I did not sleep well last night. I was up at 2:30am and never went back to sleep. I wasn't called in this morning to work, so by 9am I knew I had a free day. This was the risk I took by not hiking up Carr on Sunday, but yesterday I didn't quite feel recovered from the hot hike in Gleeson.
I took advantage of the weather by taking the three hiking dogs up Carr Peak by 10:50am. The sky was grey overcast, a perfect setting for dogs. The hike is what I needed to get energized, because I was afraid my fatigue would slow me down. Perhaps it did, but the scenery and the dogs kept me alert. It was grey overcast as I started from the house, providing excellent cloud cover for the dogs that we didn't have yesterday. It was perfect weather for them.
We made it to the Sawmill Trail head at 11:20am. There was one white Dodge pick-up in the parking lot. At this elevation, it felt cold! HELLO AUTUMN! I dug out my red Marmot rain jacket and never took it off for the rest of the hike. So much for those jacketless hikes. There was a white Dodge pick-up across the parking lot from me, but I never saw any other people until I neared the peak. I threw on that Marmot and off we went. I also wore my Oboz hiking shoes with socks, the first time I've worn shoes on this trail for a good six months.
Autumn colors were still prevalent today. Isolated wild flowers stood on the sides, beckoning for attention. It's as if the last of the season's flowers were on display today: a red flower here, a purple flower there. In the lower elevation the fleabanes grew, but most flowers from last month were now gone to seed.
The dogs were on a scent today. Did I smell bear, or was that Zeke's farts I kept smelling? The dogs were acting intrigued as well, so that put me on alert. I saw bear scat, but never saw a bear. I made sure the dogs barked from time to time to warn the bears of our presence. That musky bear scent was obvious just below the aspen groves.
Winds became more fierce the higher I climbed. The elms and locusts have turned yellow. The oaks have turned brown, but many more trees are still transitioning. Grasses are still turning to seed.
The higher I got, the harder the wind blew. I was hoping to see migrating raptors, but the wind at the peak was just too powerful today. Even I had to take my cap off to keep it from blowing off. The cirrus clouds high above were wind-swept, but the clouds disappeared by the afternoon. I had seen ravens and heard them gawk, but by the time I was on the peak, even the birds took a break from the wind.
We finally met one hiker near the peak trail, a 72-year-old from London, England. He was wearing a long-sleeved striped shirt and khaki shorts, a bit too scanty for the breeze near the peak, and he agreed. I put the dogs on the leashes so that he wouldn't be afraid to come toward me. We actually had a nice chat as he tried to keep his hat from blowing off. I, too, took my hat off at this point to keep it from blowing away.
He's been in town for 15 years but it had been a while since he had been up the mountain. He is an amateur photographer and was holding a Canon 20D. It took him an impressive 2.5 hours to get to the stop, starting at 8:30am and getting to the peak at 11am. He could see me drive into the parking lot at that time. I later saw him a mile down from the peak when I was at the summit, and he was long gone when the dogs and me finally got back to the car. I was the only person he encountered during the entire hike, and he was my only person as well.
The cold breeze subsided somewhat when we finally made it to the top at 1:27am, just over two hours. That was a slow time, but I also stopped to take photos, and let the dogs drink from the trickling water fall. Water is still there, but not flowing like it was last month. The only water I had to use for the dogs was the water in my 64-ounce growler. That was consumed at the summit. The wind-blown clouds I had seen while on the end trail had disappeared by the time I made it to the summit. The wind was calming down as well. I stayed at the peak just long enough to let Minnie rest; her stick chasing at the summit, a habit of hers, was tiring her out.
Indeed, the autumn colors were quite nice today, perhaps nicer than last month even though the aspens were no longer leaved. The locusts and elms are yellow now, and when the sun shined on the trees, the colors came out nicely. A few diehard wildflowers were also still in bloom. In the higher elevations the fleabane gave way to isolated Red Cardinals, penstemons and a few yellow flowers. Most had gone to seed, but the tall grasses were still somewhat green. By next month even the grasses will be dead and scratching against the pant legs.
I enjoyed the hike back down this time as much as the hike up. The smell of autumn was in the air. What an invigorating scent! I also saw more birds this time, flitting around the tops of dead trees. Hopefully I get to see some hawks or eagles for my next hike. I'm going to have to go on a sunny, calm day. The weather in November and December can be quite gruesome. The white Dodge pick-up was still in the parking lot when we returned.
I got back to the house just after 4pm. I rewarded the three hiking dogs with an extra hot dog each. They napped quite well the rest of the day.
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