Matthew had not hiked up Silver Star before so I thought this would be the perfect hike for us on a somewhat clear day. The summit provides an amazing 360-degree view with four glaciated peaks in the distance. It’s one of the best views around in my opinion!
I knew this was a bigger hike than what he had done before but he’s young and strong and I knew he could make it. If his 54 year old mother could do it, he certainly could.😊 The hike turned out to be a lot more than I had anticipated though. The mountain was covered in snow! I expected snow near the top but not starting 50 yards from the trailhead. The snow added a lot of extra work on the steep inclines (which is basically 90% of the trail) but there was a benefit to us working that hard ... we created our own body heat! the bright side... haha IT WAS COLD. We couldn’t stop for more than a couple of minutes without getting overly chilled so we just kept trudging along.
The summit view did not disappoint! We could not see Mt. Hood, Adams, Rainier or St. Helens but what we could see was absolutely beautiful! Snowy landscapes are the best!
We were so happy we made it up there! We admitted to each other thoughts of wanting to give up and turn back several times along the way but neither wanted to disappoint the other. We obviously had the same thoughts going through our minds. We were struggling and it was so darn cold. I have no doubt that if one of us had mentioned turning back, the other gladly would have. Thankfully we didn’t. We made it! High-five, Matthew!
We were going to sit and have lunch at the summit but it was much too cold to stay there for any amount of time. We took a few pictures and headed right back down the mountain, planning to stop once we warmed up a bit. (I nearly turned to ice up there.😉) Instead, we kept going – slipping and sliding – all the way back down to the trailhead. Lunch in the vehicle was just fine, thankyouverymuch… and a heck of a lot warmer. As we sat there eating, it started to snow. ❄❄❄ Burrrr.
In addition to this being a special Christmas Day hike with my son, it was also my 52nd hike of 2019! I completed the 52 Hike Challenge, y’all! Woohoo! The challenge was fun and kept me motivated and moving the entire year. I’m so proud! My first hike of 2019 was in the snow with Matthew and my last hike of the challenge in 2019 was in the snow with Matthew. It could not have worked out more perfectly. ❤❤❤ I love you, buddy!
2019 Hike 52/52 (I did it!)
6.80 miles; 2013 feet of elevation gain
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