Yellow Aster Butte Trail

Of all the hikes we did in Washington, the Yellow Aster Butte Trail in the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie-National Forest was Suzy's favorite. It was a close second for me, but I didn't get to fully appreciate the loveliness because Tennyson was in rare form - singing, screaming, kicking, and hitting me in the head for most of the trip. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the molasses cookies flowing through his veins:

It really was a delightful trail. After about a mile of switchbacking through the old-growth forest we came to a beautiful meadow flowing with big, juicy "hikelberries" (that's Tenny speak for huckleberries; we liked it so much we adopted it).

We hesitated to leave the mother-of-all-hikelberry patches, but were glad we did. As the trail ascends the canyon walls, you're rewarded with with spectacular views of Mt. Baker, Mt. Shuksan, and countless other peaks towering over endless evergreen forests.

The view from the top is inspiring, even when my beautiful bride isn't there.

Reaching the top was a special treat for me, since I could finally get the monkey off my back and let him run around like a crazy person. Tennyson loved running free and exploring the great outdoors.

The Butte hovers over a series of glistening tarns. We would love to return to spend a couple nights at the backcountry campsites down by the water (there is a tent in the picture, for perspective).

Oh, and did I mention it's gorgeous?

Tennyson slept in the pack the entire trip back down to the car, leaving Suzy and me to soak in the peace and beauty of this amazing place.

At 7.5 miles roundtrip and about 2,500 feet of elevation gain, this hike is pretty much perfect. We highly recommend it to anyone who likes beauty and/or hikelberries.