I enjoy that I can hike mountains to see the views from the top and intend to keep myself active and in shape so I can do that well into my later years. However, there is also a road that brings vista-seekers to the top of Walker, off of which you'll park for the hike.
Around 11 am there were 4 vehicles in the lot and one gentleman came off the trail and left as I was snacking in my van pre-hike. Down to 3 (including mine). As expected, I then had plenty of solitude as I hiked up the trail, stretching out my calf muscles on the 10-20% grade incline. I met one other person on the trail; we passed with a simple greeting and we were both on our way in opposite directions.
At the top I saw the owner of the 3rd vehicle, sitting and soaking in the view from the north viewpoint, the first you'll encounter coming off the trail. There were also a few groups who had driven to the lookout. Since it was a bit crowded there for my liking, I set off down the road to check out the south viewpoint. I had that one to myself for a while and though the views aren't as impressive, I could see the city in the distance and everything in between quite clearly.
I walked back to the north viewpoint and it was a bit quieter, so I took some time there to admire the mountains (I love how there are peak ID graphics at both viewpoints so you know what you're seeing). After watching a chipmunk nibble on some foliage, I headed back down.
On the way down I had the trail to myself and I took my time to admire my surroundings and take some pictures with the camera I had brought. There are a few rhododendrons starting to bloom and plenty of trillium (although they're coming to the end of their season) and lots of fiddleheads starting to stretch out and uncurl.
It was a beautiful few hours in the woods and a nice workout (on the way up).
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