It had become an evening ritual – setting everything up the night before so that I could be efficient in the morning and not waste a moment of daylight. An alarm set to wake me before sunrise? Check. A full tank of gas? Check. Almond butter and jelly sandwich in the fridge? Check. Two liters of water in my Camelback? Check. Deciding on how many layers to wear and setting my hiking boots by the front door? Check. All my other gear neatly shoved into my pack? Check. A post-it note on my backpack to remind me to take that sandwich out of the fridge and pack it? Check.

Over the past three months, I willingly lugged a heavy backpack a total of 75 miles over a combined elevation gain of 20,000 feet on eight wildly different and exhilarating hikes, fulfilling a promise I made to myself in June – a free weekend in Seattle meant at least a day exploring the mesmerizing wonderland that is the mountains, forests, and lakes of the Pacific Northwest. Covered in sweat and dirt but surrounded by family and friends both old and new, few things have made me smile so wide or feel more alive.

This summer, I laughed so hard my cheeks hurt, delivered a handwritten letter to a mailbox 4000 feet up above the clouds, huffed my way to alpine lakes with crisp turquoise waters, climbed a metal ladder nestled between rocks to stand inside a restored fire lookout, scrambled up a mountain pass as the wind whipped snowflakes sideways past my face, realized not everyone shares my love for the jingle of a bear bell, spotted a wild mountain goat perched on a rock, spent way too much money at REI, gazed upon vistas so breathtaking it brought me to tears, missed bumping into a bear by five minutes, and felt the rush of post-hike endorphins that lasted for days on end.

As I flip through pictures of scenery and vistas from this summer’s adventures, I pause on the pictures that shine brightest – those that capture smiling faces. The greatest privilege of moving to Seattle has been meeting, and reconnecting, with an amazing group of human beings who, like me, relish time in the great outdoors, even if that sometimes means being rained on or returning home covered in sweat and dirt.

As I gaze out my living room window after another few days traveling for work, I notice that the leaves in the yard behind me have faded from green to orange and lay scattered on the ground. The weeks seem to move much quicker between seasons, and all the travel makes it that much easier to lose track of time. As the seasons run into one another, it’s easy to pull out the fall clothes without taking a breath and giving summer both a proper farewell and a thank you.

 “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” Ferris Bueller

As the sun set over Golden Gardens on a chilly Seattle evening in mid-August, one of our first indicators that fall weather was on the horizon, Deanna, Steph, Brenda and I laughed and joked about the “crunchy granola” lifestyle we so willingly embraced, and celebrated, the last few months. I like to think that we didn’t choose the crunchy granola lifestyle – it chose us. The Granola Girls has a nice ring to it.  In honor of celebrating the first official summer of The Granola Girls, here’s just a taste of what I will always remember from this beautiful season of hikes.

The shared experience is the greatest joy of hiking.

Epic views are a bonus after a strenuous and uphill climb, not a guarantee in the misty or smoky Pacific Northwest. While I would have loved to be rewarded with sweeping panoramic views of mountain ranges after every ascent this summer, I spent more than one occasion gazing out at a wall of wildfire smoke, fog or clouds – often so thick you would never guess that on a clear day, mountains could even be seen on the horizon. Fortunately, when you spend hours chatting and laughing with friends, being able to sit and eat a sandwich in good company is a pretty good consolation for a lack of views. I would trade good views for good company any day of the week.

Don’t underestimate the magic when willpower meets preparation.

Even when I’m bright and shiny with anticipation of a hike, I’m not always without pre-hike-anxiety. When Deanna first suggested Mailbox, I googled it and I honestly questioned my fitness level when I read the trail description:

A rough climber’s route, it is an unrelentingly steep, rooted, rocky, muddy torture test, a crucible in which the summits of summer are forged. More than almost any other trail, it assaults gravity with single-minded determination, proceeding more or less due east straight up a ridge line to the summit, gaining some 3,800 feet in two and a half miles…

GULP.

While I joked with Deanna that I wasn’t sure my physical fitness was on par for a hike like Mailbox, my joke had a lot of truth to it and I really did have pre-hike anxiety. Surprisingly, Mailbox turned out to be one of my favorite hikes and one of my favorite days of this past summer, and my legs carried me up that incline with more ease than I gave them credit for.

Even though Mailbox was not the muddy torture test I anticipated, Blanca Lake turned out to by my torture test. The trail can be both an inspiring and incredibly humbling place. The hikes I expected to suffer the most on brought me the immense joy, while the ones I didn’t anticipate a struggle really tested my physical and mental toughness. Be it weather, smoke, or a disproportionate pack weight, I had my fair share of tough hikes this summer.

The beauty of this is that the only real way to get in better shape for hiking is to hike, and making sure to carry lightest pack that still has all the essentials you need will. It makes for much happier legs. That’s a lesson I could have only learned since from over-packing and under-training – until the Enchantments that is.

Post-hike-high is a real thing, and can last for days

Ah, the Enchantments. When Steph and Chris joked that they ran out of adjectives to describe this alpine wonderland, I could only guess at the overwhelming beauty we would encounter. Even as rain poured down on me and I clutched on to hand-warmers in my sopping wet gloves, I understood what they meant. Picking my head up and looking around me, the unspoiled landscape nearly brought me to tears.

The relentless beauty surrounded me, and didn’t fade from my memory even after we huffed over 22 miles and reached the end of the trail 11 hours later. By the time I walked into my apartment in Seattle that night, it was almost midnight and nearly 20 hours since I had walked out the door that morning, well before sunrise. My body was humming with that post-hike rush, and despite expending nearly all my energy hiking, I could not even fall asleep right away, with memories of the day washing over me.

Spending so many hours on the trail leaves me with a feeling that I can’t replicate through any other activity. It’s such a simple act – placing one foot in front of the other – but pairing it with physical and mental roadblocks makes it so rewarding and more meaningful than a simple walk.

When I woke up on Sunday morning after hiking the Enchantments, I broke a promise I made to myself – I would “just chill” on Sunday, lay in bed and not walk anywhere at all unless absolutely necessary. Turns out, I couldn’t even sleep late on Sunday. I woke up naturally, earlier than I do on a given weekday, and cannot remember the last time I felt so nourished, inspired, rested, healthy, strong, and wide awake. I had not even anticipated the achievement I would feel from completing my longest day hike to date and only having some aches in my hips and knee. A wave of gratefulness and awe had washed over me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling.

Every blueberry tastes a little different

This phrase means more to me than I can put into words, so you’ll have to ask Deanna if you want to know what this cryptic phrase really means in it’s entirety. To me, it’s a good reminder that even when things seem the same – like a container of blueberries – if you really pay attention, you’ll notice there are actually beautiful and intricate differences between them. Next time you’re eating blueberries, taste a large squishy one and then a baby blueberry and you’ll know exactly what I mean.

If you enter REI there’s an incredibly high chance you will find something you convince yourself you need, didn’t plan to buy but do so anyway, and later wonder how you ever lived without it.

This summer, I averaged at least 1 REI visit, per week. It helps that the flagship location is within walking distance of my apartment, and that I always seem to find I’m without at least one essential item that I need for my next adventure. This summer’s haul? An Osprey daypack, a compact Sawyer water filter, a new camp chair (thanks Dad!), a headband-style Buff, a fleece hat, Honey Stinger hiking treats, a pink pair of Smartwool socks, scent-blocking food storage bags, a whistle, a carbineer, and multiple maps – Rainer National Park, North Cascades National Park, the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

Trail mileage is always underrated

Whether it’s the Washington Trail Association or All Trails, always add 20% to the estimated mileage that you read online. Maybe I don’t walk in a straight line, but eventually I stopped being surprised when both my Garmin watch and my Garmin GPS informed me that we hiked much further than my online source suggested. 

Always go for the Yahtzee

It’s a fascinating concept and a great metaphor for life – always go for the Yahtzee. Anyone that knows my philosophy on luck, I am a firm believer that you can will things to happen and the universe will be on your side if you really trust it to do right by you. This also proved to be true in the game of Yahtzee. After a disappointing first game, I decided instead of trying to roll for a full house or a small straight, I would re-roll every turn in hopes of rolling a Yahtzee and inevitably winning the game. While it is a small sample size and I probably had a good dose of luck on my side – I bet you can guess who rolled two Yahtzees and won the second game.

As I get ready to dust off my skis and place my hiking boots toward the back of my closet, my heart is full with all the beautiful moments from this summer, and seared in my memory are the smiles and laughs shared over the many miles of trail. For that, I am eternally grateful.

If you’re interested in exploring the the trails of the Pacific Northwest, check out my list of summer hikes below, and remember when life gives you mountains, put on your boots and hike

1. June 24, 2018 – Crystal Lakes (Mt Rainer Area) – trailhead to Upper Crystal Lake Camp, Lower Crystal Lake Camp, length: 6 miles roundtrip, gain: 2600 ft., highest point: 5828 ft., hiking buddy: Hutch
2. June 30, 2018 – Mailbox Peak (Snoqualmie Region) – Old Trail Up – 2.7 miles New Trail Down – 4.7 miles, length: 7.4 miles roundtrip, gain: 4000 ft., highest point: 4822 ft., hiking buddies: Deanna, Hutch, Biti
3. July 28, 2018 – Sourdough Ride Trail to 2^nd Burroughs, return via Sunrise Rim Trail (Mt Rainer National Park) – length: 6.0 miles roundtrip, gain: 1200 ft., highest Point: 7400 ft., hiking buddies: Deanna, Steph
4. August 5, 2018 – Mt Pilchuck (North Cascades) – length: 5.4 miles roundtrip, gain: 2300 ft., highest point: 5327 ft., hiking buddy: San
5. August 12, 2018 – Blanca Lake (Central Cascades) – length: 13 miles roundtrip (road washout), gain: 3900 ft., highest point: 4600 ft., hiking buddies: Elisa and Steph
6. August 18, 2018 – Skyline Divide Trail (Mount Baker Wilderness) – length: 7.7 miles roundtrip, gain: 2,381 ft., highest point: 6563 ft., hiking buddies: Steph, Deanna, Brenda
7. September 8, 2018 – Cascade Pass (North Cascades) – length: 7 miles roundtrip, gain: 1800 ft., highest point: 5392 ft., hiking buddies: Dad & black bear we missed by 5 minutes
8. September 22, 2018 – Enchantments Thru-Hike (Central Cascades) – Stuart Lake Trailhead to Colchuck Lake, ascend through Aasgard Pass, descend via Snow Lakes Trail to Snow Lakes Trailhead, length: 22 miles, gain: 2600 feet (note: punishing 1,900 foot ascent in less than ½ a mile via Aasgard pass), highest Point: 7800 feet, hiking buddies: Steph, Natalie, Bill, ChrisNow, let’s get ready for ski season!