Sauk Mountain

I sort of sucked at running this weekend. On Saturday I went up to Sauk Mountain, near Rockport. It was a monsoon. Heavy, heavy rain, coming down sideways, not too cold, but it was absolutely nonstop. Monsoons are interesting, sort of. There was a truck at the trailhead with some hunters—this is the trail where the unfortunate shooting occurred last year. They took off, probably because of the rain. I hiked to the top, fast. Running wasn't happening--I was tight, the trail steep, and there was the rain. My time out was more about seeing if I could stay dry and happy. This is supposed to be a good place for a quick view of the valley.
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On the drive up, I saw a herd of elk outside of Lyman. Roughly 25 elk, with four or five bulls. I tried taking pictures, but the pictures didn't turn out well, because it was still dark and it was raining hard. There was a monsoon. A Sasquatch type shot is below.
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Today I sort of ran around Blanchard Mountain. Really, I walked quite a bunch again, but there was some trotting. It was nice—no rain today, just wet. A spooky fog drifted through the trees on the frontside of the loop. Creeks, previously dry, ran fast and filled pools with yesterday’s rain. Some crazy beaver is going to town on a tree by Lilly Lake. Wood chips everywhere, tree about to fall. I keep hoping to see the beaver--it previously took a chunk out of a boardwalk.

The View from Sauk During a Monsoon

Elk herd