Back in April, when life was hectic and exhausting, Alpine Trails Book Club provided the perfect escape for me in the form of a weekend spent camping on San Juan Island. Our April book selection had been The Light Between Oceans, a heartbreaking and beautiful tale of a lighthouse keeper and his wife who find an infant washed up on their remote island off the coast of Australia, then struggle with the fallout of their unofficial adoption of the girl. Obviously after reading of life on a remote and rugged island whose only structure was the light, we couldn’t leave the island without a hike to one of two lighthouses on San Juan.
Read moreLife: Week 23
The early summer weather continued into another week, with midweek temperatures climbing over 90° - unheard of for June in the PNW. With plans for backpacking over the weekend, I spent the week carefully monitoring the forecast for Saturday and Sunday, worrying about hot dry weather. To my relief, by Friday we had some relief in the form of rain and the weekend forecast had dropped from the mid nineties down to the low seventies, with some cloudy skies thrown in for good measure. Much better hiking weather! After our foraging last weekend, Andy and I had morels to enjoy, and while I had plans to try several new recipes - including a morel risotto I still want to try out - we liked them sautéed in an excessive amount of butter and tossed into a bowl of ramen so much that we ate it for dinner twice, even with the heat!
Read moreLime Kiln
March is a tough time of year for planning hikes, but this year with plenty of snow still lingering from February’s epic snowstorm it proved especially challenging. At the last minute, I wound up switching up our plans to avoid steep icy trails, choosing the Line Kiln Trail based entirely on the fact that a recent trip report mentioned zero snow. Lime Kiln is one of several trails that I very well may have hiked as a child, but have no memory of, so I went in to our March Alpine Trails Book Club hike with fresh eyes.
Read moreRosario Beach & Lighthouse Point
Deception Pass is one of my favorite places for winter and early spring hiking, and after weeks of snow in early February, the snow-free trail to Lighthouse Point was a truly welcome sight. As our group gathered at the trailhead on a chilly morning under slate grey skies, I found myself immediately regretting not bringing my puffy down jacket. It may not have been snowy, but it was still cold! Thankfully the faint, sporadic sunlight that struggled through the clouds was enough to warm me once we got moving. Between the rugged views and rambling conversation, any lingering chill was quickly forgotten.
Read moreLife: Week 8
After another week of mucky snow that just won’t go away, I didn’t venture far from home. My week was mostly work and knitting, although I did manage to get out for a lovely lunch with my mom and niece that gave me a much needed mid-week sanity break! By the weekend, I was beyond happy that my March Alpine Trails Book Club outing finally provided the perfect opportunity to to get outside. It may have been cold and overcast for most of the day, but we had a snow free hike, and even saw a few brief bursts of sunshine! It still felt like February, but the passing moments of warm sun on my face gave me hope that spring is still on the way.
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