I’d been dying to get back to Mount Townsend since around this time one year ago. The way the snow sparkled atop the mountain peaks made my soul sing louder than a yellow canary, and I’ve literally thought about my last trip once every month.
At least.
This time however, the snow was hard to spot. The hotter than normal summer we’ve been having must have melted it all away.
This was a perfect example of how change is constant, which is funny because I mention something similar in my last post about this hike. Despite hiking this mountain during the same time of year, the views were slightly different.
I did enjoy an apple in the sky though, just like last time.
My friend and I got an early start to beat the heat this past Sunday, but I still felt the affects of the 90 degree stagnant air at a few spots. I’m a wuss with the heat.
Sundays have become my day for adventure. I always have them off of work, and try to take advantage of them in any way that I can. Hiking is always my favorite choice.
The trees are my happy place, even when I become so enraptured by them that I don’t see the large rocks in front of me. I took my first trail tumble, which was too close for comfort to a large ledge. It hurt like hell, but man was it comical.
I’ll spare you the close up photo, but I’ll just say as I type this post my knee continues to throb. The first thing I thought of as I was going down was how much I regretted not purchasing the mini first aid kit each and every time I stepped foot into REI.
I had it in my hand for purchase multiple times, yet always set it down. It’s now the first thing on my list for my next trip to REI. I rinsed as much as I could with the water I had, and continued the remaining 4 miles down the mountain.
Lesson learned.
Scraped knees aside this was a lovely way to spend the day. Four solid hours in the beauty of nature fills me with enough gusto to power through the week ahead.
Until next time mountain trails, I’ll be prepared with band aids, antiseptic wipes, and a tourniquet. Just kidding on that last one, let’s hope I never need one of those.
Q: Have you taken any trail tumbles?