[Slugman]

I left the parking area at Samish Overlook with Daisy the Wonder Dog and Yetiman at 10 am, and headed the "wrong way" down the PNT towards Chuckanut drive far below. At the first switchback, we turned right on the Samish Bay Connector, which took us up and down and over to the Oyster trail. Then it was up and up on a rough and rooty trail, very slippery in places, to the Talus trail that goes to the Bat Caves. We spent three hours exploring the area and nursing the dog through some pretty rough scrambling and bouldering. We made it up to the rock wall of the giant cliffs right in the center, and took plenty of pictures of the great views and cool cliffs and rocks. Next it was back to the Oyster trail and up an extremely steep section to the Oyster Dome side trail, which is also very steep. Great views of the San Juans, Olympics, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands of BC, Anacortes, and other cool things. We left at 5 and got back to the car at 6:15 by pushing straight through at full speed. The sunset had died down to smouldering embers by then, but we hung out for a couple of hours anyway, enjoying the commanding views of the Skagit valley spread out beneath us. Wow. The Samish Overlook alone is worth the drive up, just 65 miles from Lynnwood. While on the PNT at just after 10 am, we met two men coming up from Chuckanut drive. I introduced Daisy the Wonder Dog to them, and one guy says "You must be Slugman". I asked who he was, and he said "I'm nobody, I just lurk, and have been for years, going back to the WTA forum days". I told him he obviously had stories and opinions that would interest others, so he should join up, post a few things, and not be "nobody". He said maybe. My most sucessful recruiting pitch ever! Here are a couple of pictures. The first one is me, Daisy and Yetiman at "Ice Age", a giant "view boulder" on the Oyster trail before the Bat caves turn-off. The second is of cliffs at the Bat Caves. The third I took by putting my sunglasses in front of the camera lens to get a polarized filter effect. The fourth is of the San Juans, also using my new "filter". The fifth is of me trying my hand at some boulder scaling. It was much steeper than it looks in the picture.

Slugman Yetiman Daisy at Ice Age

Cliffs at Bat caves

Oyster Dome sunset

San Juan islands

Sluggo needs help getting down

[V Funk]

Nice...I was actually up there as well on Saturday. Gorgeous day. A few nervous moments up on the boulders but it's definitely a very well-maintained trail and an incredibly easy trip from Seattle.

[Slugman]

Welcome, V Funk. I see you hiked up from Chuckanut drive. I was very happy to start from the overlook and save two miles and 1,000 VF. I used that energy and time bouldering at the caves and hanging out at the dome. Today I feel like I was beaten with a rubber hose. I told Tanja that the dog had "gotten me" with a sharp paw during a boulder lift, and she saw a gash in my leg and said "Yeah, she really got you". Well, I hadn't noticed the scrapes she saw, I had a different slash to show her. That's OK, scabs act as insulation, keep mosquitos from biting that spot, and protect from harmfull UV rays. When we got back to the trailhead at 6-ish, a guy was up there target shooting, letting go a couple of hundred rounds from a semi-automatic pistol. Yetiman hates this, makes him nervous I guess. I'm not crazy about it either, but it doesn't bother me as much. We were going to go somewhere else to enjoy the view, when the guy finished up and departed, leaving us to silence and complete solitude at a great viewspot on a Saturday night.

[Newt]

Nice photos. I always found that the hike up from Chuckanut was a good workout for me. Nice day for the hike. Newt