Hike 8: Mt. Si

After a long week of baking cookies and a long day of selling cookies on Saturday, we were pretty tired on Sunday. But we thought we'd better go for a hike with our packs for the first time anyway. We decided on Mt. Si because it's easy to access off of I-90 and we knew that it would be a good workout. It is eight miles roundtrip with an elevation of 3,900 feet. The last time we were at the top was in late June, the day before the Shore Run/Walk, a fundraising event for the Hutch.

After loading our packs with a gallon of water, fleece blankets, food and camera, my pack weighed 25 lbs. and Brian's pack weighed 30 lbs. This was the first time that we wore our packs on any hike. For the climb up Mt. Rainier, we'll need to be prepared to hike with 40 lb. packs. Overall our packs served us well and we weren't sore at all except for our legs, which carried the brunt of the weight up and down the hill.

We made it to the top in 1:50, which isn't too bad for our first time with packs on. On our way up we had another pug sighting! The pug was going down the trail, pausing to take in the view and then proceeding down the trail. It was much older than the other pug we saw going up Little Si. We presume that the pug's owner didn't have to carry it up Mt. Si, but I can't say for sure...










Brian and I agree that it is easier going up than going down because on the way down we're so focused on getting back to the car and heading home. Most often our thoughts drift to what we're having for our next meal...we talk about food a lot...hmmmm. We had a great hike and it definitely helped us gain confidence for carrying weight. We haven't quite decided where we'll hike this weekend...to be continued.