Elevation: I am from the Midwest

When the guide book says the difficulty level of your hike is Strenuous, next time I will take that grade seriously. This was my first major hike in forever, and although I have run several marathons, I have never known pain and soreness like this... It's a truly great feeling. Seattle has been many things to me this past month, and the serenity I find only when I am deep in the woods is a perfect balance to the tens of thousands of drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, and endless hipsters I navigate through every day. And in the Alpine Wilderness, we had a whole new set of obstacles and swarming numbers to dance, jump, and step around. One snake, one hummingbird, two frogs, three slugs, six caterpillars, the cry of a mountain goat, and 20,000 mosquitoes. Next time we won't forget the bug spray.