Weekly Hike #3: Little Mount Si

The Fourth of July, Independence Day in the U.S., is a day that Mr. D and I often go on a hike, and often, that hike is up Little Mount Si. So this year, that's where we headed. Little Mount Si is in North Bend, Washington, and lies in the shadow of Mount Si (3,100 feet), which was made famous by the 1990s television series, Twin Peaks. Little Mount Si, is, of course not as high (about a thousand feet), and the trail is relatively easy, except for the very beginning and the end, which are both quite steep.

Here are some scenes from our hike:

This bench was erected in memory of Doug Hansen, who died on Mount Everest in 1996.

The deep and green forest.

 

Mount Si looms above Little Mount Si. Mr. D hikes to just below the large rock on the right at least once a week throughout most of the year.

North Bend, the Snoqualmie Valley and Rattlesnake Mountain. The little notch on Rattlesnake Mountain, just below the last cloud on the left, is Rattlesnake Ridge, where we hiked last week.

Lunch with a view.

Dessert: fresh, local, organic strawberries!

Weekly Hike #2: Rattlesnake Ridge

Mr. D and I took this hike, last Tuesday, a cloudy and cool day, with showers in the forecast. Cloudy and cool is perfect for hiking, and fortunately, we didn't get rained on. We went further up into the foothills, just south of the town of North Bend, to Rattlesnake Lake and the trailhead for the Rattlesnake Ridge trail. The name of both the lake and the trail are misleading, as there are no rattlesnakes west of the Cascades. The lake is part of the Cedar River Watershed; the whole area is maintained by Seattle Public Utilities and access is free to the public.

We started our hike at Rattlesnake Lake.

There were many large, moss-covered boulders along the trail.

Broad-leaved starflowers brightened our path.

The best trail snack this week was cherries!

 

The trail was well-maintained, and once at Rattlesnake Ridge (a 1,000 foot elevation gain), we had lunch with some beautiful views:

Looking across the Snoqualmie Valley to Mount Si.

Mr. D surveying the view.

 

There's still lots of snow in the mountains.

I have also been knitting a lot in the past week, and I'll have a report on my current projects coming up soon.