ScenicBoys: Yellow Aster Butte from scenicboys on Vimeo.
Here's a video of a short trip (just one night) with Ranger Mike, Yogen (visiting from NYC) and Patrick (visiting from Hokkaido, Japan) up to Yellow Aster Butte in Washington's North Cascades.
Patrick had been staying with us for a couple weeks prior, and Yogen flew in just to say hi and come along on the trip. Since Patrick's flight back home left Sunday mid-day, we decided to camp overnight Friday and head out for a nice mountain stroll all day Saturday.
Mike heard about Friday night's campsite from a Park Ranger coworker. There once was a lovely campground here, but heavy rains and a swollen river dissolved it away.
What remains is a small parking area and a steep drop-off to the new river bank some 20 feet below the original campground. Yogen's reaction when Michael told him it was 'highly likely' we could get swept away by the river was... priceless.
Saturday morning we lazily kicked around camp, packed up, and got some delicious coffee and breakfast in Glacier, WA. The temperature was in the lower 70s and aside from the huge cotton ball clouds, it looked asthough it was going to be a gorgeous summer afternoon.
The hike was beautiful. The colors of nature seemed to be more vibrant up at 2200ft. Purples from the Fireweed dominated the trail sides and medows. While the numerous Mountain Ash trees gave the endless greens a sharp contrast with crimson. The whites in the clouds even seemed to glow with a freshly bleeched charm as they corrested the jaged mountain peaks.
At the top there were several little lakes, each looking more and more inviting after the steep hike. Unable to resist, we stripped down and jumped in. Suprisingly, the water wasn't too cold. We each jumped in twice and then quickly got dressed. Patrick said as he was clammering to get out "I've never been so refreshed in my life!"
We all would have loved to spend the night up there, but our time was running short and we had to get Patrick to the airport. Thanks to Ranger Mike for planning this wonderful get away!
Next adventure: Burning Man!!!
Yay! This takes me right back. I've got some more photos from this trip here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/yogen/sets/72157622031305935/
Love you guys - can't wait to come back again! :)
Posted by: Ragasha | October 05, 2009 at 11:01 PM
Hi guys, here is a french canadian. Sorry for my poor english. I enjoy to follow you on your trips. You seem to be so free !! How cam i look at these more photos ??
Posted by: letiga | October 06, 2009 at 01:59 AM
Another short but sweet hike! Amazing landscapes....the wildflowers are out here at the moment..will be out amongst them very soon Vin
Posted by: Vin | October 06, 2009 at 03:57 AM
Well, you've done it again. Thanks for the post......and the pics.
Oh and tell Ragasha (or is it Yogen) to allow other to see the photos he's sharing with you guys.
Posted by: Mark | October 06, 2009 at 08:22 AM
I agree about Yogen's pic.. it's kind of a tease so say they exist and then not be allowed to see. However, I can understand if they are well... revealing. In that case, make just a sample few available as public pics on Flickr. You can also make a private group on Flickr, and share private pics that only (approved) group members can view (photo pool is private and not viewable to outsiders). We're really not interested in explicit pics anyway. Glad to see the Facebook Fan page getting used.
Hey, you guys have another friend (acquaintance) in Japan - I live in Tokyo but loving traveling and doing outdoors stuff all over Japan. Going to Shikoku (Island) in a few weeks to bike and hike.
Someday, you'll have to make the journey for an outdoor trip to Japan (to see Mike) and stop in Tokyo, too. Then you can stop off and camp/hike on the Big Island on your way back.
Kelly
Posted by: Kelly Lewis | October 06, 2009 at 05:33 PM
Beautiful landscapes, beautiful boys...thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Podoli | October 06, 2009 at 06:39 PM
Hmmm photos should be public - I just reset permissions again just in case!
Posted by: Ragasha | October 07, 2009 at 01:27 AM
YAB is a great spot in the fall, too. Hillsides covered in tasty blueberries and spectacular autumn color. It's one of the prettiest spots in the North Cascades. Try going on out the ridge to Tomyhoi sometime.
Posted by: Mark Turner | October 07, 2009 at 07:35 AM
Holy Shit! Burning man!! I'm soooo jealous.
Camping in river beds is like using local transportation in developing countries. You’ll probably make it through the night, or get to your destination, but the probability of a memorable story is greater. I’ve camped in two riverbeds that have ran over, not fun, but great/funny memories
Posted by: Mike | October 12, 2009 at 06:52 AM