Another day off of work... oh the joys of 'maximum PTO carryover', 'floating holidays' and 'unpaid furloughs'. Combine that with the fact that I've already exceeded the monthly gas budget and you end up with another day of solo dumpster dive hiking.
In this case, dumpster dive hiking doesn't mean that a trail is lame or a waste of time, it just means that it's so close to home that it generally wouldn't warrant a full day of attention on one of my 'regular' hiking days.
Since I didn't have a whole lot of hope that I'd actually manage to get the day off, there hasn't been any pre-planning done for the day. A quick check of the weather forecast shows potential rain in Skagit & Whatcom counties... right where my dumpster dive hikes are located. Go figure that the weather looks potentially fantastic for Wed through next Tuesday... but I'll be in the office on those days.
Grumble, Grumble... that's a lot of complaining about stuff that is out of my control.
In my world, it's a day off and I'm excited to make the best I can of the weather conditions and the destinations. It WILL be fun. I'll take pictures and post them online for you to ponder (probably you're already pondering my sanity).
Although the plan may change based on the weather, or instinct, the current plan is to start off the morning with a hike around Hoypus Hill on Whidbey Island (just south of Goose Rock, where you can catch the boat tours under the Deception Pass bridge) and then end the day with a quick Chuckanut hike to Lizard Lake from the Upper Blanchard Trailhead via the Incline Trail; maybe I'll continue on to Lily Lake and North Butte (unlikely).
The idea for Hoypus Hill came from reviewing one of Craig Romano's hiking guide books. That's a funny story for another day - but until then, you can visit Craig's facebook page. He's currently offering his books for $15 each plus $3 for shipping... and further discounts if you want more than one title!
Well, better go dig up some maps, tinker with the GPS, recharge the batteries and figure out where the rain gear is at.
Happy trails!
~E
PS: Two trip reports are in the works (Huckleberry Point and Badger Mountain)... hopefully they'll be online before the end of the week. Thanks for your patience!
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