Shakedown Hike

I finally got my first good hike in for the year this last weekend. I had planned on breaking into the hiking season gradually but with everything I have been trying to get done and take care of, this didn’t happen. So I decided that I needed to do a pretty good first hike to make sure I was still up to snuff. In the Navy, when a ship comes out of the yards after repairs, they take it on what is called a shakedown cruise in order to make sure everything is working properly.

I didn’t want to get too crazy. I had initially decided to go up the South Fork of the Cascade River. This would serve two purposes. The trail is challenging but not too challenging and I could also scout the trail because I have some trips planned for up there later in the year.

I changed my mind and decided to go into Dixie Lake near the headwaters of Gilligan Creek on the South Skagit near Sedro-Woolley. I had never been there before and there are some other lakes and ponds in the area that I want to go to so I decided I could scout that instead. The distance looked to be five or more miles one way, gaining something like 3000 feet which wouldn’t be extreme and would be a good test to see how I stand up.

I walked more than five miles. The last roadside mile marker I saw was the 5 mile. After that I walked another mile or two. So probably 12 to 14 miles round trip. I didn’t experience any major physical problems. The usual aches and pains and fortunately no cramps. I drank a bunch of tonic water prior to the hike. Quinine in large quantities is bad for you I understand. I also understand that this is the reason why one of the few places you can now get it is in tonic water. I also understand that there is a lot of good anecdotal evidence that it helps with cramps. I have also been taking some herbal anti-cramp pills that have all kinds of stuff in them though the only ingredient I can remember for sure is bull prostate. I am sure there is good anecdotal evidence out there that bull prostate helps with cramps.  

It is also important early in the year, I think, to start to prepare mentally for the aching muscles and feet. And to refresh yourself on how to go to that place in your head that lets you get it done when every step hurts and you still have many miles of walking to go to get out. I don’t use ear buds or any other distraction and it occurred to me on my way out that it was kind of difficult to keep going when most of the sensations you are experiencing are, at the very least, uncomfortable, if not painful and you don’t have any distractions other than the ones you come across in your travels or that you make for yourself.

Dixie Lake was completely socked in with fog so I didn’t really see what it looked like. The cloud drip from the trees intercepting moisture from the fog was heavy. It was literally raining under the trees while it was only misty everywhere else. No visibility is the reason I don’t invest a lot of time and effort in getting somewhere in the backcountry if I won’t be able to see what it looks like. In this case it was okay. I need to go in there again anyway and will choose a better day and I got the exercise I needed.

Sunday I was sore but it wasn’t as bad as I had expected to be. I had been taking some short, intense hikes before work the last several months and maybe those took the edge off the soreness.

I did a short trip, probably a couple miles up the Suiattle River along U. S. Forest Service Road 25 beyond Circle Creek where it is washed out and has been abandoned. This was to scout a possible route for some trips I plan to make later this year. I didn’t see much, a couple of red-legged frogs (Rana aurora) and a western toad (Bufo boreas). I also heard rock rabbits or pikas (Ochotona princeps) in a rock cut and talus area at about 1100 feet in elevation along the abandoned 25 Road. But most importantly, my legs felt fine.

Dixie Lake at about noon on the 19th of July.

Close-up of Dixie Lake same day. 

Tadpoles in ditch along road. 

Red legged frog (Rana aurora) on abandoned road. The red markings on this individual are quite prominent.  With many red legged frogs the red is not so brilliant or widespread. 

Red legged frog side view. I usually try to capture at least several individuals that I encounter. I usually try to get a good look before trying the capture. You can usually identify the species quite well by distant observation but capture and close observation is the best way to identify the species positively. Here you can see that the groin area of the frog just in front of the legs is green mottled which is a trait of the red legged frogs that no other frog species exhibits. 

Top view of same red legged frog. The dorsal spots are also useful identification characteristics though not as good as looking at the groin area. I try not to abuse the frogs too much as I am recording information and taking photos. If it makes the reader feel any better, I got a big bleeding scratch on my face when a stick poked me as I was trying to catch this frog. 

Red legged frog. This is the frog from the previous photos after release. If I can, I try to get a few photos of an animal before I try to catch it in case it gets away. This way I at least have some sort of record of my observation. This photo is good enough to make out the dorsal spotting on this frog. The dorsal spots here have blurry edges and aren't the proper shape for a spotted frog (R. pretiosa or luteiventris). If they had sharp, well defined edges that would mean this was a Cascades frog (R. cascadae). So, through a process of elimination, I could say that this is a red legged frog with a high degree of confidence. By capturing it and looking at its other features, I am almost 100% certain that this is a red legged frog. 

Western toad (Bufo boreas). This toad was only a short distance from the previously pictured red legged frog. Western toads are quite easy to identify. Most have a prominent dorsal stripe and their skin is warty and often dry, not smooth and moist like a frog's. In addition, they have paratoid glands, the two bumps you see behind the eyes. Finally, their hind legs are significantly shorter than any of our Rana species so they hop in a distinctly different manner. They don't jump nearly as far or as high as frogs. The paratoid glands contain poison and I have a hunch this is why they don't need to be able to leap so far and so quickly as frogs.  

Gibson Falls. 

Red legged frog near my journey's end. I wasn't able to capture this one. I saw three frogs and the one toad on my way out where I didn't see any on the way in. The sun was beginning to break out into weak patches and I don't know if this  made any difference. Maybe it was also the time of day or some other factor that brought the critters out.