Mudslide

Like the previous hike there was a newb joining. For you Nemo fans, the fish was fried and eaten by Uncle Nemo who was ready to match wit against all that is natchurell. Indeed, it would be this very hike that a breakdown of all intellectual thought went out the door AGAIN.

As in the past, we planned to start the trail early. Everything was set that morning but for some reason the timing was bad. We had a party of seven scheduled to meet at around 9:00am.

The first call came in as a cancel while we were still at work getting prepped. Next call was to acknowledge attendance, a good sign. Waiting for the final call, we packed up and drove off for the trail. There was still no contact on the way up and I wondered if the remaining group was lost.

Thirty minutes had passed and we decided to move on. Then as fate would have it the call came in just as we were nearing the first junction. The deadspots are so bad that the calls kept dropping. We played phone tag for another 15 minutes then gave up.

Mud and sludge were our constant companions following us everywhere. We picked up the pace to make up lost time and soon reached the trail end. It was fun and games from that point on. Three of us were now familiar with the layout and generally avoided most of the pitfalls. However, Nemo seemed to be attracted to them.

After 20 or 30 minutes we exited and reached the lookout. I thought about it prior to the hike and suggested we take the left trail up the hill. The adventure would be exciting for all (including me) and somewhat of a mystery. Everyone rested while I snapped more pix then we proceeded up the hill.

Similar to the trails along the waterfall ridge this one also had deeply cut paths. Normally, this would be good to combat strong winds but it tends to effectively trap water as well. As we climbed, there were fairly deep pockets of water that would easily pass your ankle. Who knows what lurks in those dark waters?

The trail probably hadn't seen much activity. Most of the plants along the path were covered with excessive dew and the ground was overly moist with puddles of water. Taking the lead isn't always a good thing since it felt like I had taken a shower in my clothes.

Quite a challenge, this one requires a lot of climbing. It's up, over, under, and around for most of the hour or so. There are many twists and turns, obstacles, broken ledges, and exposed rocky climbs. Lucky for us it wasn't raining!

Moving forward my goal was to quickly locate a path split where one of the forks would take us back down the mountain. I had my doubts and thought aloud that this might be the wrong trail. Right then I could hear Nemo laughing and I got back on track.

I retook the lead then carefully searched for the split. Everyone kept an eye out hoping we didn't already pass it. Then, 20 minutes later it appeared up ahead beyond a moss covered section of trees that resembled green snow. The vibe I got reminded me of D&D - a troll lurking around, a witch spying on us, or a green dragon ready to blast us with deadly gas.

Some brief pix then I investigated. To the right, a trail leading down the opposite side of the mountain. But to the left, a dead end. Our path was overgrown but still clear of large debris but after a ten foot drop it vanished under and beyond bushes and trees.

No one wanted to turn back so with careful maneuvering I navigated the unfamiliar, sloping path. I scouted ahead and learned it continued downhill, snaking around the tree past the thick, prickly bushes. Signalling the all clear, we headed down.

It was years since I last came this way and the lay of the land changed drastically. The condition was so bad that many deep tree roots were visibly sticking out of the ground further downhill. A sure sign of massive erosion it was no wonder my vague memories of the trail were distorted.

We proceeded down as I found areas safe to pass. This went on for a while until we reached the top of a long, steep slope. It was a thick mudslide around three feet wide and 100' long. Our wet shoes and clothes made the area slippery and unsafe to walk. The only option was to slide and hope there was no cliff up ahead.


It was so steep and slick that if you accelerated too quickly you'd have a miserable time stopping without doing a long tumble down the mountainside. We used anything and everything we could to slow our descent, grabbing onto bushes, broken tree branches, roots, and sometimes others. You could actually continue sliding another 50' if you wanted to but it might require medical attention once you landed.

When we finally reached the bottom we were filthy. It took a lot of energy just to get out of the mud forest that we were beyond ready to leave. Up ahead was the trail and a decision needed to be made. Downhill was much closer to a trail exit but we'd have to walk uphill back to the car so it was a no brainer.

The party looked beaten and I hoped it was the right trail. After 15 minutes we hit the trail junction and everyone was relieved. Regaining our bearings, more pix were taken but they were clearly of tired individuals looking forward to disposing of the mud suit and taking a nice long shower!

Enjoy the pix: