Short Sweet Sunday Saunter

This short order was filled in a tall way! We wanted something very close to home with low mileage and elevation and this hike was exactly what it took to heal!

We were the first car in the lot, which was not what I was hoping for because it meant we had the job of clearing the trial. We picked our destination, to reach a nice spot somewhere up there in that general vicinity where we could laze about for some time.
The creek bed was totally dried up and resembled a rock bed. This eventually led to a lush, winding forest trail lined with beautiful wildflowers like the western wood lily above. Surprisingly, this is an early summer blooming species, yet was in its glory day now, late summer.

It was along this portion of the trail that I put my air horn to use. I needed the bit of comfort that comes with that. This trail was identical to the type of trail and the same time of year that I had that unforgettable grizzly encounter a few years back. I wasn't in the mood for a repeat today!

The views of the mountains were the pitts today due to the over hanging smoke from fires far off. We could even smell it in the air! This is about as clear a shot that I could get.We ventured along the trail chatting lots and loud and even then we had somewhat of a startle. It was humans though! It turned out being two fellows on mountain bikes, blazing around the corner with no warning what-so-ever, exceeding the speed of light! Well, almost! Well, not quite! Well, it seemed like it! Well, it was no where near that but they were travelling fast!

We finally made it to our chosen destination and settled in for a lengthy time. By now, we could see others behind us hiking up the pass and heading off in different directions. I brought along some Moose Drool that I picked up in Montana to enjoy with lunch. We had lots of time on our hands to relax and just get caught up on our life happenings. If you look at the photo of me with more friends, it's obvious, at some point, others had lots of time on their hands too. This photo shows a portion of what was quite a display of inukshuks linig the gully. It looked like a whole family including Mom and Dad, all the kids, grandparents, it even looked like there were probably aunts, uncles anad cousins there too.

After lunch, we made our way back down the trail, encountering only a few sprinkles, which were welcomed because it was a hot and humid day. Thanks for the hike R, it's always fun being in mountains with you!