Starting out, first day

'Twas a beautiful full moon August 24th day, and so why not head off to the Olympics and climb "The Brothers" -- didn't Pop always point out to them across Puget Sound and wish us to do this? (to my brothers: didn't Pop & Burry try climbing them once and one of them hurt his knee and had to walk backwards the whole way down? ooo, ominous premonitions!)

Also inspired by just going with whole family to new Robin Hood movie: “Rise and rise again, until lambs become lions” -- never give up, aye aye!

it can’t be too hard, can it? This is America, they’re in a national park, of course there’s a nice well-marked trail, the guidebooks are exaggerating the difficulties, right? And I’ve done a couple hikes recently, more in shape (or more used to the agonies & pain of slogging along)

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So, first stop was to old stomping grounds in Richmond Beach with picture of those twin peaks and good ol' 17th Place Northwest:

One step at a time

Then across Edmonds ferry to Kingston and drive to trail head (don’t stop at Quilcene Ranger station and ask any questions or worry that they will advise you not to go by yourself -- heck, I even brought my bike helmet along pretending I was going to wear that up as guidebooks advised -- because they just didn’t even care: “Oh, we only maintain the trail up to Lena Lake, we don’t know anything beyond that!”)

Start off at noon from Hamma Hamma (so nice, they had to say it twice) Road trailhead:

kinda crowded, kinda steep, but wide, well-maintained trail, and nearly everyone only going to Lena Lake campsites.

Quickly tired carrying 44 pounds in 2 backpacks (one daypack in front and Duncan’s backpack, probably a little too small for me!), but persevere...Lena Lake beautiful:

Valley of the Silent Men

but only 3 miles in and I’ve got 4 more to go through the “Valley of the Silent Men” which were eerily quiet (not even a chirp of a bird though a few bugs) though seemingly untouched and beautiful, huge trees which’ve never seen an axe and moss and ferns, and the sweetest huckleberries, blueberries, salmonberries and thimbleberries! Impossible to capture the scene in photo though here was a hippo!:

(Much too) base camp

Trail less well defined, narrower, gnarly with roots and rocks, and steeper (whew!) -- Emil Zatopek returns (the great Czech long distance runner who looked to be in agony every step but always won his races!) but after about six hours I did make it to the base camp (I think: no signs or anything except a big open space, a fork between two streams):

and where was that one other solo hiker who had signed in & wrote he was going up The Brothers, too?

Oh well, freeze dried lasagna, peach zinger tea and a little Yukon Jack in my lukewarm instant coffee -- ahh, an early night sleeping under the stars and now I know why everyone brings tents even in good weather cuz little scampering creatures kept scrambling onto my tarp and away again, looking for food or sumpin’.

Day two beginning

So, didn’t sleep too well, but never mind, a couple boiled eggs and I’m off by 7:30 am (!!) with only day pack...now see another tent which helps me actually find the right trail and I carry on....NOW the trail gets super steep, but little pink & orange ‘condoms’ (okay, flags) & rock cairns do mark the way...for awhile anyway, but then lose those too, but hey, I can see the peaks (3 instead of 2, strangely) so straight up has to be okay, yes?! Up through old forest fires (better than the loose scree and snow fields to left & right), spectacular views AND echoes (my lonely shouts caroming around the peaks and canyons, even dying out and re-echoing!), though I HAVE to get above this ridge to the east so I can see Seattle!

nearing summit

Beyond the tree line I come up against a sheer near-vertical wall (pant pant!) but -- if I’m even in the right place! -- one guide book says: “From here [6000 feet], either bear right under the summit block to the ridge or go straight up through a narrow chute.”

So, I’m tired, why not take the shorter route? I drop my two walking sticks and start climbing up this wall, 30 or 40 feet high and kinda tricky to find hand and footholds at times.

Whew, now on top and just below the summit I think and above the ridge so I think that must be Seattle over there and I signal everyone with my mirror!! (see the light reflection on this tree):