On our only free weekend for the entire month of June, I'd planned to go out on our first backpacking trip of the year. Then I saw the weather forecast. By midweek, there were chance thunderstorms forecast for the entire area - not something I want to worry about when sleeping on the ground in a tiny, wet tent! Checking the forecast again on Friday that week, the thunderstorms had disappeared from the forecast, but there would still likely be rain. Still, I was determined to go so we loaded up our packs and hit the road early Saturday morning. Destination: The Lily Lake & Lizard Lake trailhead near Bellingham.
Read moreLife: Week 24
After a mostly uneventful work week, Andy and I volunteered for our second WTA trail work crew this past Saturday. Since the trail we'd be working on was outside Leavenworth, almost a 3 hour drive from home, we spent the weekend at a rustic cabin near Leavenworth so we could sleep in a bit. When I'd checked the weather forecast earlier in the week, the weather had looked perfect for trail work - 70° and sunny. You can imagine my disappointment when we work up Saturday to rain. Throughout our extremely soggy day of trail work, I kept hoping to see the sun peek out from behind the clouds to dry us off a bit, and it did eventually, on our hike back out to the trailhead! Working all day in the rain, I did learn a few useful bits of information. First, my hiking boots are solidly waterproof. At one point I was nearly ankle deep in mud and didn't even notice! Second, for future work parties, we will be bringing a second pair of work gloves for after lunch. Putting on our cold, soaked, filthy gloves after lunch was the worst part of the day!
Read moreSummer Fun
My favorite summers are filled with tents, lakes, rivers, trails, and cold drinks in the sun. They are spent in the mountains and on Puget Sound, with friends and family. This summer will be busy with all the responsibilities of adult life (why is adulting so hard?), but I will try to fit in as much of the good stuff as I can.
Remote campsite on the Deschutes River that was our first stop on a road trip last summer
Fremont IPA - totally worth carrying up to Blanca Lake!
Sleep outside at least once a month.
Take a random weekday off work to hike a popular trail I'd never consider visiting on a weekend.
Summit a mountain.
Just like last summer: Spend time adventuring outdoors with both my nieces!
Learn a new practical skill: backcountry first aid, avalanche safety and the use of an ice axe, or navigation.
Go crabbing, and enjoy the fresh caught crab immediately!
Try my hand at making my own freeze dried backpacking meals.
Eat at least one meal cooked over a campfire.
If you're curious, here's how I fared on my spring list:
Hike as much as possible while the wildflowers are blooming in the Cascades. We did make it to Teanaway Ridge for a pretty spectacular wildflower show - read more here!
Bake my all-time-favorite: strawberry rhubarb pie! I baked a delicious one for Easter!
Get out for a short, early-season backpacking trip to test out my new sleeping pad. We didn't actually test out our new sleeping pads on a backpacking trip, but we did get a good nights sleep on them camping with the WTA Trail Work Crew on Vashon. I definitely consider this one a success!
Go to the Farmer's Market at least once a month Just barely! I still wish I had time to go more often.
Go for a picnic It turns out my niece is just as obsessed with picnics as I am! We had an impromptu lunch picnic in Wenatchee early in the spring.
Soak up the longer days by getting outside after work at least three days a week I think I managed at least two days a week, but not three.
Plan and host an afternoon tea I completely forgot about this!
Forage for morels We looked for them while we were in Teanaway, but sadly saw none. Maybe next year!
Sign up for a trail work party with the Washington Trails Association. We did two this spring! Read a little about them here and here.
Read Tolkien in the Tolkien room at the Sylvia Beach Hotel The Hobbit, and it was just as wonderful as I remembered.
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Life: Week 23
Life this week did not go according to my plans, but it ended up being a great week! I'd looked forward to going on our first backpacking trip of the year for weeks, but wet weather and our lack of gear for comfortably dealing with it foiled those plans. This turned out to be a good thing, since against our expectations, we hardly struggled at all carrying much heavier loads than usual for a day hike, and we were able to double our mileage for the day. Then, instead of a damp, cold, sleepless night in our tent, we drove home for an excellent dinner and a good night of sleep.
Sunday, we slept in, then Andy made a huge Irish-inspired breakfast of bangers, rashers, potatoes, onion, mushrooms, fried eggs, and sliced tomato. It was enough to satisfy even the hungriest hobbit! Then, after relaxing for a few hours to let the breakfast settle, we pulled on a packs again and went for a long walk on the Powerline Trail. We managed in all the work of a backpacking trip, with all the comforts of home in between.
Read moreLife: Week 22
How can it already be June? I've started my flurry of summer hike planning, but even though it's not yet summer, it already feels like all my weekends are booked through late September! Andy and I are seriously considering a long backpacking trip for our anniversary, so I'm hoping to make it out for at least one backpacking trip a month to prepare. Hopefully I can manage to stick to that plan. My biggest concern at this point is weather. Yesterday it was over 90° - way too hot for this wimpy Pacific Northwesterner. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that we don't have a repeat of the dry hot weather of last summer!
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