We had an unseasonably long stretch of sunshine and blue skies at the end of January, and I was fortunate enough to convince my pal Caitlin to come with me on a Sunday hike. Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal, Caitlin and I love to hike, but we’ve both switched into winter mode (for me this means running, and for Caitlin it means baking.)
Not only have neither of us hiked much since September (we went together once in October, and twice in December), neither of us have climbed over 3k feet of elevation since…well honestly I don’t know when. Most of our 2024 hikes were in the 1700-2700 feet of elevation gain range, and while we likely did one or two hikes around 3k feet of gain, I can’t think of them.
All that to say, it only made sense that I choose a hike with over 3k feet of elevation gain for two people who haven’t hiked much lately.
I chose to hike Mount Si, a trail I used to frequent often when I first started hiking. I chose this trail because although the total elevation (4167ft) is questionable for winter (snow, ice), the trail head is directly off the freeway making it easy for my Toyota to drive to. I refuse to drive anywhere sketchy with possible snow, but with all the sunshine I knew I would make it.
Well, I mostly knew. I had a small bit of anxiety about ice because it never got above 30F while driving there, but clearly I’ve lived to tell the tale.
We arrived at the trail head around 0900, with plenty of parking spots available. This is a popular hike, but overall we had lots of moments without others. We took this hike much slower than I ever have before, and this made the entire climb enjoyable for me. I never once felt winded. The majority of the hike is in a forested canopy, but it was sunshine city once we reached the top.
Don’t let the blue sky fool you, it was COLD, COLD, COLD! There was an ever so slight dusting of snow at the top.
We sat to snack and savor the view while the sun attempted to warm the skin under my 850 down jacket. Not even this layer could keep me warm once my fingers got cold. Raynaud’s be damned, this didn’t stop me from climbing up some of the surrounding rocks for better 360 degree views. I noticed a sign that was completely covered in stickers, and after going back in time to read my first post about Mount Si (oh my gosh the NOSTALGIA!) I saw what the sign looked like way back in 2014!
Aside from the stickers I think the main difference is the photo quality. Yikes. As you can see the sign used to warn hikers about the Haystack Scramble, which is considered the “true summit” of Mount Si. You will never catch me going that extra bit, the flat ground summit is more than enough for me.
After stuffing my face with my summit potatoes, we made our way back down to the car.
I tend to stay fairly active year round, and I didn’t find myself too gassed by the end of this 8 mile trek. Ironically I was due to start half marathon training the very next day, but I planned to give myself a free pass (if needed) for the first day because this hike was more than enough conditioning. I woke up the next morning a bit sore, but I managed to run my scheduled 3 miles at a very moderate pace.
It wasn’t until Tuesday the DOMS really kicked in. That seems to be the normal for me. The day after using dormant muscles I am ok, but two days after I can barely walk down the stairs.
No regrets though, I finished my first week of half marathon training yesterday and I didn’t have to alter any of the training plan. I’m stoked we snuck this hike in when we did because I never have high hopes for winter hiking. My activity for the next 11 weeks will be finishing out my training plan, and then running my half. From there I will likely switch back into hiking mode.
Unless the sun comes out again, then all bets are off.
Q: Do you have an easy time ignoring when the sun comes out? Maybe it’s because I live somewhere with a good bit of grey (which I love), but when the sun comes out I feel like I HAVE to go outside.
Blissfulbritt 