After Brentt hinting several times that he wanted to climb Mnt. Wilson all the way up to the observatory, we finally did it yesterday!
Being all smart and German about it, I suggested leaving at dawn to tackle this 14 mile round trip, 4576 ft elevation gain hike.
This would enable us to
1)enjoy the sunrise on the trail
2)prevent Skin 'N Bones from heat stoke and dehydration anticipated with a later start
3)give me a chance to check out the terrain of the Mnt. Wilson trail race to be run by a Britta the day before leaving for Peru to see you, L !!!
and
4) give us enough time to sunbathe and rest at the top, enjoying the home made by me(and delicious I may add in self praise)sandwiches.
So, we dressed sort of lightly, packed a shit load of water after learning a lesson, almost running out at our last hiking adventure and headed out into the sunrise.
The sun rose all right but not for us to see. We rose with it and into the morning fog. In fact, we were racing the clouds all the way to the top.
At times the sun would show through the thick carpet of white and we would stop and try and soak up some rays and warm our chilly bones.
The foggy mountain views were stunning and we were reminded of how things may look and feel at this hour of morning in some far away land like Tibet or on top of the Chilean Andes. We would stop at times to awe the view, stay as long as we could without starting to shiver.
Immensely underdressed and over watered we reached the gates of the observatory by 9:45, just in time for the 10am opening. We tried our best to warm in the hazy sun but by ten the last ray had totally vanished behind a grey wall of mist.
Brentt's remainder of hair that was sticking out from under his hood, was sprinkled with morning dew. It took us about 20 minutes to figure out that there was no heated shelter on the grounds of the observatory. All we could find was an astronomical museum room and an observatory visitor room that featured a glass window allowing a peak into the inner workings of the telescope. Both rooms were as cold as the outside and after a hasty glance or two we headed on as to not stop moving and freeze to death. We wolfed down a couple of sandwiches and, without rest, started the descent hoping for warmer climates. They came about three quarters down but by that time my coffee headache was at its climax and all I could think about is rooting my tired bum in one of the comfy couches at bean town, the local coffee shop, and sip on my Mocha loaded with extra whipped cream.
Brentt pulled a great stunt at one of the rock drops, not hurting his hip too much but landing pretty hard on it, ensuring me almost instantly that he was all right. How did he know so soon, I wondered?
The funny thing was that he started screaming "Auuuh" before he even landed and once I knew he was alright, I had to chuckle. He said he felt his foot slipping and was anticipating the hurt that was to follow.
We made it down without any further incidences and I did get to lounge on the sofa, Mocha in hand, by 3 pm.
Our bones were tired and the muscles a little sore and we did not get to have a sunny picnic up the top, but, all in all, the day was a success. If anything, we deserve more praise having the cudos to brave the elements for 8 hours straight!
