Ptarmigan Ridge — Monday, Aug. 11, 2025

I left the Artist Point parking lot at 2:30am for a moonlight hike to Goat Lake. I did this hike four weeks ago and it was so much less challenging this time – it was hard to believe how much snow melted between the hikes. The remaining snow banks are easily traversed (as well as easy to follow the beaten path, even in moonlight) and inbound I didn’t use any gear, not even poles. Since the snow bank crossings were usually on downgrades when returning, I did use poles outbound. The moon was so bright, I only used the flashlight in a couple of very short segments within moon shadowed areas and to see how deep the meltwater runoffs over the trail were. Only saw one meteor (possibly because the moon was so bright), but Venus and Jupiter rose over Shuksan in a tight, brilliant formation only about two moon diameters (or one degree) apart. Nice breeze kept it comfortable and almost completely bug-free. Ate a little meal by the lake and didn’t need repellant, a first for me. Many fantastic flower displays along the route. Back to parking lot at 10:30am and found cars circling to find a space.…on a Monday!