2021 Hike 15: Mt. Washington

On this hike, I went up to the summit of Mt. Washington. Mt. Washington is one of the toughest hikes I have done, but the views were incredible! On this hike, I broke 3200 feet in elevation, which is fantastic, because it’s getting really close to where I used to be when Dad and I hiked together. The trail actually starts off at John Wayne Pioneer trail, which is a 110 mile jaunt from Rattlesnake Lake near Issaquah to the Washington-Idaho border.

After about a half mile on the John Wayne trail, there is a turnoff that begins going up…for a long time. You ascend about 3200 feet in about 4.5 miles. Thankfully, there are places where it is level, so you can catch your breath.

The first break in the trees, about 700 feet up

Several streams actually cut over the trail, so my poles came in super handy.

What I didn’t expect, was the snowfield! After going up about 2500 feet, there was actually snow leftover in June! This was pretty cool to see, and I always love being able to walk through different climate zones on the same trail. It reminded me of traversing the snow and scree trails with Dad by Egg Lake, west of Copper Mountain. There is something surreal about traversing snow in 80 degree weather.

I thought I’d gotten near the top of the mountain when I hit the snow…I was very wrong. There was still about 1000 feet left to go! The last little stretch is tight switchbacks with intermittent snowpack, and some of the area is quite exposed. Some of the boulder scramble was difficult, but I never felt unsafe. On the exposed section near the summit, I learned that frequent breaks are okay, and that we need to proactively hydrate even when we’re not thirsty. I did not do this, and ended up getting nauseous during one of the exposed parts. I had to sit in the shade and slowly drink water until I felt better, then really try to pace myself, no matter how excited I am to almost be done.

Mt. Si and the “Haystack” scramble in the distance

Finally at the summit, it was one of the most rewarding views I have ever seen. It was a wonderfully clear day, so I was able to see Mt. Baker from the north face, and Mt. Rainier from the south face.

On the trail, a fellow hiker agreed to take my picture in the pose that Dad did on the way to Copper Lake so long ago. She is unfortunately not named in this blog post, because I forgot to ask for consent to publish on the website. Information security is very important to me, so I want to honor peoples’ privacy. This might be a good time to note that everyone on this blog has given me consent to publish; if you go on a hike with me, you will never be unknowingly broadcast over the internet. If the person I met on Mt. Washington happens to read this though, and wants to be on the blog, that person can absolutely shoot me a quick message providing consent to publish, and I would be happy to make edits. :)

Couldn’t resist doing the pose that Dad did 20 years ago

As I was coming back down from the mountain, I couldn’t help but think that Dad was still sending me on adventures after being gone, to see the world he saw. Recently Brook showed me the movie “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” and that really resonated, and inspired me to climb this mountain. Coming out of my comfort zone, I was able to get some adventure, and see some of the world that Dad loved so much.