What can I say, 5 minutes from my house and plenty of trails.

Started out the day by heading up to Anacortes hoping for a break in the weather. Arrived at Washington Park at about 10 am in the mist and the fog. We tried some of the side trails toward the bluff but the brush was very wet and heavy and the rocks slippery so we ended up making our way back to the paved loop road. Views were virtually non existent due to the fog but this was an enjoyable walk and begs to be revisted. After a break for a sweet treat at the donut shop in Anacortes, we headed toward Mount Vernon. I have always wanted to check out Little Mountain Park and seeing as we weren't in a rush to get home we stopped by. Waited in the car at the summit for about 30 minutes hoping the rain would let up. It never did, so we hopped out and went exploring. Found the North View Point Trail (no view from the view point today) and then headed down the Sidewinder Trail which meanders gently downwards before levelling out. The trail is in good condition and never very steep. It kind of snakes its way down before flattening out. Passed the Huff and Puff trail and decided to leave that for another visit when I need an aerobic workout. It looks like many trails to explore in the park, so next time I will come prepared and print out a map beforehand. For a rainy, cool summer Saturday we were able to get out and explore two new areas. We will be back to both of these places again.

My dog and I run this trail once a week. We took along my husband on this day. The weather was overcast but we could still see the wonderful view when we arrived at the top. We started at Lazy Boy and it was a little muddy from the recent rain but it was a beautiful run. We ran on the new trail Jenny and it was too steep to run very much of it. I love this hike because it is so close to home and because it is wooded you can hike/run it all year round even in the rain you don't get very wet.

Feeling OK the day after getting rear-ended on my way to hike the Index Town Wall; I went to my chiropractor in the morning to get checked and adjusted, and then I headed toward Mt. Vernon for a quick hike on Little Mountain. I did a loop hike from the summit down the Ridge Trail, across the Julieanne Trail, and back up one of the Loop Trails. There were a few hikers at the summit, but none on the trails. On the way home I stopped for a short hike at Big Ditch Slough hoping to see a Snowy Owl. There was someone target shooting, so there wasn't a bird of any kind to be seen. However, the views of the Sound and the mountains were nice. It felt good to hike. I'm glad the accident didn't take me out of service for more than a day.

Bad weather in the mountains kept us at lower elevation, but we still had a fairly strenuous and enjoyable hike on Little Mountain at Mount Vernon. We saw our first Trillium of the season and the Salmon Berry bushes are beginning to bloom. It was sunny 80% of the time and it didn't rain. The trails are mud free and almost completely clear.