Lazy Mountain

 Finally the weather was good enough that I could give the Lazy Mountain Trail a try.  I really like it because it's very steep and difficult and it is such a good workout.  I was a little dismayed at first because even though the weather was really nice, there were clouds swirling around Lazy Mountain and Matanuska Peak.  I wondered if I would end up hiking in the fog and never get to see the view. It was only 40 degrees when we started out so I was also a little worried that I'd get cold. But the temperature was fine. The steepness quickly warmed me up.  The trail was still wet from all the rain but fortunately it wasn't muddy. It was actually a little better traction that on hot days when it is slippery dust. I didn't need to grab onto tree limbs to climb like I so often have had to do in the past.   Baby was pulling really hard and I was breathing hard most of the time.  She was not interested in stopping while I caught my breath.  As soon as we reached the halfway point at the picnic bench the fog started rolling in. It wasn't very thick so I decided to continue.  I was pleasantly surprised when we reached the upper picnic bench because the clouds parted enough that Matanuska Peak suddenly appeared with a beautiful coating of new snow.  It looked like the Himalayas peeking its rugged head through those clouds.  From the top there wasn't much of a view of the valley below but the view of Mat Peak was just gorgeous.  We took the Lazy Moose Trail down from the halfway point mostly just for variety  I don't mind going back down the steep trail but the Lazy Moose Trail is so much prettier.  It was nice for a change and not so hard on the knees, even though it is at least a mile or two longer. I was able to run most of the way down Lazy Moose Trail.