Eglise Rock Trail

This morning after a breakfast at the Warren Miller Lodge (I’m getting used to having this complimentary breakfast with so many young servers there to meet our every want), we wandered over to the gondolas. Most of us took the gondolas (free, of course) up to the Yurts at the top of several ski runs, most of the way up the mountain.  From there, seven of us started to hike up the Eglise Rock Trail to the peak.  Bob took off like a bat out of hell and was soon out of sight.  When the others stopped to admire some flowers, I kept going and was soon far ahead of them.  I hiked for fifteen or twenty minutes alone in the silent forest.  At times, I thought I heard a sound like a dog or a bear running air out its mouth, but really I think it was the forest breathing.  It was a beautiful spiritual experience, a blessing, a grace, to have this solo time.  After a while, I heard Bob calling my name and I hiked up to where he was at the edge of the forest.  The path snaked back and forth through the scree.  Finally when the others caught up with us, we hiked a short while all together.  When the others turned back, Bob announced that he and I would continue hiking up the trail.  So on I trudged, slowly up the steep trail, breathing heavily.  I admired the Alpine-Fell habitat and flowers above tree line.  There was even a ground squirrel that seemed to be communicating with me.  Up and up we went.  Near the top the trail turned to a sheltered place and there were red, yellow and blue meadow flowers under the pine trees.  Soon we saw a Ski Patrol hut and the top of the chair lift . We used to joke when we were backpacking that after a long day of hiking, we’d come around a bend and find an ice cream truck.  Seeing this ski lift felt a bit like that.  But the views were great.  We even spotted some special high elevation birds:  a pair of red headed Pine Grosbeaks and a pair of black and white Clark’s Nutcrackers.  I was joyous to be hiking like this with Bob, (me 78, him 79) just like we used to do in our 20’s.  I hope we can keep hiking for a long time to come.