Rainier special

I've got the sore muscles to prove it. Last night, I had the leg cramps. Our Father's Day outing yesterday took us to the Comet Falls trail on the south side of Mount Rainier. Mileage-wise, the upward trek was 5.8. Pain-wise, I'd call it 10.

Though a few clouds hung around the mountain, we enjoyed gorgeous views aplenty throughout the afternoon and early evening. After leaving the car, we started up the trail, which paralleled the highway for about half a mile before we came to a nicely crafted log bridge. While standing along the structure, we could look over the rushing water which, over the ages, had carved out smooth, polished bowls in the solid rock below.

We followed the creek up the mountain and watched our every step as a network of nasty witches' knots or tripping rocks lurked all along the trail, waiting for any of us to take a wrong step. Now that the hike is completed, I can gladly report that nobody fell on their face going up or down.

As usual, the downward trek required ultimate vigilance. In fact, I once remarked to Bill that after all that careful step by step maneuvering, the trail could be really deceiving because the seemingly smooth stretches held the little surprises. A couple of sneaky rocks in those spots almost got me.

We did have time to gawk at some incredible views though: a one-lane log footbridge with a single strand of cable for balance took us over the lower Comet Falls. Annie had learned on her earlier trip up this trail that the lower falls might tempt hikers to think they'd seen it all, but just a few feet up the trail and around the bend flowed the truly breath-taking water show. From hundreds of feet up, the magical streams bounced into the pool below, creating a refreshing mist for any sweaty hiker who cared to stand in its presence.

There was much more with each switchback as we trudged upward. Annie kept promising that the true rewards would be worth the suffering. She was right. We soon reached a point where we could see Mt. St. Helens to the south. A few switchbacks higher, and snow-white Mt. Adams came into view. It was about that point that I realized the body must agonize if the eyes are to rejoice.

That thought kept me going. And when we broke into the flower-laden meadows of deep green where Mt. Rainier's huge snow-capped dominance greeted us, we knew our pain was not in vain. We walked up to a point on a trail to the northeast where Annie had hiked on a late afternoon last October, only to hear the sound of a loud THUMP, THUMP, causing her instantly to recoil and run all the way down the mountain.

"I wasn't going to wait around and see what it was," she told us as we moved past the spot. She was alone. It was getting dark. She lived to tell us about it, and now we were moving beyond her highest point of accomplishment. Along that stretch, we met a well-equipped, obviously seasoned hiker named Tony who informed us he was Polish but had grown up in Australia. He's a Boeing engineer who had planned to hike to the top of Rainier but decided the weather wouldn't allow it yesterday and turned around.

After saying good bye to him, we continued up around the bend to a natural resting place. While enjoying the variety of views, we spotted two skiers traversing down Rainier. They passed us later on our descent and told us they'd hiked up with their skis and boots earlier in the day. Tough cookies, I'll say.

As always, with a grueling hike, the end seemed to stretch along much too far, but we eventually reached the car where I collapsed into the back seat. Later, while Annie drove back to Seattle, I tried, in vain for much too long, to fend off two major cramps piercing my left thigh. Eventually, they gave in, but the over-used leg muscles are still screaming this morning. Thank God for Celebrex.

I'll always remember our Father's Day Mt. Rainier hike of 2005, and even though my body hurts, I'll resort to a comment I've made a time or two over life: nothing good ever comes easily. The images gleaned from yesterday's tough hike matched my estimation of miles: definitely a 10.