Escaping the Heat/Monsoon!!

Summertime in Las Vegas is accompanied by the monsoon season. On a recent hike to Mount Charleston, we encountered some very tough weather. The rain was no big deal, out came the ponchos and rain gear. When it started hailing, we were very close to the final switchbacks below the top so pressed on. When the lightning started we were even closer to the summit but had nowhere to go for shelter. A couple of the strikes were so close our hair practically stood on edge. We proceeded to head down in sort of a half run/half walk until it subsided. Definitely scary!! About a half mile from where we turned back, the storm had let up quite a bit so we turned around once again and headed back up for the summit. (With encouragement from a new friend, Pepe, the notorious hike leader from Las Vegas! Pepe was doing 5 summits in one day with a couple of friends. He said only the crazy people do that kind of a hike lol)
The day turned out well and we had a wonderful hike. The weather was a little chiller than expected at about 46 degrees F. Hard to believe for late July in Las Vegas!! Thanks Pepe!!




Ominous clouds rolling in...



Drenched and chilly, but in good spirits at the top. (11,918 feet)



Pepe convinced us the worst was over and we might as well go to the top. Thanks Pepe!!

Volcano Hiking

Hello, so sorry it's been so long since my last post!

I recently had the opportunity to attempt the top of Mount St. Helens. Unfortunately, the snow this past winter was very heavy, lingering longer than usual. The conditions made the hike longer and greatly hindered our efforts. Circumstances beyond my control had us starting the long hike about 9:30 in the morning instead of first light. After hiking all day, sometimes in slippery snow and tough conditions, we had to turn back about a mile from the top. If we kept going, we would have run out of light making our descent very dangerous. Still, it was a beautiful day and very inspiring to be so close to an active volcano.



11:00 AM: still a long way from the top...



The vast terrain of Mount St. Helens



1:00 PM: Mid-hike mini siesta.



View of Mt. Adams near the top of Mt. St. Helens.



Approximately 5 PM: My closest view of the top, so close yet so far!!
(Note the steam rising from the top)



Turning around to go back. A great day of hiking with a bittersweet ending... There's always next time.. (Sigh)