Birthday at Baker

I've been sorely neglecting my blog and going to change that...today!  It had been quite awhile since I last visited my resident big peak, Mt. Baker (10,781 ft).  Probably the biggest reason is because every year, it gets so much snow, it isn't till well into summer that the road to the top is plowed.  That leaves the window to visit a small one before it starts snowing again.  And, usually there is too much snow to hike around much.  This year, they were able to plow earlier, so I decided I better take advantage of that.

Before heading up to the mountain, I spent a little time revisiting Nooksack Falls.  I had been here on my last trip to Mt. Baker, and it never fails to impress.

A half hour drive later, I reached the Heather Meadows area of Mt Baker.  Originally, I had hoped to hike the Chain Lakes loop trail, but found out there was still quite a bit of snow midway.  So, I decided on a couple of different trails.  From the parking lot, I walked along Wild Goose trail to the visitor center.  After a quick picnic lunch, I headed back the way I came via the northern part of the Chain Lakes trail.  To the south of me, Table Mountain...north, Bagley Lake with Goat Mountain in the distance. Beautiful!

 

 

 Always on the lookout for wildlife, I was walking along the trail when a furry creature caught my eye.  I was just quick enough to snap a photo before it disappeared among the rocks.  I'm pretty sure this is a hoary marmot, the first time I've seen one of these.  

 My last hike of the day was the short and scenic Artist Ridge loop trail.  After driving up a series of steep switchbacks, I reached the Artist Point parking lot.  It was pretty crowded, as this area gives visitors access to several popular trails, as well as snow for the kids to play in.  With so many awesome views, it's really hard to take a bad photo.  I ended up taking a lot of good photos.  Here are a couple of Mt. Baker, and one of the equally majestic Mt. Shuksan (9131 ft).

 

And, so ended my perfect day at Mt. Baker.  Today also happens to be my birthday, which made it doubly good.  Maybe I should start a new tradition.  Take a picturesque hike on my birthday to get in a positive frame of mind.  Besides, who cares about getting old when you're having fun, right?