Mt. Ellinor

For the extra day off that labor day provided me I decided to go for a hike.  I wasn’t sure that Frizbe would be up for a strenuous hike.  Every time we go to the park it takes only about 45 min for him to get tired and want to go home.  However, I decided that it was about time that my tripod got a good workout.   Upper Big Creek Loop Trail promised to be an intermediate hike that would allow me to see streams and woods. It turned out I couldn’t find the trail head and ended up at Mt. Ellinor.   As I stared up at the mountain it didn’t think it would be all that bad.  Besides I didn’t want my day to be thwarted simply because I couldn’t find a nice intermediate trail.   If, however, I had my trail guide for the area with me I would have found the idea of being thwarted quite acceptable.  Instead, I later found that the words strenuous to be a remarkable understatement.

Prior to that realization I found a sign at that trail head that suggested the possibility of being able to view some wonderful wildlife.   I was rather exited at the prospect of seeing a Winter Wren, or a Black Bear.   The most excitement revolved around the possibility of seeing an Olympic Marmot. I mean it looks like a cross between a beaver, and a prairie dog.  As if the creature was a pull from The Princess Bride and I was to possibly see a rodent of unusual size.

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I no more than started the climb and began the huffing a puffing generally associated with strenuous sex.  That’s probably why I took so many pictures, not to have sex, but to stop and take a break.

There was a rather rocky point along the trail.  Had I stayed on the trail I would have loved the ease that would have come with it.  My surprise was how well Frizbe was doing.  Not only was he doing better than I expected but he was doing quite well with only three legs.  I did have to help him a couple of times.

About half way up I thought seriously about quitting.  Every twenty steps I had to stop to rest.  It was killing me.  But I kept thinking that there was no way I can quit now.  I HAD to make it to the top.  I used it as a parallel of my life.  Don’t give up.  AND if Frizbe was able to do it, then so could I.

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I must admit the view from the top was spectacular!  From one of the other hikers I learned that Mount Washington was a short distance away.  In the pictures it’s the  near by peek with clouds around it.  The hiker said that one could make it without the need of climbing gear.  There were absolutely no thoughts on my mind for testing that.

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The walk down was nearly as bad as the climb up but in a different way.  Obviously gravity was much more kind.  But my legs by then were nearly rubber from the climb up.  About half way down my legs began to shake really bad.  Frizbe was even fatigued and exploited every opportunity by laying down every time I stopped for a couple of seconds.

I don’t know how Frizbe managed in the time since our hike, but I know that four days latter my calves still groaned their displeasure at my every movement.

Next time I will be looking for something a little less strenuous and a little more intermediate.

Here is the information I noted from my GPS:

Start:                            End:

Time: 11:25                       Time: 1:38

Latidude: 47.51848                Latidude: 47.521378

Longitude: -123.252900            Longitude: -123.260637

Altitude: 3,782 feet              Altitude: 5,857 feet

Note that from the beginning and end was 2,075 feet.  The distance between the two points is 0.41 Miles.  And it took 2 hours to complete.  Well no wonder I hurt like hell afterward!