Marmot Mountain Climb

It was supposed to rain and be windy and all kinds of unpleasantries, but I joined the Valley Wanderers and we met up at the Fishhook Trailhead intending to hike up Marmot. Up there, the weather was really nice.  It was still very cloudy but with only light winds and no rain. At times we had bright sunshine. That trail is very steep, climbing 2000 feet in the first mile. I was huffing and puffing but able to mostly stay with the others. I got too hot with my raincoat/windbreaker on so had to stop along the way and remove it. Once past that first steep mile, the trail becomes a less steep and very interesting ridge walk. It has lots of picturesque rock formations as well as amazing views down into the valley and the surrounding mountains. We had a couple of short snowfields to traverse. But the snow was very wet and well tracked from previous hikers. I never felt the need to wear spikes. The trail was damp from recent rains, but not muddy anywhere. At times the wind got kind of chilly. But once on the highest point, we found a nice sheltered area to have our snacks and enjoy the view and some sunshine. I thought about how my poor dog, Baby would have enjoyed this climb. She was with me the last time I did it. I really miss her on these hikes. I could see the mine buildings far below. The ridge continues on all the way over to Microdot, but it looks more challenging that I think I'd be ready to tackle. Maybe someday. We turned back and hiked down the way we had climbed. I found that my hiking shoes did fine on the somewhat slippery damp trail. I never did come close to falling. It was a nice easy descent. My GPS logged 4 miles round trip, just enough to feel like I had a good workout but not so long that I was exhausted. I still had plenty of time to mow the lawn and take care of some yard work. Marmot is a great short hike when the weather is good.

Sarah reaching the top!