We hit the trail by 7:20 and the air was warm and there were a few bugs flying around. 1/4 mile later we turned left at the trail junction and we were on our way to Painted Peak, or as some call it, Red Mountain. The trail was steep and got more buggy pretty fast. At the location of a former lookout we got a good view of Sloan Peak.
For the next hour or so we had no views again but the heat was on the rise as we rose along the side of the mountain. Finally we broke out of the trees and were rewarded with some beautiful scenery.
We busted through some low brush as the trail by this point was non-existent. Some spots were steep and the Heather made it challenging to ascend. Finally after some really hard work and a lot of water consumed, we made it to the summit ridge and were offered our first glimpse of Glacier Peak, a volcano rising over 10,000 feet.
Our journey had started at 2100' and soon I was standing at 6975' and basking in the heat and the glory of reaching the summit.
Here's a picture that Adam took from the other ridge below the summit, My attempt of being "creative" with a summit pose.
Glacier Peak
Full 360 pano from the summit
After spending 30 minutes or so on the summit we headed down to Ruby Lake for a well deserved swim in the very chilly water.
We returned to the car by 4:20 and we were very warm and ready to head into town for an ice cold soda.
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