This morning we began our hike at Longmire, elevation 2,700 feet.

 

We were told this was there hardest day hike being 7.2 miles round trip and over 3,000 feet in elevation beginning in Longmire and hiking up to Eagle Peak at 5,958 feet. I was really interested in seeing how I felt hiking as I haven’t hiked anything for a long time and my only training was stairwells or stadium steps. The Eagle Peak hike was a good challenge, we kept hiking and hiking and the odd thing was as with most times you do something for the first time, it seemed longer than I thought it would be:) It did not help matters when we asked how close we were to the top and some people said 30 minutes, come to find later they too were on their way up not down:)

 

Actual hike up time was about 3 hours:) Carrying a good size pack too and having the heat at about 97, made for a heck of a good workout! The sweat was pouring, the lungs were pumping good and legs felt great!   Training has obviously helped as we felt very strong. When we got to the top we chilled out and enjoyed the view (see attached pictures). Mount Rainer is incredible, the hike up was challenging, but beautiful.

When you break through the tree line you really see the beauty of this place, the wild flowers, the glaciers, the mountains close and in the distance. This place is amazing!

The funnest part of the hike for us actually was the way down, we ran the whole way and felt amazing!

 

The strange thing about it was that when we were walking the legs felt it more than when we were running, so we ran all the way down and ending up getting to Longmire in about 40 minutes:) It was really fun reacting to all the terrains, branches, rocks and tons of switchbacks. It really showed us the fun and beauty of exercising free in the great outdoors, having the health to do it at full speed and to enjoy it fully. The beauty of the mountains, the air, the plants, the wildlife all made this adventure amazing and make me really excited about spending a full month enjoying more of the same in Bhutan in the near future.

 

Train smart my friends, then get outside and use it!

Jon