One day at Mount Rainier we were on the Fourth Crossing trail. It’s just a quarter mile connector from an overflow lot to the main Paradise trails. The trouble is that it’s incredibly scenic with Paradise Creek running down through rocks and wildflowers. Once we reached the top, I looked at my watch and asked Cheryl if she had any idea how long it took us to hike a quarter mile. I can’t remember the exact time, but it was incredibly long – something like an hour and a half or maybe longer. That’s what happens when you lose track of time while surrounded by incredible beauty.

I’m certainly no expert on American rivers. I’m sure that there are many that are exceptionally scenic. But I do have to think that if one was to make a list of the most beautiful half mile stretches of rivers the McKenzie between Sahalie and Koosah would have to be in the running. Although I’ve been there many times, I still found myself taking over two hours to walk that down and back up that short stretch of trail.

The rest of my day was spent at Clear Lake. About half way around I stopped at a bench to eat my lunch. After I finished I just sat there for a lot longer. The color of the leaves and lake were beautiful and I felt at peace. There was nowhere else I wanted to be.

I finished my hike early in the afternoon. I certainly had time to spend seeing something else, but my knee was finished hiking several miles before I was. The good news is that it’s doing better than yesterday and I’ve decided that I’ll be good to go for the rest of the trip.