Sam I Am: Kendall Catwalk

I had Friday off work and I had an nagging to head out to the Kendall Catwalk. I think that it was in my head since it was a possible exit point for Jason and me when we were at Alaska Lake a few weekends back. I mentioned it to Candice (who also had Friday off) and she signed on. I think that she thought she was getting out for a much shorter adventure though.

After running a few errands in town, I picked up Candice in the stinky, furry Subaru and we headed out to Snoqualmie Pass. It was 11:20 before we got on the trail.

The weather report for this day was all over the board. NOAA said something like 50% chance of sun / 50% chance of showers. (I really enjoyed that the weather report for the day really seemed to be based on my general outlook on life.) Since I am a glass is half full kind of person, I was expecting the 70 degrees and sun. Needless to say, it was wet.

We were probably no more than a mile in when Candice's boots started generating that trailmans favorite "hot-spot". But, she was a trooper, and she stuck it out. (Again, I don't think she realized that 10 miles and 2700 feet of elevation gain lay between her and her flip flops in the car.) She walked funny at times, but I walk funny most the time, so I won't hold that against her.

The bad weather actually made for a really cool hike. It made it very eerie. Often times you couldn't see into the depths off the side of the trail, leading you to believe that an endless abyss filled with sharks (or something else scary that makes sense in this setting) lies just below.

We made it to the Catwalk after about 2.5 hours. It wasn't raining on us, but the clouds were blowing through and kept everything very wet. It was extremely cold up top, hard to believe it was August, and my trusty Lucid jacket made an appearance. We had some cool views, made unique by all the fog and clouds and the ocassional sunbreak. Prusik even had a small chipmunk to taunt him. I love the catwalk.

Candice powered onward with her hamburger feet and we headed back down. Another 2.5 hours, a Pika, maybe a marmot or two, and a few friendly hikers later and we were back at the car... just in time for a torrential downpour to set in.( I am often amazed at the luck with weather that I have.) Our reward for a beautiful day on the trail... a pint and a yummy salmon sandwhich at the NBBG.

Yet another great day in the life...
Mandatory pre-hike photo