Category Archives: Moderate Hikes

Mt. Si Hike, June 2013

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Mt. Si
Date: June 14, 2013
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 8 Miles / 13 Kilometers Roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,400 Feet / 1,036 Meters
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the top
Hiking with: with my wonder dog Macho

I needed to get my wonder dog Macho out for a little exercise so I chose Mt. Si to accomplish this task. There were only a few cars in the parking lot, normal for a Friday morning. I decided to relax and just take my time ascending…keeping the heart rate around 140. When I reached the 2 mile marker I noticed an individual creeping up on me at a nice pace. I am not one who appreciates getting passed on the trail and I wasn’t about to let it happen today.

So I picked up my pace and soon enough my heart rate was up in the 160’s. After a quarter of a mile I noticed the individual was actually gaining on me….from here it was game on baby! I put my legs into overdrive and shoved my heart rate into the high 180’s. By the time we reached the top he was only 50 yards behind me. I was totally exhausted and was pleased with the win. I reached a personal best for my heart rate at 189.

I spoke with my so called competition on top after I caught my breath. He too saw me in my bright red shirt at the two mile mark and he thought he would catch me like he usually does with most hikers. For my winning prize, I stopped at the North Bend Bar & Grill for a cold beer and a cup of jambalaya soup.

My Highest Heart Rate Ever!

Oyster Dome Hike, April 2013

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Oyster Dome
Date: April 6, 2013
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Distance: 6.5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 1,900 feet / 579 meters
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Off of SR11, South of Bellingham, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Leashed Dogs Only
Permits: Northwest Forest Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Wet trail
Hiking With: Linna Freeman, Beatrice He, Andreas Wieberneit, Kathrine Howe & Macho my dog.

This is a type of hike you will want to do on a sunny day to cherish all the wonderful views of Puget Sound when you summit. Our group wasn’t that fortunate though, we had cloudy skies with occasional showers and a rare blue sky. I will definitely be back on a sunny day, the views are breathtaking even on a cloudy day.

You will drive right pass this trailhead if you are not looking for the tiny wood sign that says “Pacific Northwest Trail”…there are no indications that you are at the Oyster Dome trailhead. The parking lot is pretty much a widen shoulder on State Route 11 or also called Chuckanut Drive, which is a very serene driving road. For more details on this hike please visit the Washington Trails Association website www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/oyster-dome.

Pratt Lake Hike, November 2012

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Pratt Lake
Date: November 3, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 12 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,300 feet (3,100 ft. total gain)
Time: 4 to 6 hours
Location: Exit 47, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Northwest Forest Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Wet Only, No Snow
Hiking With: Linna Freeman & our dog Macho

If you are looking for a long and easy climb with beautiful lakes along the way, Pratt Lake is your destination. Linna and I decided on Pratt Lake for the fall colors, but fair warning…it’s long hike.

Mt. Washington Hike, October 2012

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Mt. Washington
Date: October 21, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 9 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,200 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Exit 38 near North Bend, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Damp to lightly packed snow on top.
Hiking With: Ben Baker, Linna Freeman, Patricia Chou, Garth Heuchert & my dog Macho

After coming back from a business trip on Friday from the Midwest my body was in need of a basic Northwest hike. The forecast was calling for snow in the Cascade Mountains and I didn’t really want to hike near Snoqualmie Pass because of the first snow of the year could cause a few headaches. Mt. Washington was the chosen one…a not too hard and not too easy type of hike. If you are looking for a secluded hike and close to Seattle, Mt. Washington will accomplish the task.

Trail started of wet and eventually we were tromping in snow; it was about a foot deep by the time we reached the summit. Linna cooked up some homemade tomato soup that I warmed up with my MSR stove for everyone at the top. After the hike the group had dinner at one of our favorite Korean restaurants.

Mt. Dickerman Hike, September 2012

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Mount Dickerman
Date: September 22, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 8.6 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,875 Feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Near Verlot, Washington (Mountain Loop Highway)
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the summit.
Hiking with: Linna Freeman, Garth Heuchert, Patricia Chow, Ben Baker & Macho the dog wonder.

Linna (my beautiful wife) wanted to hike Mt. Dickerman for a while now so she coordinated this excursion with a few friends. Linna gets bored of my I-90 hikes and has been starting to enjoy the Mountain Loop Highway trails located north of Highway 2 in Washington.

The Mountain Loop Highway connects the towns of Granite Falls, Verlot and Darrington, Washington. It is paved for 34 miles from Granite Falls to Barlow Pass (2349′) where the highway becomes unpaved for 13 miles and then paved again for the remaining 9 miles to Darrington. Portions of the unpaved section were closed for several years due to flood damage, the Mountain Loop officially reopened on June 25, 2008.

The 360 view on top of Dickerman is to die for and the forecast called for party sunny skies which was good enough for us. As you can tell from the pictures the forecast was wrong, the weather was like soup on top and there was no view to be had. Linna threw out a proclamation that we must come back to capture the beautiful views that Dickerman has to offer. For more details on the Mt. Dickerman hike click here bit.ly/OSSuyI.

Mount Pilchuck Hike, September 2012

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Mount Pilchuck
Date: September 1, 2012
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Distance: 5.4 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,200 Feet
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: Near Verlot, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Northwest Forest Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the look-out tower.
Hiking with: Linna Freeman, Mike & Michelle Curry

Olive Huang organized this hike and the starting time was 11:00 a.m. at the trailhead. The only problem, we pretty much all showed up at different times. It all worked out though, we all met on top and enjoyed lunched together.

Lake Melakwa Hike, August 2012

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Denny Creek Trail to Melakwa Lake
Date: August 12, 2012
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Distance: 9 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,300 Feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the Melakwa Lake.
Hiking with: Linna Freeman, Cathrine Howe, Beatrice He, Andreas Wieberneit and Macho the wonderdog.

I haven’t hiked up Denny Creek to Melakwa Lake this year and knowing that all the ice was gone from the lake it was time to gather a few friends to enjoy a body numbing experience. Linna (my wife) invited a couple that she recently met in Seattle, Andreas Wieberneit & Beatrice He. We all met up at exit 17, off of I-90 along with another friend, Cathrine Howe.

It was a sunny day with temperatures in the eighties, so by the time we got to the trailhead we had to park along the road due to the amount of people; I figured there would be many on a warm sunny Saturday. After the 4 1/2 mile hike up to lake I was more than ready for that body numbing experience! Yes, the water was ball shrinking freezing, maybe 36 to 40 degrees. After a nine mile hike on a hot day meant for a cold beer at the North Bend Bar & Grill.

Granite Mountain, July 2012

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Granite Mountain
Date: July 27, 2012
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,800 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Exit 47, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Dry to the top.
Hiking With: Rick Massie

I have been absent from the Cascade mountains because of traveling so I was needing a Northwest hike to bring me back to reality. I asked Rick Massie to join me on one of my favorite local hiking trails, Granite Mountain.

Rick came by the house around 6:00 a.m. and loaded his gear into my car, but when I started the car up to take off…my 10 year old 530i decided he was tired. My battery was dead so I quickly got out the charger and started the beast up. We started at the trailhead around 7:15 a.m. and made it to the top in a couple of hours. The trail was dry to the top, but the normal summer route was still packed with snow. We took the boulder field all the way to the look-out tower.

After the hike, we met up with an ex-worker, Jenny Gregg at Duke’s on Lake Union for lunch and a cold beer.

Granite Mountain Hike, June 2012

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Granite Mountain
Date: June 3, 2012
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 4,000 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Exit 47, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Dry to heavy snow at the top.
Hiking With: Dr. Robert McElroy & Macho the Dog Wonder.

Dr. Robert McElroy invited me to hike with him and a few of his friends on Granite Mountain, exit 47 on I-90. The purpose of this hike was to stair-step the winter trail up to the forest ranger’s lookout tower and glissade down on the descent.

When we got out of our cars at the trailhead, there were a couple of forest rangers hanging around. Well, that meant Mr. Macho Man (my dog) had to be on the leash….which is totally miserable for me and him. So, I told Rob I would take off before the forest rangers did so I could take the leash off down the trail. I didn’t know the trail conditions or more importantly I didn’t know that one of the avalanche shoots had a major snow/mud avalanche around March and destroyed part of the trail about a third of a mile in. I tried to negotiate my way through the debris, but somehow I missed the trail and found myself on the other side of the mudslide completely unable to find the trail. I was able to use my cell phone and call the Doc, who was now ahead of me and gave me a little advice on where the trail was. After a hard push I caught up with the group in twenty minutes.

We wanted to take the winter route up, but due to a lack of snow….we stayed on the summer trail until we got out of the tree-line and took the snow straight up to the look-out tower. Snow conditions were perfect, no snowshoes needed http://youtube.com/watch?v=1Egl0SMdD0c&feature=g-upl. We stayed at the top long enough to change our wet shirts, munch down a sandwich and drink some hot tea.

It was a much faster pace down; descending in snow goes much quicker than a normal dry trail and much easier on old knees. When I got back down to the parking lot, a young couple asked me if they could get a ride back to Seattle because they lost their car keys on the trail. This meant that I had to forgo my stop at the North Bend Bar & Grill!

Mt. Si Hike, May 2012

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Mt. Si
Date: May 25, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,400 Feet
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the top
Hiking with: with my wonder dog Macho

Peak Heart Rate

I could have gone to the gym for a work-out, but why would I do that when I have the mountains in my backyard. I needed a quick calorie burn without the hassle of bringing my snow gear, so I chose the first big elevation gain hike from Seattle…yes, the famous crowed Mt. Si. Well, if you hike during the week, it’s not so crowded and the views are wonderful when there are no clouds. Today it was just my wonder dog Macho and myself..

I started at the trailhead at 9:30 a.m. and made it to the first opening at the top at 10:45 a.m….yes, only one hour and 15 minutes; this is only possible when you are by yourself…you get to control the interruptions or the lack of! I went straight up with no breaks except grabbing for my water bottle at the one mile mark. I had a personal best for my peak heart rate…186!

It was a beautiful day on top; I changed out my wet shirt and munched down a peanut butter sandwich before heading down. I stopped at my favorite after hike dwelling, the North Bend Bar & Grill for my usual Jambalaya soup and a cold pint of Mac & Jack’s African Amber.