OK--I just made that number up, but I bet we could come up with that many reasons just by naming all the good restaurants. I should preface this post with a little background info: we are NOT having summer in Seattle this year. We are dealing with this by considering it a really mild winter (soon to be followed by a really snowy winter, we hope) and pretending that we weren't really expecting summer, anyway. The 4th of July was unusually beautiful and warm and all of Seattle was lulled into believing that we were due for a perfect summer of sunny and 70 every single day. Apparently, the very same front that is keeping the east coast in temperatures over 100 is keeping the PNW in the 60s and rainy....I definitely prefer the latter. So, we hit the trail despite the drizzle and headed to "Reason # 3472."
Mossy
Damp
Fernilicious
Elijah's hair serves as our humidity detector.
Most of the trail was steep, but very well maintained and just a little crowded.
We found an abundance of dogs, people, and clouds at the top.
We weren't there long before the clouds began to lift and the sun came out. Everyone was squinting and complaining about the sudden muggy heat---it was pushing 70 degrees!
Note the high alpine lake in the distance!
As is always the case with a steep climb....the walk down was fast and a serious knee-breaker. The boys loved looking up at our accomplishment once we were finished. Best thing about an "urban" hike---we jumped back in the car and drove 10 minutes to a great restaurant for a late lunch.
Stats. for Rattlesnake Ledge:
Distance: 4 miles (2 straight up, 2 back down)
Elevation at top: 2078 ft
Elevation gain: 1160 ft. in 2 miles
Jellybeans: 6 each
EF rating: steep, but easy. awesome views, cool crevasse at the top that made mama very nervous.
JJ rating: crowded, but worth it for the short drive. perfect for a rainy day.
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