I didn’t have to work today so we decided to give Saddle Mountain another go.  The first time we attempted it after work one day and didn’t complete it due to being tired and hangry.  The second time we made it to the trailhead only to find that the trail was closed due to a bridge being repaired.  Third time’s a charm…  When we woke up this morning, we could tell that it would not be a clear day due to the smoke but we decided to go anyways.  With all of the fires around we may not have the luxury of another clear day to tackle it.  As we began hiking, it became clear that the smoke wasn’t going anywhere but we pushed on.

When we made it passed the point we did the first time, the trail changed.  It became more steep and more on the edge of the mountain than the first part.  Needless to say, Scott did not like this.

It wasn’t much further along that he decided that the last half of this trail was not for him.  I didn’t come all this way to not finish so I took the pack with my water and left him behind.  This is the point where we split.

The remaining part of the trail was no joke and it kicked my butt.  Scott would have hated it!  There was no more protection of trees.  Most parts of the trail were right on the edge of the mountain.  The inclines were steep, the gravel was loose, and it was crazy windy.  Most of the trail was covered in chain link fence to help with the grip.  I pushed on and finally made it to the top!

Too bad it wasn’t a clear day!  Now that I was at the top, I wondered how I would get down.  There were so many steep inclines to get there, that it meant now I had to go down them!  My legs were like jello.  I texted Scott to let him know that I made it and asked him to call a helicopter to come get me from the top.  I was only kidding.  Kinda.  I stayed up top long enough to catch my breath and take in the smoky views and then made my way down.  Slowly and carefully!  I took it nice and slow and stopped a lot to take pictures.

I eventually made it back to where I left Scott.  We sat and enjoyed the lunches that I had packed and I got to rest for a bit.  Then we made our way back down.  Scott had to go back through a couple of places that he really didn’t like.

Here is the new bridge that they put in to replace the washed out one.

We both made it back without any injuries.  I’m glad I was able to complete it this time.  And since it was the warmest day here in Seaside since we’ve been here, we finished the day relaxing on the beach.