Brimstone...and Ice: Mount Adams, July 26, 2015: First milestones

Mount Si, 10,000 feet, 10 soccer balls

North Bend, WA: Yesterday Wilson did what 80-000 to 100,000 visitors do every year. He climbed Mount Si, the small mountain outside North Bend, WA that became a familiar fixture on national TV in the program, Twin Peaks. By ascending Mount Si, Wilson was there to witness another milestone -- my passing the 10,000-foot mark in elevation gained since my quest to climb Mount Adams began on August 29, 2014. This milestone represents one-seventh of my overall objective to climb 70,000 vertical feet before July 2015, when I will summit Adams. At the same time, readers have purchased 10 one world futbols, bringing this campaign to one-tenth of its objective of purchasing 100 indestructible soccer balls for children around the world by the time I climb Adams. The One World Futbol Project estimates that each ball benefits roughly 30 children. Using that statistic, the 10 balls purchased will benefit 300 children. Those wanting to purchase a ball may go to http://www.oneworldfutbol.com/campaigns/wilson/.

Thank you for your participation. It is deeply appreciated.

Wilson didn't make it to the very top of Mount Si. The Indestructable did not scale "The Haystack," the rock formation whose peak represents the highest elevation of the mountain. But Wilson did ascend a full 2,990 feet to the 3,763-foot level, and then planked a rock (see photo). Along the way he collected autographs and made friends, among them a 4-month old pre-toddler--Eevi--whose parents had included her on their hike up Mount Si. Eevi is the offspring of a Finnish mom (Anja) and a Ukrainian father (Alex) whom we had the pleasure of meeting at the end of our ascent.

Climbing Si is always a multicultural event, with many foreign-born hikers enjoying the experience. Also along the way were a middle-aged Greek man and his son, and two nurses who grew up in Czechoslovakia. That nursing experience came in handy when one of them fell while climbing up a rock field below the summit of Si, cutting her shin to the bone. Sue Butkus, a retired faculty member from Washington State University's extension service, and part of my hiking team yesterday, was next to her during the fall and provided first-aid materials that helped stop the bleeding and allow the young woman to make the long hike back down to the parking lot. We were also able to provide a roll of that elastic self-adhesive stretch tape to wrap around the bandage to provide additional support. You can never be too prepared.

Mount Si, by the way, is named for Josiah "Uncle Si" Merritt, an early pioneer of the Pacific Northwest who built a cabin at the base of the mountain's peak in 1862, according to Wikipedia. The online encyclopedia reports that Meritt raised vegetables and hogs and kept an orchard. He reportedly was a rugged man who sometimes hauled bacon to large settlements, played the fiddle and kept an Indian woman until his spouse, "Aunt Sally" arrived from the east and had other ideas about that. Merritt is buried in the old Fall City cemetery.

The Native American Legend of Mount Si: Here's another story you might be interested in regarding Mount Si, quoting Wikipedia:

Mount Si figures prominently in a Prometheus story from the Snoqualmie tribe. According to the story it is the dead body of Snoqualm, the moon. Snoqualm had ordered that a rope of cedar bark be stretched between the earth and the sky. But Fox and Blue Jay went up the rope and stole the sun from Snoqualm. Snoqualm chased them down the cedar rope, but it broke and he fell to his death. Fox then let the sun free in the sky and gave fire to the people. A face like Snoqualm's is visible on the rocks near the summit.

Below are the statistics for my progress toward climbing Mount Adams, and some photos taken today by me and Roger Matthews, my trainer, guide and hiking mentor.

Today's Hike: 7.24 miles
Time: 8 hours
Today's elevation gain: 2,998 feet
Packing: 13-pound backpack
Accumulation to date: 45.6 miles, 12,498 vertical feet