Sunday 9 September 2018
Northern Loop Trail to Fire Creek (8.2 miles)
O and I wake in the dark. The morning goes quite smoothly. We are indeed packed up and on the road by 8 am! By a bit after 9 we arrive at Sunrise where Rainier intermittently reveals its glaciated peaks through the clouds. It is 42 degrees F when we begin our initial climb, which warms us quickly. Soon we have shed our jackets and sweatshirts and are down to just T-shirts. Our packs range in weight from the upper 30’s (in pounds) to the low 40’s.
The day is mostly sunny as we first climb, then descend and then traverse undulating trails across wide meadows. The views of the mountains, woods and alpine meadows are spectacular. We pass by whistling hoary marmots. We can hear pica in the glacial talus, but we cannot see them. Hikers passing by in the opposite direction report a bear sighting, but we see only bear scat.
By 3 pm we have arrived at Fire Creek Group Campground. It is very quiet. We are the only group here. With our tents set up on three small terraces, we create a little tent city, a quite colorful one at that! O and I put both of our tarps to good use, the smaller one for the kitchen and the larger for our gathering area. Our leaders decided yesterday that our tarps (made by Cooke Custom Sewing, our tarps have lasted many years now and have been jealously regarded by many fellow travellers!) were lighter and larger than theirs which were subsequently left behind. Our group is quite compatible and we are all enjoying each other’s company.