It was a quiet night in the basin with a nice creek. An elk walked by our tent around dusk and bugled as he passed. Judy has the same routine every night we camp. She starts at our feet on her sleeping pad and by mornig she is one of us is spooning her. Today was and out and back hike. The plan was to make it to the Goat Rocks. A high 7,000ft walk along a ridge with views on both sides. It was there that I fell in love with the Cascade Mountains. We actually climbed above the glaciers. The smell of wildflowers filled the air with fresh glacial water running down the mountain. An unbelievable sight. Lunch was on our way back by a ledge over looking a 4,000 foot valley below. That is where we found our second Marmot of the trip. Shadow found an interesting item. It looks to be a tooth. Neither of us are sure what type of animal lost it but my guess was a baby Wooly Mammoth. Shadow's vote is a Saber Tooth Tiger. That's what is so fun about hiking. You can make up tall tails as you walk through land that had very little human influence. No turds for Judy today, but is wasn't from a lack of trying. She seems to be on a hunger strike and refuses to eat her all natural dog food. Even when we add some Ramen gravy to it. Next time I'm only packing snacks for her. With that being say, her diet today was a blueberry pop tart for breakfast and an half of an English muffin with salami for lunch. We decided to change our hike back to the car And used the Clear Fork trail leads back to US 12 about 2 mile from the car. It's and unmaintained trail that follows the same water that began as a glacier runoff from where we ate lunch. It's was slow going due to fallen trees. Judy was a trooper jumping up and over the logs. While hiking the path less taken I noticed grey dirt. After a mile or two I figured out what it was. It wasn't dirt, but ash left from over 20 years ago after the Mt. Saint Helens erupted. Tonight we lay creekside. It's our final night before heading back to the real world. Shadow did a great job with a pack weight close to 50lbs for his expedition up Rainier next week. As if there was any question, Judy is having a blast out here she is in her element and is truly a Wild West dog.
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| The Goat Rocks. |
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| The view from the top |
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| Judy smelling the flowers. |
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| Shadow's Future |
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| Dirty feet and a sleepy dog. |
Country Mouse and Shadow
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