A nice drive on Thursday from the KOA near the Mt. St. Helens Visitors Center to Mt. Rainier National Park. Just as I arrived, however, the sky clouded over and the temperature dropped a good twenty degrees.
I was able to find a nice “pull-through” campsite in the A Loop of the Cougar Rock Campground. As I was setting up camp, it started to rain…not a hard rain, just a drizzle. So…I sat in the Explorer for two hours reading until the rain stopped. For dinner, I had the rest of the bottle of Battali Vodka Sauce (to which I added a few nice chunks of Feta cheese) over some penne pasta…washed down with a nice bottle of table red that I purchased in Walla Walla.
It’s cold here…Right after dinner, around 6:30PM, I checked the temperature…56 degrees. I’m still wearing a flannel shirt and my flannel-lined jeans…plus a sweatshirt. Still, the drizzle has stopped (for the time being), so I’m able to read for a few hours before bed.
On Friday, my plan was to hike to one of the falls close by my campground…about three and a half miles roundtrip. I got my hiking clothes and boots on, packed the day pack with water and snacks, and set off around 10:00AM.. I didn’t even make it out of the campground before the rain started. So…back to my campsite to sit in the Explorer and read for awhile. Around 1:00PM or so, I try again…same thing…more rain…back to camp. Around 3:00 or so, it clears up a little, but I’ve given up hiking for today. At 4:00PM, it’s time for a bourbon on the rocks while I prepare dinner. I’ve got two pork chops, so I slice them up for stir-fry. I’ve also got a package of stir-fry vegetables, so everything gets fried up with a package of Asian Home Gourmet Vietnamese Stir-Fry Paste…nice and spicy over some cooked rice. And…a nice bottle of Gruner Veltliner left over from the Picnic.
More reading after dinner by lantern. It’s chilly, but I’m bundled up. Plenty warm in the camper with my down comforter…fast asleep by 9:30.
Big day on Saturday…the sun finally came out…for about six minutes…then it clouded over again. There’s a break in the rain, so I get my falls hike in around 10:00AM or so. Later, I drive up to the main Visitors Center at Paradise, but it’s closed. Very sad…they’re having a memorial service for a young Ranger who died here recently. Some climbers got stranded on the mountain, and they sent up a rescue team. One of the Rangers slipped on the descent and fell to his death. Very sad.
On the drive up to Paradise, I see lots of snow. By the time I get to Paradise, I can see several feet of snow…some kids are having a snowball fight! Ironic that I set off for Florida in late November to completely avoid snow…then I find it out here…in late June.
Later on, I’m back at camp…reading again. For dinner, I have the last of my Chicken Tikka Masala…very good. I bought firewood on the way back from the Visitors Center so, after dinner, I start a nice fire and relax with a glass or two (or four) of CatDaddy White Whiskey from North Carolina…the perfect campfire drink.
I’ve packed everything up and hitched up the camper so that I can get an early start tomorrow. I’ll be heading north and east about 250 miles to the town of Chelan on Lake Chelan. I camp there one night. Then, on Monday morning, I set off by passenger ferry to the town of Stehekin in Northern Cascades National Park. I’ll have to “pack in” to my campsite, so I’ve made a list of things to load in my backpack for the trip…should be great fun…especially if the weather clears up!
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