[Criminal]

I told my 13 year old son way back in June, “You better get in shape!” He didn’t listen, instead bumming rides or taking his electric scooter. I made him hike to Melakwa Pass last weekend and he did well. So this week I thought I’d really punish him with a hike to the summit of Col Bob. So on Wednesday night I dug out the tent, sleeping bags, pads, and all the overnighter paraphernalia and put our packs together. On Thursday morning I loaded Patch the SuperDog into the bed of the truck along with the packs and off we went. The Garmin V wanted to route me around through Olympia so that’s the way I went. I think there are better ways to get there from Gig Harbor though. So there we are, driving 65 MPH on highway 8 out of Olympia, TroubleChild sound asleep, and Patch wandering around the bed of the truck looking restless. Through the rearview mirror I see Patch with his two front paws on the right side with his snout out in the wind stream, when suddenly I watch in horror as he hooks his back leg up on the side of the bed for a better sniff. “No good can come from that” I think to myself, and just then, over the side he went. So this is the situation; 65 MPH in the left lane, Patch just over the right side of the truck. I do a max effort stop on the left shoulder (I really HATE stopping on the highway, especially on the left shoulder.) and run around to the right side. There’s Patch, sheepish look on his face, hanging from his harness and just inches off the pavement. I hefted him back in and drove down to a gated road and pulled off on the right to check him out. I’m still shaking. He looks OK, he scuffed his foot and toe on the street and it was bleeding slightly, but it had stopped. I took him out of the truck and let him run around on the leash for a while; he wasn’t limping so I loaded him back and got ready to press on. The truck won’t start. A call to triple A gets a tow truck out to jump it off and I decide that since I’m now only an hour behind schedule, I’ll press on to Aberdeen and have Schucks check the battery. They hook it up and it tests good now and the truck starts no problemo. We get some lunch and press on. The Forest Service road going to the trailhead is one of the better ones I’ve ever driven, no truck required. We make the trailhead about two hours late on my timetable. “Wow, this pack is heavy,” mutters TroubleChild at the trailhead. Our plan is to hike up the Pete’s Creek trail to Moonshine Flats, spend the night, and get up early for a run at the summit. From the parking area on the right, you cross the road and head up the trail. I say that because we hiked from the parking lot side of the road about a half mile before I realized we were on the lower Pete’s Creek Trail, not the upper. So back up to the parking area we go, frustrated as this trip is just not coming together as I had planned. Now on the right trail we start anew and begin the slow steady climb. I love this trail! The Pete’s Creek trail is in great condition, but not over engineered by any means. It is delightfully overgrown in places too. That it’s overgrown with blooming flowers and berries is bonus. There is nothing but blissful silence out here, interrupted only by the chirping of birds or the chattering of a chipmunk. After listening to the roar of I-90 almost all the way to Melakwa Lake last weekend, this was refreshing. The Pete’s Creek trail is shaded almost the whole way to the intersection with the Col Bob trail. There was far less water than I had anticipated and I was getting worried about Patch. The shade was helping but the watering holes were few and far between. Right at the very end you switchback up an exposed south facing hillside, and the heat was pretty brutal today. TroubleChild, despite the look of exhaustion on his face, kept assuring me he was OK. Patch just trotted along with his little pack on, resting when we rested. At the end of the Pete’s creek trail we stopped for a break, TroubleChild fell asleep! Right there on the trail with his head on his pack, drooling, and hard asleep. I hated to wake him but we were behind schedule. We did the final switchbacks and rested again at the Col Bob intersection. Here we saw the first and only other hikers we would see on this day. If you’re looking for solitude, weekdays in the Olympics are where it’s at. I gave Patch the last of his water, hoping we could find some up near Moonshine Flats. The trail from the intersection was more steep switchbacks and I began to worry that this might have been too ambitious of a hike for my son. We came around a bend in the trail and there was Fletcher Canyon, what a beautiful sight. Just beyond the canyon we found a stagnant pool of water, Patch splashed around and drank. I hoped we could find some better water near the flats, and the sound of running water was a welcome one indeed as we made our way just a hundred meters or so farther. We explored around and picked the best of the campsites and dumped our gear, filtered some water, ate, and set up the tent. There were a number of stagnate pools filled with tadpoles all over the flats, so the mosquitoes were abundant, as were the deer and horse flies. A little deet kept them off us. This was Patch’s first overnighter; he was still too little to go with us last year. I don’t know where he got the idea he would be sleeping inside the tent with us, but he kept trying to get in. Nothing doing dog, you sleep outside. Off and on throughout the night he would get up, growl at something down the trail, and pace a bit before settling back down. The next morning we stowed our gear in the tent and headed for the summit. From our campsite I could see two hikers on one of the peaks, so I knew we would not be alone today. One hiker passed us on the way up, and we met up with him again at the summit. The views are beyond spectacular! If you haven’t been to the summit of Col Bob, you have no idea what you are missing. As you come over the ridge you are greeted with a magnificent view that is enough in itself, but the summit is still a few hundred meters up the trail. The last 20 meters of trail is really no trail at all, just a scramble up the bald knob that is Col Bob’s head. The 360° views are simply breathtaking. We spent very little time on the summit, just signed the log and took some pictures. Patch was looking for shade a little too close to the edges, and after the scare he gave me the day before in the truck, I didn’t want him to repeat it up here. The hike down was pretty uneventful; we took our time since we had really nothing else to do anyway. At the trailhead the truck refused to start, again. The heat of the day would be to our advantage though, as a team of young forest service volunteers drove up after deciding to quit their trail clearing for the high temperatures. They gave me a jump and we headed on home, tired but triumphant. TroubleChild did a super job on this hike, never complained once even though he was pushed to his limits. Patch barely moved all day Saturday, he was wiped out. I intend to hike this trail again soon, it is simply too beautiful to visit only once, and I didn’t get nearly enough time on the summit. This would be a great solo hike, and I may do it that way next time. TroubleChild will head back to Florida next week, with another great summer of hikes and camp outs for his memory. The problem with the truck continued over the weekend, so it wasn’t evil hiker hating spirits causing me grief. With the truck running, I pulled off the positive cable and the truck continued to run just fine, so the charging system was working properly. (No, that’s not the best way to test that as it can harm the computer or damage the alternator.) That meant it was either a bad battery (replaced only three months ago) or the starter was getting ready to give up the ghost. In Aberdeen the truck started just fine and the battery tested good then, so I was simply going to try throwing a new starter at it, but decided to have the battery tested again. This time the truck wouldn’t start without a jump so when they tested it the battery indicated a dead cell. I figure one of the plates had broken loose inside the case and was shorting the battery internally. The test in Aberdeen didn’t find it because the plates had moved apart then. It was under warranty so that was a freebie. If you have any questions about this hike or need some troubleshooting advice for a 1986 Ford Ranger XLT stretch-cab pickup with the 2.9 liter engine and 4WD, feel free to email me.

[Mikey]

You might consider getting a sealed (spiral wound battery) such as is made by Optima. http://www.dcbattery.com/optima2.html Optima has the red top model for engine starting and the yellow top (white bottom) deep cycle version. A couple of days ago my 1991 Ford Explorer electrical system "malfunctioned" (OK maybe I messed up as it appeared that the dome light and interior lights were on all night) and showhow my red top optima battery was dead in the morning (this is at my Seattle house). I was able to recharge up this dead battery and it works OK now (it is 4 years old). I am thinking of getting a new yellow top Optima battery as a 2nd or backup battery (to avoid the embarrassment of being stuck at some boondocks trailhead). By the way, I paid about $100 on sale for the red top Optima battery. I see the yellow top Optima batteries on sale on ebay but one needs to be sure to get the model which fits OK (the Optima battery website has dimensions and other details) Good luck.

[Criminal]

Thanks Mikey, I've seen these batteries before, all the AGE carts here on base are chock full of them. Three months back I dropped $40 or so on the one that screwed me. In hindsight I think it was a remanufactured battery as the neg terminal was very narrow, as though it had been "cleaned" a few too many times. I also have trouble dropping a Benjamin on my 18 year old truck. But you make a good point about not being stranded.