ZIGZAG

Today Jim promised Kathe a nice easy hike. They set out for Zigzag Falls Trail, a nice little half mile hike in the forest.  It was a beautiful hike and because it was Sunday there were quite a few families enjoying the trail with their doggies. You might be wondering why Kathe and Jim never take me with them on hikes anymore.  Simple, I'm 12 years old now and I'm good for a while, but someone always ends up having to carry me back home.  I prefer to stay home  in the first place, instead of bouncing around in a backpack, or being passed back and forth like a sack of potatoes.

So back to the hiking, they had so much fun at the falls and it was such a short hike that Jim decided they should try the trail to Mirror Lake next.  An okay choice on paper, but it was uphill, rocky and switchback after switchback in reality. The sign said it was a 3 mile round trip with an elevation change of 750 feet.  It didn't say, 750 feet straight up, with absolutely no downhill stretches to catch your breath.  It took a while to reach the Lake, but they made it.

The draw to Mirror Lake was the spectacular reflection of Mount Hood in the Lake. But the forest fires have just about hidden the mountain from view with smoke so all they got was a picture of the Lake.  It least the hike was completely down hill on the way back.  The only thing that kept Kathe going was the promise of a hot fudge sundae from Dairy Queen on the way back to camp.

Everyone is home now and stretched out on the sofa, I'm just glad they made it home in time for my dinner.