewpoints. The first part of this hike starts out gently upward, but then when we reach the ridge itself, there are lots of roots and exposed spots to deal with.
 |
| Apologies to Al, but I had to use this one |
Here is our intrepid leader beginning the trek up the wet exposed roots, to a place where there is a sheer drop-off of a thousand feet, with only a tree to hold onto. We all made it around, but the first time I tried this I was completely intimidated by the exposure, so I crawled ignominiously across the rocks instead of stepping carefully out on the tiny ledge. Today I managed to hold onto the tree.
 |
| New guy Roger, Lisa, Rich, Chris, Al |
At Gates Overlook, we stopped for lunch. It was 11:45am and everybody was ready to stop, after having traveled for what seemed like ages to get here. We hadn't stopped since we started at 8:30. We occupied two of the three picnic tables and had a nice lunch, although we began to get chilly after a few minutes and decided to start back down before a half-hour had passed.
 |
| Still no views, but it was a nice temperature for hiking |
We began our return trip to the cars and had to keep moving to keep from getting cold. After you've had your lunch and stopped for any length of time, it seems your body temperature begins to drop and no matter how many clothes you put on, you need to get moving to warm up again. Before too long, we were warm again. We had many miles to cover before the cars would welcome us.
 |
| First skunk cabbage of the year |
Just before the long hike was over, I spied my first skunk cabbage of 2015. These will be prolific in subsequent posts, trust me, but this made me smile with the realization that the winter of 2014-15 is over when these guys show up. By the time we saw the cars, we had covered close to 11 miles (18 kilometers) and 2,800 feet (850 meters) of elevation gain and loss. No wonder I'm so tired as I write this!
In any event, it was a wonderful day, and I am proud to say I am still at my age able to do this sort of thing and still enjoy my evening repast without needing an ambulance. In fact, I'm feeling pretty good right now as I swig the last of my glass of wine.
:-)
0 Yorumlar