Day 5 of Lupe’s 2018 Dingo Vacation to Washington State!
Rain. It was pouring down when Lupe got up early on the last morning of her stay at the Baymont Inn in Bellingham, WA. The sky was so dark and gloomy and wet that the Carolina Dog only got to go on a very short walk before SPHP insisted upon returning to the Baymont. May as well go back to sleep!
Lupe’s U-Haul adventure, which had brought her to Washington state, was over. Today was supposed to be a big day! The Carolina Dog was now free to do whatever she wanted to. Arrangements had been made to climb Mount Walker (2,804 ft.) this afternoon with her friend mountaineer Jobe Wymore, whom she hadn’t seen since the Crazy Peak, Montana adventure more than a year ago.
The dreary downpour was discouraging. Maybe Mount Walker wasn’t going to happen?
Only a few hours later, though, things were looking up! The sky was brighter, the rain reduced to intermittent drippiness. For the last time, Lupe and SPHP went for a walk in the woods on the Shopping Cart Trail as far as the little creek. Back at the Baymont, Lupe again selected ham and cheese for her free continental breakfast. After checking out, the American Dingo and SPHP headed S out of Bellingham on I-5 in the newly rented Mazda CX3.
At Burlington, SPHP turned W on Highway 20. Mount Walker is on the Olympic Peninsula, and Jobe had suggested taking the Keystone to Port Townsend ferry to avoid a drive clear around Puget Sound through Seattle and Tacoma to get there. Jobe lives on the Olympic Peninsula, and could meet Lupe in Port Townsend after he got off work.
Jobe had another suggestion. Mount Erie (1,273 ft.) is an easy peak just off Highway 20. Maybe Lupe would like to climb Mount Erie on her way to the ferry? That would have been fun! The weather had improved tremendously. It was actually sunny out. Unfortunately, SPHP didn’t have any maps of the area, didn’t see any signs for Mount Erie, and didn’t know where to stop.
Probably best to get to Port Townsend in plenty of time to meet Jobe, anyway. Who knew how long the ferry was going to take? Reservations were recommended, and SPHP hadn’t made any.
S of Coupeville, SPHP started watching for signs on how to get to the ferry. A single R (W) turn was all that was required. Lupe arrived at the Keystone ferry landing before 11:00 AM. Hardly anyone was around. There was going to be a bit of a wait before the next ferry would depart for Port Townsend.
The fare was $11.90 for Lupe, SPHP and the CX3. Not bad at all. SPHP paid it and got the Mazda into the short line awaiting the next ferry. Lupe had plenty of time to get out and take a sniff around.
A campground was right next to the ferry terminal. Loop and SPHP walked through it. At the far end, Lupe could see the Olympic Peninsula across the Admiralty Inlet to Puget Sound. Soon Lupe would be sailing for Port Townsend!
Lots of vehicles were waiting for the ferry by the time the next one came along. The Mazda CX3 was buried in among big trucks on the ride over to Port Townsend. Confined to the CX3, Lupe could only see a little sliver of the ocean ahead.
The ferry ride took about half an hour. Lupe arrived in Port Townsend early in the afternoon. Jobe wouldn’t be available for a couple of hours yet, so Loop and SPHP took a walk near the ocean.
Jobe showed up at the appointed time right on the dot. It was so good to see him again! However, there wasn’t any time to lose. Daylight was burning! Lupe and SPHP followed Jobe in his glorious new Rubicon to the Mount Walker trailhead.
Lupe couldn’t contain herself when she hopped out of the CX3, and saw Jobe standing right there in front of her! She went into a barking frenzy, greeting Jobe for the first time since Crazy Peak. Fortunately, Jobe was not alarmed as Loopster danced around him. The Carolina Dog finally calmed down. Time was a wasting! After this tumultuous greeting, the trek up Mount Walker began without further delay. (3:30 PM)
Lupe had first met Jobe after scouting out route conditions to Odakota Mountain (7,200 ft.) for him way back in late March, 2016 when he was contemplating a one day lightning trip to the Black Hills. Jobe actually did show up a few days later, and Lupe had gotten to accompany him to Odakota Mountain. She even went on with Jobe for a prickly adventure in the Wildcat Hills of Nebraska.
Now Lupe was in Jobe’s home territory, and he was about to return the favor by guiding Loop up Mount Walker. Jobe had only recently moved to the Olympic Peninsula. For the last year or so, Mount Walker was his training peak. Sometimes he climbs Mount Walker 3 or 4 times a day, with each ascent involving over 2,000 ft. of elevation gain. Today’s stroll up the mountain was going to be his 235th. Yeah, Jobe’s a monster!
The Mount Walker trail was in great shape. It would have been easy to follow even without Jobe’s intricate knowledge of every twist and turn. The trail wound steadily up the mountain from the S. While relatively level sections exist, mostly it was just relentlessly up at a moderate to somewhat steep pace.
Early on, glimpses of the summit were occasionally present, but most of the time about the only thing that could be seen was the lush forest of towering Douglas fir the trail passed through. With daylight fading, Jobe set what was for him a leisurely pace, but about all SPHP could manage. Loopster trotted along just fine, sticking close by right on the trail while listening to the conversation.
With Jobe’s enormous and varied mountaineering experience, conversations with him are always fascinating. While SPHP did a Big Bad Wolf impersonation, huffing and puffing up the trail, Jobe expounded upon a number of subjects. Before long, he pointed out a mushroom.
Jobe maintained that almost everyone who lives in the Pacific Northwest develops some degree of interest in mushrooms. The cool, moist climate is conducive to the growth of a wide variety. Hunting for mushrooms is a popular PNW pastime. Jobe has a collection of books about them, and is well read on the subject.
As it turns out, keeping a sharp eye out for rare mushrooms is one aspect of climbing the same mountain 235 times that helps keep the experience fresh and full of possibilities. Jobe started talking about Bird’s Nest mushrooms, which are seldom seen. As these mushrooms mature, they resemble bird’s nests complete with eggs. He had recently discovered some on Mount Walker, and promised to show them to Lupe and SPHP.
A bit farther on, Jobe paused and looked carefully at a particular spot on an embankment along the upper side of the trail. There they were! Jobe pointed out several Bird’s Nest mushrooms growing next to each other in a little clump.
No wonder Bird’s Nest mushrooms are seldom seen! They were teeny tiny! True to their name, they did resemble bird’s nests. Itsy bitsy “eggs” were present in a couple of them.
Lupe had already made considerable progress up Mount Walker, when suddenly the sky looked leaden. In the PNW, one has to be prepared for rain. Soon SPHP was putting on the old plastic Cookie Monster outfit (blue rain poncho). Jobe had a waterproof jacket. Only the Carolina Dog was getting wet, but she didn’t seem to mind too much.
In darkness and rain, Loop, Jobe & SPHP continued up the trail. The mushroom dissertation was still in progress when Jobe unexpectedly announced that this was it. The American Dingo had made it to the top of Mount Walker (2,804 ft.)!
By flashlight, it was possible to see that Loop had arrived at a flat open area. A signboard stood along one side. Perhaps it contained a map or information about the view. Of course, nothing beside a black void was observable under current conditions.
Jobe said the true summit of Mount Walker was only 10 feet higher and quite close by. He led Lupe right to it. If Jobe hadn’t been here, Lupe and SPHP never would have found it in the dark.
For some reason, the camera’s flash didn’t seem to be working. SPHP seldom takes photos at night. No doubt the apparent malfunction was a simple case of operator error. In the rain, it didn’t seem worth trying to figure out what SPHP was doing wrong. After a few grainy shots by flashlight of the open area where the viewpoint was, Lupe, Jobe & SPHP called it good and started back down.
On the way down Mount Walker, Jobe showed Lupe and SPHP several Cat’s Tongue mushrooms. Even in pitch blackness, he knew right where they were. The Cat’s Tongue mushrooms had a ghostly appearance. They were soft and gelatinous to the touch. A real cat’s tongue would have been rougher.
The rain stopped well before Looper made it back to the CX3 (6:15 PM). Although her Mount Walker experience was over, Lupe’s time with Jobe was not. Jobe had cordially invited Lupe and SPHP to stay with him at his condo overnight. A most interesting and comfortable evening was ahead. While Jobe and SPHP chatted over dinner and on into the night, Lupe enjoyed a long snooze on Jobe’s red couch.
Perhaps her Mount Walker adventure wasn’t completely over? Maybe Loop was still out in the rain and darkness heading ever higher up the trail? Even Jobe noticed that as she slept, those Dingo paws were still twitching.
Note:
Jobe Wymore later kindly furnished the following mushroom photos. All of these photos, except for the mature Devil’s Tooth (from the web), were taken during other ascents of Mount Walker.
Jobe Wymore also furnished the following Mount Walker viewpoint photos from ascents made in the days shortly before or after accompanying Lupe to the summit:
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