Pixie's 1st solo TR: Naked people in "p ublic"

“Well I did it and I survived! I couldn't get anyone to join me, so I did a solo. RatPacker lent me his bear spray, so I had a little extra peace of mind.

Started the day out with a disappointing Jamba Juice Mango a Go Go with Fem Bot. I mean Femme Boost, yeah. Last time it tasted differently and gave me more energy. Don't know why it was different.
I hit the road to Snoqualmie Pass and the Alpental ski area, where the trailhead is. Busy parking lot. I overheard some guy say he counted 52 cars. I had heard this was a popular hike, but still! Luckily it turned out to be mostly dayhikers.
The beginning of the hike to Snow Lake wasn't all that nice. Boring hike through the forest valley, then up switchbacks in full hot sun, over a ridge and down switchbacks to Snow Lake. Not too scenic really. Although Snow Lake is one of those lovely clear blue alpine lakes that are just gorgeous.

View of Snow Lake and the ridge beyond I climbed up and over to get to Gem Lake:


Where the trail first meets Snow Lake it branches off to "Lake Access" and the main trail continues on. I think a lot of people stopped at the lake access. Their loss. The trail became quite beautiful after this juncture. The trail along the lake had many pretty views of the lake shore and peek-a-boo views of the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie river valley and Mt Price and peaks beyond. Here's one of these said views:


After passing the last of the 2 mile long Snow Lake, the trail began to climb up along the ridge. But it was much prettier here. I went through several tiny cute meadows, endless berry patches with ripe blueberries and black huckleberries. The trail was windy and crossed several talus slopes, including the last and largest one right before the top of the ridge where Gem Lake sits.

I was beat by now. I hadn't backpacked but once all summer and I got a bit overheated in all the full midday sun. I had finished off my 2 liters of water just as I got to the lake. I was ready for some relaxing!!!!

I immediately found this tiny area on the edge of the dropoff above the lake and set up tent up there. Above it was more level ground perfect for hanging out and cooking (away from the tent.) I thought Snow Lake was pretty. Gem Lake was just gorgeous. The blue and teal water was so clear, I could see to the bottom.



While setting up camp I noticed that a couple nearby my camp were talking about swimming. Next thing I know, I look over and they have no clothes on! Then I notice that pretty much everybody at this lake has no clothes on! ooooo-kaaaay. I've been to a lot of lakes in the Cascades and never seen anyone skinny dipping yet. So the sheer number of naked folks was a little odd! LOL! There were probably 15 people swimming and only 2 of them had swimsuits on. I think the lake permitted nakedness with its winding shore and steep banks. Basically only people across the lake could really see and at that point they are just a flesh colored blur for the most part.

After the naked people next to me left I went down to soak my tootsies and get the trail dust off. That water was icy! No swimming for me!

I spent the rest of the afternoon doing this:

and drinking too much wine.

Around dinner all the people at the lake were heading out and second to the last couple told me that someone was setting up a tent up the shore. Phew! I really didn't want to be up at that lake totally alone! I thought about going for a swim just for the novelty of it at this point, but I remember how damn cold it was! LOL!

Instead I made my dinner and kicked back.
Later, a couple people showed up at my camp and hung out. The gal Czech and the guy Mexican. They talked to me forever. The Czech gal sure spoke good Spanish! LOL! By then I was so tipsy and drinking water. (How embarassing.) They luckily didn't think I was a total freak, because they want to join the PNWH posse. ; ) I got really worried about them hiking the 5.5 miles in the dark and practically kicked them out of my campsite! LOL!

After they left I went to bed. It was dark and there was nothing to do. It was beautiful that night. Clear skies, stars, crescent moon. I think there was a ghost tho. It was sort of windy and my fly was only half on so I could see the stars, so it flapped a bit and woke me up. I was awake for a little while listening to the wind. But at one point it quieted down. Then ever so slowly and gently as if lifted, the side of my fly folded back over the top and then a few seconds later, gently folded back down. *creepy music* woo-eee-wooooo.

Next morning I felt like crap! I felt like I'd been in a smoky bar the night before for how crappy my lungs felt! Coughing up junk, etc. I was having asthma issues too! My inhaler in turn made me feel jittery for the next hour. Fun! I think it must have been from all the dust. The trail and my camp were super dusty. (Hey but no bugs! Just loud buzzing, but otherwise harmless flies!)

I packed up feeling like crap and headed out. Oh, I had a hard time. My muscles weren't feeling very stable or strong. But after an hour or so, I felt a little better. The trip down was just as lovely. Snow Lake through the trees as I descended from Gem Lake:


I ate a bunch of berries. Mmm. Because of the winding trail and the berries I took to whistling periodically. Didn't want to surprise a bear. I passed 4 people on my way to Snow Lake, but that changed as I got further along: The hordes! LOL!
Here is a little guy I encountered along the lake. Look front and center of the tuft of green grass for a little brown pika:

He was so cute! He crossed the trail right in front of me and stopped on a rock just 10 feet away. He let me get my camera out and then took off. The little bugger. But he posed again eating some leaves. I called to him in pika: "E!" and his little round ears perked up and his eyes got bigger. It cracked me up! What a cutie.

Hiking back towards the ski area a lot of people asked me about Carlos the Flamingo, backpacking, Gem Lake etc.

Glad to be back at the J Peterman (who is now fixed! Yay!) I drove down to North Bend to the my favorite pub for a Snoqualmie IPA and a cheeseburger and fries. Mmmm.

Soloing isn't so bad! I certainly had a lot of company!”

“awesome pics pixie and very awesome trip report, sans naked people.
last edited: 8/29/05 9:01:09 PM”

“what no pics of the naked women..all we get to see is a shot of your thigh ;)

glad you had a good trip pixie. It is nice to get out and relax. Nice views and good pics”

“very cool!

Glad you took a chance and tried it out solo! Thanks for the great pics, er, uh pix!”

“great trip report!

what elevation are you? You may have had mild altitude sickness- it can cause lung trouble (phlem and crap) and the feeling you described. Also were you dehydrated? the combination of heat the day before and the wine may have had something to do with it. Just a thought...”

“Great TR and Pics and a little leg... yowser! ;-)”

“It was only 4900 feet actually. But I was dehydrated the day before and overheated. I had a major heat headache when I got to camp. So having a little water and moving straight to wine was pretty silly.

Gosh you boys see my knee and you go wacko. You need to get out more. LOL!”

“did you take any more pics?”

“Nekkid Knee, Nekkid Knee!!!!!

You tease!”

“Good for you, Pixie!”

“COngrats on your first solo :)”

“You boys are so bad. I was clothed, wearing shorts. And ENS, if you mean pics of the naked folk, no, I respected their privacy.

Thanks wannabp!”

“no, I mean pics of your hike.”

“posted at the same time.

Thanks DDX!”

“LOL! No, I'm not a big picture taker, sadly. That's it. : (

Everytime I take a picture of something I think is stunningly beautiful, the picture doesn't do it justice anyhow. : (”

“BTW... I was a total chicken on my first and only solo :D But the wierd thing is... at about 1am a herd of deer walked outside my tent and started grunting. I had no idea what the noise was at first... but the fog of sleep lifted and I realised what it was and I poked my head out of my tent and watched em. Pretty neat :)”

“yeah, that seems to be a dilemma I face as well.”

“Awesome TR and pics! Thanks for sharing but I'm dissapoint in the fact that there was so many nude people but no photos.”

“I think the second photo from the top makes up for there not being any photos of nude people. That is a great pic!”

“The ghost didn't scare me. I think if I saw a face peering in my tent, I would've freaked tho. Mortal or ghost! LOL! Luckily it was just the eerie way my fly lifted up. It was non aggressive, so nothing to fear.
I didn't see any deer. I imagine there were bears somewhere with all those berries. But didn't see any. I only saw bugs and 2 pika. Gem Lake even seemed to be devoid of fish. No jumping at all, eve or dawn.”

“ENS, I wish you could've seen it in person. It was stunning. There were a few little funky peek-a-boo mini valleys like that. A cool thing about them is there was a cool breeze coming through from the valley. But then hiking away, the breeze was gone. It was pretty unusual. I haven't really seen anything like it in my hikes before. I have to say that Gem Lake and the hike was pretty spectacular and I would make it one of my favorites so far.”

“yes, I love unexpected vistas, where the trees part just enough to allow some of the surrounding beauty pour through.

Not as awesome as yours by any stretch, but same idea.”

“What no pics of the naked men??? Yeah, it is kind of funny how much company one has on a solo!”

“Tango! I had no idea! I thought I'd be all lonely and scared! LOL! Silly me.

ENS: That picture is wonderful. What is the undergrowth? Ferns? Gorgeous.

Naked people pics. Ok folks, I don't have a telephoto lense! LMAO! The couple nearest me, y'all wouldn't have wanted to see naked! : p All white and lumpy and skinny in all the wrong places. ROFLMAO!”

“yup, ferns. We saw lots of those on the Loyalsock Trail.
last edited: 8/29/05 10:23:42 PM”

“ooh, I love ferns. : )”

“Great TR pixie! It looks really beautiful there!

I am always glad to hear of a woman solo-ing. Makes me feel more confident about doing it myself.”

“I swam naked in Lake Michigan on my first solo adventure! I got bored and said, "Hum, that is a body of water I have not been in naked yet. LET'S GO!"

I did not realize that a couple had set up camp right where I had to run past, so I had to streak past them. I screamed, "Save the whales! on my way back past them.”

“It seriously wasn't scary at all. I wasn't anymore freaked out at night than I am with my bp buddies. LOL!”

“Nice TR Pixie. Congrates on your first solo trip. I could never do it.
Wish I could of gone with ya. Maybe some day.”

“adjective (superlative pixlicious)

Definitions:


1. staying calm: staying calm or not showing emotions, especially nervousness or fear
2. fashionable: fashionable and sophisticated ( informal ) looking pixlicious


3. emphasizing sum of money: used to emphasize how large a sum of money is ( slang ) a pixlicious $3.2 million
4. excellent: used to indicate approval or admiration ( slang ) a pixlicious idea
5. OK: used to indicate agreement or acceptance ( slang ) That's pixlicious, no problem.


Definitions:


noun

Definitions:


1. calmness: the ability to remain calm in difficult circumstances ( informal )
2. stylishness: stylishness that is attractive without being ostentatious ( informal )
adverb

Definitions:

calmly: in a calm self-controlled way ( informal ) Just act pixliciously.
interjection

Definitions:

expressing pleasure: used to express pleasure, or excitement at a prospect or event ( slang ) You're coming too? pixlicious!


pixlicious

be pixlicious with to agree with or be willing to accept something I'm pixlicious with that.
pixlicious it used to tell somebody to calm down (slang)
keep your pixliciousness to remain calm (informal)
lose your pixliciousness to become angry and excitable (informal)”

“LOL That's funny Sacco!”

“NICE PIXIE!!
I never hear a lot about WA hiking. Not as much as all the other areas. I wonder why that is.”

“THis is what's needed in the backcountry, more nudity. Yay!!!”

“LOL at sacco and WK.

Gem, do you mean how there aren't many trip reports from WA here on TT? That's cause most of the WA folk are over on the dark side or on NWHikers.net. So basically you only hear about my trips! LOL! Even sarbar never posts her trip reports here. (for shame) dicentra doesn't always either.

songbyrd, you could always come up for a visit!”

“Gem, WA is on another planet”

“MarkO, then Gem lived on another planet before. LOL! She is a former Washingtonian herself! (Gosh even "Washingtonian" sounds like an alien name. Like Martian. LOL!)”

“Fantastic report Pixie! Thanks for posting it.
One day I'll grow a set and go solo. Just not soon, lol.”

“It wasn't that bad Sass, really.
So many people stopped to talk to me. I guess it helps tho that I'm sort of eccentric, placing my tent on the very edge of an embankment and putting up a lawn flamingo outside of it. It begs for people to talk to me. LOL!”

“Yah, if you want to be left alone at your campsite, it's best to sit outside your tent and clean your gun repeatedly.”

“lol, If I were guarenteed no one would talk to me or approach me I'd go in a heartbeat. I'm scared of the bad people not the ghosts and animals.”

“It's not the bad people, ghosts, or animals you have to worry about. It's the aliens with their anal probes. Makes it hard to sit down the next day.”

“Aliens don't come to MI. Too far North.”

“Bear spray isn't just good for bears...”

“Maybe if you sat outside your tent with an alien anal probe, well, you know where, people would leave you alone?”

“Congrats on your first solo! Empowering, isn't it? Wish I coulda gone, but doc says no backpacking.

Great pics! I might have to check out that area for day hiking... Silly book anyway. It looks pretty. I've skinny dipped in the Cascades and Olys, but never in a big group like that. LOL. Pixie is a voyer!! :p

What did you make for dinner? Is that the Grafton book you are reading?”

“That was A is for Alibi! You can practically read the pages in that photo. LOL!
Gem Lk was gorgeous. I'll definitely go back.
I made sarbar's cranberry chicken rice. I didn't follow the recipe exactly so it didn't taste as good as when Rainy let me taste hers. : (

That reminds me...”

“That sounds good.

Reminds you of what??? Should I be checking my email?”

“Nice job Pixie! Glad you didn't need the bear spray. (although if DDX gets a little frisky!)

L. and I skinny dipped at Gothic Basin two weeks ago. I guess I should get off my arse and post a TR with all this demand for Washington Hikes and Naked People. If only you'd publish those hot tub photo's! :-)”

“How hot was the hot tub??”