Trailed

 Seems as if I just checked one off my bucket list.  Last week, my brother-in-law and I hiked a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail.  All told, we did about 8 miles going from White Pass, Washington up to Deer Lake, then on to Sand Lake, and back again.

This was part of our annual fishing adventure, which happened to be at another lake near the PC Trail. With perfect weather and the wind not too bad, we set out over the well-marked and maintained trail taking time to take in all the wildflowers, the beautiful overstory of Pine and Fir trees, and mindful of others going and coming on the famous path.

The gradual incline wasn't too bad, but just in case a break was required, there were some makeshift wooden benches for a brief rest along the way.  This part of the trail features a couple of forks in the road, but responsible hikers had made arrow signs with sticks indicating which way to go.  Some parts of the trail are fairly easy to walk, but others have gnarly tree roots to step over, tree stumps, large rocks, and potholes.  There are occasionally steps reinforced with railroad ties that help make the going easier.

Deer Lake was about two hours away and offered a shady spot to sit and spend time in the quiet of an alpine lake.  An occasional fish jump or gust of wind is all that interrupts the prolific silence.

We saw hikers of all ages in our time on the trail.  At 75, we were naturally among the oldest, but there were a few folks that may have had a year or two on us.  Of course, we saw many young people as well.  The sun-tanned backpacked, muscular types were very much in evidence as well.  My brother-in-law, John, and I were careful to give them a wide berth as they often came sneaking up on us from behind at a pace I may never have been able to maintain even 30 years ago.  Lots of folks use hiking staffs or ski poles to maintain their speed and balance. Everyone we met was friendly.  Everyone.