After Saturday's epic twenty mile hiking event, I needed something a little shorter to end my season. Having already established a tradition of hiking Wasson as a first and last hike to bookend my annual hiking season, I chose the Hugh Norris Trail to Wasson Peak. This beautiful little hike, which I had never done, accomplishes a similar elevation gain as Saturday's hikes at nearly 2,500 feet, yet it manages to do so in half the distance. My Michigan pal Jack joined me on this last outing.The trail itself was a real surprise. This out-and-back gets way less use than the King's Canyon Loop or the Sweetwater approach, and the trail was in great shape. What we found really striking is the high level of craftsmanship in the construction of the granite stairs, of which there were many—a whole mile of them to start.
The weather was overcast and 60º-70º, and the light eerily beautiful. Very little wind until the return, when it picked up a notch. Saw a few other fellow hikers, almost all of whom were from the Upper Midwest, which has freakily been having similar daytime temps.
|
Curt (Michigan), Jack (Michigan), and Jeff (Wisconsin), photo taken by two young hikers from New Hampshire.
|
|
A rare glimpse of sun toward hike's end.
|
|
One last task is to clean the boots from any invasive hitchhikers. |