On the Katwalk

Man oh man life is stressful. Time for Wood Therapy. This time I went with my wonderful sister-in-law to Kendall Katwalk along the Pacific Crest Trail. I've been wanting to do the Katwalk for years because I heard it's kinda freaky. It's about 11 miles round trip on Snoqualmie Pass. Basically back in the day some crazy guys tied ropes around their waists, took dynamite and helped formed the Katwalk. Thanks crazy guys.

This is about 3.5 miles into the hike. 3.5 miles of Andrea hiking with gloves in her boots. She forgot her insoles but remembered her gloves soo....anyway this image caught her eye and I had to take a moment to take a picture. On these hikes you forget to really think about how gorgeous things are. As you can see it's misty - it was even making mystical forest sounds!

This is subalpine hiking now. We went from the woods, to the rock fields (and heard lots of pikas!) until we emerged the area where the rocks are left behind and the meadows begin. Were also almost to the top! I couldn't decide what movie I felt like I was in...something whimsical.
Getting to the top we found ourselves in Kendall Gardens (above). Why didn't I take more pictures of the gardens? It was amazing. I have to go back and take more pictures now. There is no better feeling ridge hiking among some kicka$$ meadows. These are the meadows you see from I-90, point at and say "I want to go up there. It looks so green and inviting." And that's a Alan the Ogre quote (or loosely quoted).

In fact, this is I-90 from where I was standing. You can barely make it out. Feel the power of being on top though - right?
Were finally on the ridge (top) and heading towards the katwalk. Andrea is looking into pure white mist. We had NO idea what was out there. It was so odd that the mist wasn't spilling over to our side. I should of paid attention in science class better so I could know why. I bet Big D knows.
Here we are now on the Katwalk and the mist is swallowing us up. The trail is no longer dirt it is now pure rock that was blown up by the crazy guys back in the day. If you look closely at Andrea you can tell she's saying "This is scary, I don't like this - the edge is too close." And it kinda was scary so I couldn't resist to take advantage with a pic (see below).
So I wanted to show how vertical this rock was...I also liked the pretty flowers that were growing out of it. I had NO idea how far up I was but was certain my death was calling my name from below. I mean, I *am* on top of a ridge right? But as soon as I sit down on this rock Andrea scared me with how serious she was for me to GET OFF THE ROCK NOW. And then she said "I AM SO SERIOUS! That rock is moving!" I felt the rock wobble a bit...
And this is the rock I was sitting on. The rock on the edge of the sheer cliff. It didn't look that bad before I sat down. So. I probably wouldn't do that again. That's why I hope people enjoy the picture I got out of it! Don't let my near-death be in vain!

Here's Andrea taking one last look down the edge. I'm SOO stinking curious what this looks like when there's no mist. I think it was right before this that I exclaimed "I love being on top!" And found out Andrea is a perv. I just like hikes that go straight to the top of something. I like to say "See up there? Yeah, I hiked that bitch."

Looking at Red Mountain as we descend. I think we were along side Red Mountain at the top. Hmm..gotta go back so I can tell for sure. Oh, and Andrea's feet are starting to hurt her a bit at this point. Gloves aren't made to be insoles I suppose.

This rock is huge. Remember the rock creature that was trying to escape The Nothing from Neverending story? I think he left them here. It's hard to tell but you could fit a very square house inside that rock and live pretty darn comfortably. And the roof would never leak either.

I was really curious what the Katwalk looked like in the sun and this is the picture I found. I definitely need to go back. That's what I love about hiking - the same hike can seem like 10 different ones depending on the time of year and weather. So if you'd like to go back with me hit me up!

When Andrea and I got to the bottom she showed me the inside of her hiking boot without the insole. She hiked freaking 11 miles on green plastic...and a glove in each boot to cushion her heel. I should blog sometime about her amazing ability to block out pain when doing something physical. Mt. Adams. 101 temperature. That's Andrea.