The car spots were full when we arrived at 11:30, so we parked behind another car in a trailer spot. Bathroom was stocked. Headed up the Tin Mine side and took the connector back over to Gold Creek and then onto Plummer for a more scenic and longer route up the mountain. The trail was painted with the seed-laden droppings from birds.There are lots of Salal and to my partner's delight - black raspberry. Tasting them brought back childhood memories from growing up in the Midwest.
We got up to the top and briefly stayed as the views were obscured. As we headed down, we saw a lady in strap-on sandals and white pants precariously coming up the jagged last 0.2 miles. She was part of a large group, some of whom were assisting her. We surmised they had driven up. It was nice to see several groups today with kids of varying ages who all seemed to be enjoying themselves out in nature.
We ran down the shorter Gold Creek route and back over to Tin MIne. We crossed some logged and previous burn sections and then into the forested descent to the mine. This section was wetter and had several small streamlets and small two-step bridges along the way. We saw some blackberry, currant, and lots of Devil's Club. The mine was occupied by a larger group so we headed back up. On the way back we noticed red huckleberry, and what we think was a green plum tree...?
There were lots of bees out today, but they were occupied. The bugs along Tin Mine were more pesky as they swarmed around our faces. I had to spit a couple of them out. I didn't find any bites though. Finished and covered just over 10 miles.
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