Mountain Voices (In Explore) - a photo on Flickriver

            Tahoma/Mount Rainier in the clouds, taken from the Crystal Mountain Trail at about 6800 feet/2070 meters) elevation

"Go to the mountains", the voice softly whispered in my head as I slipped from sleep into semi-consciousness at the insistent ringing of my hiking-day morning alarm. "But that's not what I had planned", I thought to myself, having selected a different hike the night before when I was preparing my gear and planning for the day's adventure. 

"You should go to the mountains", the voice said again, more insistently this time, as I ate a quick breakfast, downed some coffee, and checked the weather to make sure the thunderstorms from Saturday afternoon were not making an appearance in Sunday's forecast. "But it will be so crowded at Mount Rainier National Park on a holiday weekend at the end of summer" I thought, pushing my rationale for having chosen a different hike.

Yet somehow I found myself checking the mountain weather forecast before I headed out, and as I drove to the trailhead, underneath the sounds of my selected playlist I could hear the words again, "Go to the mountains".

The weather did not look promising as I made my way south and east, watching the mountains draped in a thick layer of cloud cover. I stubbornly protested to that voice in my head that Tahoma probably wouldn't be visible anyway. "That doesn't matter, it's about being there" the voice replied, and after only the briefest hesitation I drove past the turnoff to the lake trail that had been my original destination, and headed toward the mountains. 

Knowing it would be overcrowded at the National Park, I quickly ran through other trail options in my head, and decided to head out to Crystal Mountain. A ski resort in the winter, it lies adjacent to the National Park boundary and the Mount Rainier wilderness area, and provides access to hiking trails in the summer. Being past summer wildflower season I hoped the trails would not be busy, and fortunately that was the case.

Although Tahoma never fully emerged from the clouds, the joys of hiking for hours in near-solitude through expansive mountain views in every direction, glorious subalpine meadows, and two lovely and quiet alpine lakes (one of which I shared with only the birds, chipmunks, and insects), filled my soul with all those things I hadn't consciously realized I was needing...and my mind with gratitude for inner voices that speak when we need them to give us a nudge in the right direction.

Taken in: United States / Washington / Sunrise (show map)

Taken on: September 3, 2023

Tags:

mountain

clouds

volcano

Tahoma

Mount Rainier

Crystal Mountain Trail

Pacific Northwest

Washington

hiking

summer

trail

mountain peak

nature

inner voices « less

Sets appears in: • Explored • Mt Rainier National Park more » • 2023 Hikes • Mountains and Meadows « less

Groups appears in: • Landscape • Pacific Northwest Outdoors more » • Pacific Northwest • Washington State Outdoors - NO HAND OF MAN! • Landscapes!!! • Clouds, Storms, Sunsets & Sunrises • Natural Landscape & Wildlife Photos • Landscape Beauty ! • Trees, Trees and More Trees • Un-enhanced American West • in explore • Flickr Social • Flickrology « less

Camera: Canon PowerShot SX740 HS, f/4.5, 1/1600 sec, 14.1mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon PowerShot SX740 HS
Lens:	4.3-172.0 mm
Aperture:	f/4.5
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/1600)
Focal Length:	14.1mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
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