Shi Shi Memories

Name the best memory that pops in your head. That's my new favorite question to ask around a campfire. I came up with it to counteract the scary ghost story session we had on our previous trip. (fun in it's own right; but I needed to be able to get to sleep!) I absolutely love the sometimes funny, sometimes touching, sometimes unexpectedly strange answers that help provide a window into someone's life. Of course, I'm not going to disclose any of them here; but I will say that Shi Shi beach may be the memory that pops into my head from this time forward.

Okay, not really...it just made a good intro. Watching my grandson come into the world changed my life--I can't even talk about it without getting teary. Although, I will say that Shi Shi (pronounced Shy Shy. I've been saying it wrong for years!) is up there in the top 20. When you have such high expectations, and they are actually met...well, we all know that is a rare thing.  

Almost there!

The ropes down the last quarter mile to the beach
are not nearly as extreme as I was expecting. I might even
call them unnecessary.

This was my 2nd trip to the area (my first being a day hike on the Ozette Triangle; another top 20 memory) and my 2nd attempt at Shi Shi. (because of a chicken out this January due to weather) Now that I have a full time job, I can't fly by the seat of my pants quite like I used to. Three weeks ahead I have to put in my time off requests, and then pray to the weather Gods for favor. And did I ever score this time! I could hardly believe the 0% forecast; and no sacrifice was even made!

The first campsite you come to is huge;
but who wants all that traffic?

Gotta hunt for a site on the beach!

The first thing you have to know about planning a hike here, it is all about the tides. Low tide = good experience/High tide = tent being washed out to sea. I'm sorry you have to copy and paste, but here is a great site (http://kaleberg.com/tides/lapush/index.html) because the good tides for hiking are highlighted in green, making it somewhat idiot proof. 

3 measly miles and they are conked out!

Another mile or so of sand walking to get to
the famous rock formations

A mile is a long way, apparently.

But worth it!!!

Second thing to keep in mind, a ferry ride will mostly likely be part of the plan, which always has the potential to screw you over. My convincing Heather we did not need reservations at 7:30 am on a Saturday (why???) almost ruined everything. 

Third thing to know is to bring your dollars. $$ for the ferry, $$ for the wilderness hiking permit at the Information Center in Port Angeles, $$ for the Makah recreation pass in Neah Bay, $$ for the parking on private property.

Fun at the Wilderness Center! The permit is 10 BUCKS, ha ha!
(actually, I think that is an elk)

$20 for overnight parking in somebody's yard.
The money box is right by the house.

This is not a cheap trip--which is why it is not a good option for a solo hike. Sharing is caring! And besides, if you're looking for solitude, this is not the place you want to be. I understood a weekend would be busy, even in May, but my goodness!! I can't even imagine what a weekend in the summer must look like!

Lots of peeps! Zoom in and you'll see some are SWIMMING.
No thank you!

Though, for me at least, it really was part of the fun. From the first step on the beach with a "full moon" view of a sunbather changing into her suit, to the late afternoon group yoga show, to our girls taking turns carrying an older woman's pack up the very steep 1/4 mile incline on our way out; Shi Shi was not just about being in nature, but being a part of humanity.

Downward dog, everybody!!

Looking like a pro!!

I loved watching all the different groups of people--family and friends, young and old, making memories just like we were. Though, we all need to be better about leaving no trace, or I'm afraid Shi Shi may not always have all the freedoms it has now. 

Junk art in the trees is cool! That's called being resourceful! 
But left behind booze bottles and toilet paper is not cool!
We can do better!

"Leave no trace" does not mean you can't make a little seat from a stump.
Thank you whoever did this; I loved my chair!!

It is a privilege to get to camp ANYWHERE on this beach (again, be mindful of the tide line) as well as be able to make whatever kind of blazing fire you want. Let's not wreck it for future generations. I hope my daughter can come back some day, maybe even with her own kids, and be able to tell about her favorite memory of her first trip to the glorious wonders of Shi Shi. 

P.S. Hiking lesson #50: (geez, it seems like it should be more profound!) Never trust a 0% rain forecast. A poncho weighs next to nothing; thank God I threw one in last second, and Heather brought 2 as back up. Even a drizzle makes for a lot of wetness in a big hurry. 

Bye, Patrick!!!

Washington Rules, Colorado Drools

My co-worker, Kimberly, loves Colorado. She talks about it...A LOT. And even though she grew up here, she still dares to compare; and actually proclaims Colorado as more beautiful. Inconceivable!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, of course, but I knew Kimberly was not looking at Washington through "hiker eyes"; so I was determined to give her a different perspective. 

I would have preferred to get way up in the wilderness (maybe not "14er" up...like that's so special ;)) but in May the really good stuff is still covered in snow. I had been seeing a flux of pictures coming through my news feed from the Diablo Lake area (this is due to Hwy 20 opening it's winter gate for the season, and the fact there are some fantastic photographers on the "Washington Hikers and Climbers" FB group) and decided it would have to do for the Washington vs Colorado face off. 

A drive on the North Cascades Hwy will fill your scenery tank even if you don't plan on hiking, but if you have time to hike, you will find many options. Even though it's a bit of a drive to get to there, the good news is you won't have to worry about heading up miles of forest roads. As far as I know, all the trailheads in this area are pretty much pull off the highway and you're there close. You do have to drive a few minutes to get to the Diablo trailhead; but the drive over the particularly beautiful dam is well worth it. 

The easy access and large parking lot, complete with obvious signage, gives you the impression everything about this hike is going to be totally straight forward. I definitely did not want anything complicated, because I needed some redemption with Kimberly.

You see, this was actually my second hike with Kimberly. We both attended a work sponsored hike at Sharpe's Park last November, where we tried to be the cool kids and brake away form the group to do our own (far superior, of course) hike.

Sharpe's Park Map; not helpful if your phone goes dead

Shape's park. "Maybe this is where we will be spending the night?"

I tried to pull off a "don't worry, I'm sort of an expert at this" persona by taking a picture of the map with my phone. After my phone died, we got so helplessly confused by the loops we actually considered bush whacking through the forest to intrude upon some private property to possibly call for help; but finally ended up being rescued by a kind hearted fellow hiker who literally had to lead us out. So, some image damage control was in order. Unfortunately, our Diablo Lake outing was not going to convince Kimberly of my navigation skills; though, I will still say it wasn't my fault.

The above sign was obviously placed here to help alleviate any confusion as to which direction to go...apparently the arrow on the trail marker pointing right was not clear enough. The problem is the word LEFT in bold letters and the fact most people tend to skim when reading directions. (blah, blah, blah, LEFT, blah blah blah)

Now, I'm sure I would have read the sign carefully, except I trusted the gals who were ahead of us had already done so. Hiking lesson #49: "Never assume other hikers are any less stupid than you". After catching up to them, we all four tried our darnedest to follow the pseudo trail that is a little ways down the service road we had turned left on. You would have thought the idea that we read the sign wrong would have came to us sooner, but the power of the clearly dominate LEFT instruction was a strong force. 

This is as close as you're getting to Ross Dam

After figuring out our mistake, we thankfully finished the remainder of the hike without incident. I will confess though, that I had it in my mind this trail would take us all the way to Ross Dam, instead of just a lookout to see it. But it does take you all the way down to Diablo Lake, where you will find a suspension bridge; and if you cross it, you will find on the other side a boat house for the lake "taxis".

Cheers!

We found the cement platform makes an excellent spot for a picnic!! Just be sure to please respect the signs and do not enter the restricted boathouse, even if the door is wide open and there is not a soul there to catch you. 

Kimberly demonstrating what not to do

On the drive back we stopped at my favorite Hwy 20 burger and beer joint, the Birdsview Brewery. I'm sure Kimberly would argue Colorado has better beers too...whatever, she still bought a growler to bring home. I didn't ask her if she still considered Colorado the winner of the scenic war; I knew that was a debate I was never going to win. Nevertheless, this amazing state I call home will always have my heart. 

I still love you, Kimberly; Colorado lover and all!

First Backpack of 2016! Baker Lake, North to South

Like almost all my overnight trips, this year's first backpack started with a lot of big plans that never materialized. Why not organize a big group of moms to go over to Lake Chelan for a grand 3 day adventure to Stehekin with our daughters over spring break?!?! I'll tell you why; because the Lady of the Lake doesn't run the boat that drops hikers off on the trail until May. (thank you again, NWHikers.net, for all your wisdom!) But if it did, most of the moms had other obligations anyway; so even if I could come up with a plan B (this list is SHORT for a non-freezing experience outdoors in the northwest in April) it was unlikely I could get my daughter to go with just me; and spending time together during spring break was kind of the whole point.

Then my daughter made a new friend who was totally excited about doing her first backpack, and I remembered that the 14.5 East Bank Baker Lake "thru" hike has been on my to do list for years, and it is totally doable in April!!! Most likely wet and miserable, but doable! I also made a new friend, Mimi, who was totally excited about getting back into hiking...and wallah! Spring Break Plan B was set!

Because the weather went from "Hooray, maybe we won't get rained on!" to "Holy crap, almost 80 degrees in April, are you kidding me?!?!", two more friends hopped on board; so we were almost back to a full swing horde! Onward ho!!! (I said that a few times while hiking as if there was a comma after onward and an "es" on ho. Yes, in some ways my humor has not progressed past the 5th grade)

Always gots to get the crazy shot in before bed

I like to hang with immature goofballs!

I am going to lead into the rest of this story by finally stating a hiking lesson that I have learned over and over but have never made official...Hiking Lesson # 48: always remember that even though you think you have a plan (be it A, B or even C) you don't really ever have a plan. Do not be afraid to embrace the plan that presents itself when it is needed. (another lesson that can apply to life in general)

We left with a full car at 11:30 am to meet Mimi at the turn off to Baker Lake Road. After dropping off her car at the South trail head, we all headed with a now illegally full car to the North trail-head, and finally started hiking at 1:45.

I was so happy to have a fellow "speed impaired" hiker to keep me company! Debbie, bless her heart, tries to keep it in a low gear when she's with me; but this time I gave her permission to go full throttle...as long as she agreed to watch over the 3 teens.(all long legged speed demons) After this whole experience, she has been dubbed the "camp counselor"-- she earned it!

The Camp Counselor in action!

She had her hands full!
I don't know what I would have done without her!

We agreed to just meet at our destination (Silver Creek) even though it meant passing the bigger Noisy Creek Camp. Although Silver Creek only has 3 sites, it would cut our next day's mileage by 1; and I highly doubted we needed to worry about not having the place to ourselves on a weekday.

With less than a half mile to go, my heart dropped when I saw the "speed team" coming back toward us. I couldn't believe Silver Creek was already taken! But that wasn't the problem. "The trail just comes to an end", Debbie announced with exasperation. "We've been looking for over an hour. We just have to go back."

Giant wash out just before Silver Creek

If you don't go straight across, it's very easy to miss the trail on the other side

Found it!

Never fear!! Hiker extraordinaire is here!!! ;) I knew none of them had any faith I would find it, but I did; and it felt pretty awesome, I'm not going to lie. And just as we had hoped for, Silver Creek was all ours. What a glorious night!!

In the morning, I could tell that Mimi was really hurting. I knew her bad knee had been acting up, but I was hoping the night's rest was enough to make things a bit better. What I didn't know was that she had fallen when exploring down by the beach and had knocked her hip out of whack.

I don't blame her for not saying anything. She was determined to tough it out; I mean, there was not a whole lot we could have done about it anyway. (except maybe go back the way we came; but that would have only cut off about 2 miles)

So we set off on day 2 in our "fast" and "slow" teams with no plans to meet up until the "bridge of death". The bridge was a big question mark; which is why we had to all be together to decide if we would cross there or not. It's only 1.5 miles from the trail-head where our 1st car was waiting; but if Anderson Creek was running super high, the log bridge would be impassable, and we would have to make our way down to the lake and ford across. (online trip reports had warned of this)

At two hours in I realized everything about this plan was going to be a major fail. Mimi's injuries had slowed her down to a mile an hour pace (getting over or around the plethora of blow downs when you can't bend your knee is challenging to say the least) plus we had all been too leisurely in the morning and didn't leave until noon. I'm not the best at math, but I understood we were not getting to the bridge any sooner than 7:00 pm...and quite likely even later; making the possibility of fording a creek (which I heard was an hour diversion) a very daunting thought. (not to mention we still had a mile and a half to the car after that) Additionally, I was guessing the speed team was going to be there waiting at the bridge like at 4:00 pm. (I later found out they got there around 3:00...punks ;))

One messy trail!

Time for another plan. How about I go as fast as I can ahead, drop off the gear at the next campsite where we would camp for an extra night, then continue load free at full speed to the bridge, give Mimi's keys to "camp counselor" Debbie, they leave to retrieve the 2nd car and come back to leave it for us while they take Mimi's car back home. Whew. I hated leaving Mimi to make it to Maple Grove alone, but it was a necessity.

It took awhile (along with the miracle of her getting one bar of cell phone reception to talk to her husband at just the right time) for Mimi to agree to the plan. She had business in the morning that she felt she would be "flaking" on; but she finally agreed that safety always trumps obligation. She's a stubborn one, that girl! But I decided that's why I like her. :)

Mimi was into the tree fungus. I bet she has 10 pictures featuring it

She didn't know someone had drawn on this smiley face until after she took the shot 

How about this one?

The "bridge of death" was really not that scary the first time I crossed it 4 years ago. Looking back at the picture of my sweet little baby girl posing so bravely over the raging waters...well, all you parents out there know; it all goes by far too fast.

The bridge has taken quite a beating since then, and looks suspiciously like it could fall at any second...plus it doesn't even reach all the way across anymore; making a climb down into the water and over some rocks unavoidable.

Do I have to?

When I got there, "camp counselor" Debbie had already crossed with her troupe and were waving at me from the other side. I had to suck up my pride and let them see me shuffle across like a 90 year old. (for those of you who don't know me--I really, really hate these...like, almost phobia hate) Reaching the end of the log and looking down at the slippery rocks and rushing water and thinking about poor Mimi having to do this with a bum knee, all I could think was "this is B.S...there is no way in hell I'm doing this now or later...we will be going around". So as my dear Summer was trying with all her might to scream over the deafening noise of the water the directions on how not to kill myself ("TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF!") I was screaming back at her the new "plan" for them to leave...it was what one might call a real sh## show. I finally got her attention when I chucked the keys across and simply yelled "I AM NOT COMING!". She looked at me with such confusion and fear that I knew I had to come over. Crap.

Mimi took these next day, of course

But thank God I did. It was not nearly as bad as it looked, and I knew Mimi could make it. And of course it was much easier to communicate and fill everyone in once we could talk face to face. I especially loved telling Debbie she had to leave my car unlocked with the key hiding under the mat. I could tell everything in her wanted to lecture me on why we don't do that...but she knew there was no other option.

In Debbie's world you fold your clothes in the tent.
And you NEVER leave keys in an unlocked car!!!
God, I love her! :)

I may be mistaken, but as I was leaving, I could swear I saw on my daughters face something a parent of a teen rarely gets to see--admiration. It felt pretty damn good.

Saying Goodbye at the Bridge

Mimi was already at camp as expected when I got there, so Plan B was panning out well. (wait, I think we are on Plan C now ;)) We knew we had the whole next day to finish the last 4.5 miles, so we went to bed without even setting an alarm.

 

In the morning during "breakfast" (trail mix remains and beef jerky--yum) I joked about how nice it would be if we could just hitch a boat ride. Low and behold, we spot a boat coming in our direction. I continued joking about flagging it down (maybe ripping off my clothes and pretending I was a "Naked and Afraid" survivor at their "extraction" point) but I knew I would never do that. 

"Naked and Afraid" wannabe

As tempting as it was, I knew this was not an emergency...except any extra miles on injured joints or tendons is never a good thing. So when the boat actually stopped on our beach, I took it as a sign, and marched myself down there to see if our unexpected guests were up for a good deed. Our "angels" turned out to be a boat full of partying teens...but hey, who's to judge what an angel is supposed to look like.

"Hope you know how to swim" they chuckled as we shoved off, "because we are already 1000 pounds overweight". Seriously?!?! They had to be exaggerating...though the water was nerve wrackingly close to the rim of the boat the entire way to Anderson Point. I was pretty sure if we tipped over, I was going straight down to the bottom because of my pack. "I hope you're praying", I whispered to Mimi with a grin, "because right now I'm not sure if we are riding with angels or devils". 

Anderson Point is, wouldn't you know it, just before the bridge of death, so we weren't out of the woods yet. (figuratively or literally) As the fearless leader, I headed over it first. I didn't even hardly get to the end before Mimi was bounding over, camera in hand, taking selfies along the way. I guess we can't all have the same neuroses.  

You got this!

Our final plan that was not in the plan was picking up some stranded hikers and taking them to the nearest gas station. How can you not pay it forward after all that? Plus, we knew they were safe because Mimi asked them if anyone was an ax murder first. ;) 

Our hitch hikers

The final stop was at Birdsview Brewery for a burger and a beer, because that is ALWAYS in the plan; where we planned to have a better plan next time we hit the trail. We will see...but whatever the plan, all I hope is that it is soon. 

A done deal!