McDonald Mountain: Exhaustion, a goat, and my third Rainier

The scene where I turned back: a skyline shows at top of hill. Elevation: 3,188 feet.

Map My Hike descent map: 4.4 miles indicated.

GPS Map software indicates elevation of 2,831 feet at this gate; we walked around on the foot path.

This hike is noteworthy. I turned back before the top because of a date I had to make, but Roger Matthews made it to the top and got acquainted with a mountain goat! The curious goat followed him and approached within 10 feet.

The case of the curious goat. Photo by Roger Matthews.

I'm not sorry I missed the sight. I was exhausted. I had packed 39 pounds on the hike (as measured back at home). Just before I had returned to the trailhead, I had totally drained my Platypus and my mouth was parched. I wetted it with a 12-ounce can of Mountain Dew, purchased at the Ravensdale Grocery a few miles down the road.

Here's another sight I missed by not staying the course:

At the summit, Mount Rainier loomed in the background. Photo by Roger Matthews.

I measured elevations during the descent and was surprised at how quickly the numbers decreased, indicating that the hike was steeper at places than it appeared.

Here are some figures, from my highest point down:

• 3,188 feet -- point at which I turned back
• 3,148 --  Latitude: 47.33882; Longitude: -121.85801. I had just started descending and had only got a short distance;  the change in elevation  caught my attention.
• 2,831 -- blue gate at which we made our final climb; we walked around the gate.
• 2,240 -- lower blue gate, which was open
• 1,515 -- the point at which the descent narrowed from almost a road to a one-person path
• 905 -- the trailhead where cars parked
• 885 -- elevation at which I parked the Fit.

My statistics indicate that I actually ascended 2,303 feet, but I compared my figures indicated by my GPS application to Map My Hike figures and applied a more conservative assessment.

Statistics for the day:
Distance: 8.8 miles
Conditions: Clear skies, warm
Load: 39 pounds -- at least!
Elevation gain: 2,260 feet


Statistics, year to date:
Distance: 145.3 miles
Elevation Gain: 43,620 feet -- my third Rainier!
Next Goal: 57,644 feet (fourth Rainier)