Mount Baker, Part Deux

So, last month on my birthday, I went up to Mt. Baker to do a little hiking.  My plan was to do the 6.5 mile Chain Lakes loop trail, but because of snow covering the route, I nixed that.  I gave it some time and decided to try again on Labor Day.  Leaving just after 7:00 am, I made the hour and a half drive up to the Heather Meadows visitor center parking lot.  Getting there early, I hoped to beat the holiday crowds.  After eating my packed brunch, I started off on the trail.  I had done a little research and opted to tackle the steepest part of the loop first.  I walked the .80 mile section of the Wild Goose trail, ascending 800 feet to the Artist Point parking lot.  With trekking pole in my left hand and camera in my right, I took in the beautiful view and snapped a shot of the return trail.  In the center of this photo, to the right of the flat topped Table Mountain, is the saddle where the Chain Lakes trail crests the ridge. 

 

The Chain Lakes loop is listed as a moderate trail, and I thought I could handle it okay.  It was slow going on the Wild Goose leg due to the steep incline, made even more challenging my the loose rock covering the trail. 

As I trudged up the trail, I was suddenly startled by a loud flurry of wings as two large birds flew out of the vegetation past me.  As one who is always on the lookout for opportunities to take photos of wildlife, I thought I had missed a chance.  I scanned the area they originated from and spotted one remaining bird warily eying me.  The bird looked like a grouse, most likely a female blue grouse.  I kept as still as possible as I took a few pictures of the bird as it slowly walked around me. 

When I reached the Artist Point parking lot, I spoke to a guy providing information to visitors to verify that the Chain Lakes trail was clear of snow.  Then, I headed out on the trail, which traveled along the southern flank of Table Mountain, with Mt. Baker towering above.  It was pretty easy going as the trail was mostly flat and only a few sections of loose rock.

 

As I walked along, I noticed butterflies flitting among the rocks and feeding on the wildflowers growing along the trail.  They moved pretty quickly, but I managed to get some pics.  Here are a couple of a Mormon Fritillary and a Milbert's Tortoiseshell. 

 

The nice thing about hiking around Mt. Baker, you have easy access to free snacks.  There are wild blueberry bushes everywhere, and even with the large number of visitors, there is more than enough for everyone!  At one point along the trail, I snacked on berries as I looked back at Mt. Shuksan in the distance.

Continuing on, the trail circled around the eastern end of Table Mountain, then headed down over a large area of loose talus.  It was here that I heard the first whistling vocalizations of pika.  Pika are small rodent-like mammals, closely related to rabbits.  They live in burrows among the rocks and spend much of the summer collecting vegetation to create hay piles which they feed upon during the winter.  I had never seen pika, and was eager to catch a glimpse and hopefully get some pics.  After listening to the whistles, I finally spotted one and got my money shot. 

The trail kept going down as I reached a series of small lakes.  It was much damper in this area, which encouraged growth of native plants and wildflowers.  Oh, and more blueberries.

I took a breather as I looked down upon Hayes Lake.  I had hiked about four miles and I found myself running out of steam.  I had underestimated how tough the trail conditions were.  Dirt trails I could handle, but the addition of the talus made things much more challenging.  As I started walking again, the trail started climbing via a series of switchbacks.  It was tiring, but my frequent picture taking gave me a ready excuse to rest. 

 

  

When I finally crested the top of the trail, I looked down at the last couple of miles ahead of me.  The end of my journey was elusively close, but I still had a lot of rocks and switchbacks to negotiate on the downward leg.  As I kept going, I had my eyes and ears peeled for any additional chances to see more pika.  My vigilance was rewarded when I got another photo opportunity along the way.

After one last big rock pile and many, many more switchbacks, the trail leveled off and I slowly made my way along the half mile homestretch.  As I returned to the parking lot, I was so tired, but I still felt a sense of accomplishment.  I hiked the entire Chain Lakes loop, which was more than most people were doing on that day.  Will I ever take the challenge again?  I'll never say never, but there are a lot of other trails to check out.  And, I'm glad to say I got many nice photos to capture my experience.