Summer School ~ Iron Mountain

Hike #11, and possibly our last hike for a while. And what a hike on which to end our streak. Wowza!

[A little story for you: Lola and I were shopping at Costco the other day, and the gentleman who was loading our groceries asked if Lola was glad to be out of school. I always wonder how my kids will answer that question at any given moment, especially Lola, but she simply answered, “Yes, we hike.” It sounds so simple, but the way she said it made my heart glow. We hike. Not “we have been hiking” or “we’ve gone on hikes” or “we hiked,” just a simple “we hike” as if that tells you something about who we are and what summer is. He smiled and replied, “Have you ever been to Iron Mountain?” “We’re going on Tuesday!” “But have you ever been to Triangulation Peak?” “Yes! It was so lovely!” I hope he felt as good about that little exchange as I did.]

This hike, Iron Mountain, is 2.4 miles each way: UP. And Down. 1,358 foot net elevation gain. I took it SLOW and enjoyed the scenery.

In the picture above, my legs were already tired, and I realized we were hiking to the TOP of that rock looming in front of us.

Here is our great hiking crew of the day (yes, I decided to leave Lola at home for this one):

The weather was overcast and only slightly cool when we began our hike. I was confident that the cloud cover would burn off before we reached the summit and I was immensely grateful for cooler temps (after a weekend of 90-100 degrees).

Nothing could diminish the scenery on this hike.

Levi was in his element.

Getting a bit closer. In this next picture you may see the itty bitty humans up higher on the trail. Obviously, they hike uphill much faster than I do.

A patch of snow. Bluer skies. A tiny Mount Hood in the distance.

A rockier path (and beautiful wildflowers) as we climbed higher.

Switchbacks as we climbed higher and higher.

More wildflowers.

Clouds continuing to burn off and move past.

And, finally, the summit, with the last whisps of cloud.

It’s difficult to see the peaks in the distance in the photos, so we’ll go with a few close-ups. The summit of Iron Mountain boasts a 360 degree view.

These are the Three Sisters, three volcanic peaks in the Cascade Range/Cascade Volcanic Arc. They are the 3rd, 4th, and 5th highest peaks in Oregon, each over 10,000 feet in elevation.

Then Mount Washington, an eroded shield volcano in the Cascades. 7,794 feet.

And Mount Jefferson, a stratovolcano also in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the second highest mountin in Oregon at 10,497 feet.

Finally, Mount Hood (below right), a potentially active stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc, northern Oregon. It’s the highest mountain in Oregon at 11,240 feet and apparently "one of the loftiest mountains in the nation due to its prominence."

And Mount Adams (tiny distant center), a potentially active stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the second highest mountain in Washington at 12,280 feet.

Three Sisters and Washington in the distance:

There is a lovely platform at the summit with benches, a map, and railings. We all sat and ate together while enjoying the view.

In the picture below, notice the tiny thread of road on the left. To give you a sense of the height we climbed, we crossed that road on foot at the beginning of our hike.

After a relaxing time with friends in the sunshine at the summit, we began the descent.

Holly and I spent more time looking at flowers on the way down.

I loved the different shapes of white flowers. The leaf pattern above left is my favorite.

When we finished the hike, we stopped off at our favorite campground to picnic, wash off the dust, and be refreshed. What a beautiful day with friends.