The summer is slowly coming to a close with each passing day as fall is on the immediate horizon.

It has been an abnormally sizzling hot summer, which bodes well for a plethora of outdoor enthusiasts. Like many of my friends and co-workers have said, it is crucial to take advantage of these favorable weather conditions because they likely will vanish in the near future.

This past Labor Day, I made the trek to North Bend to hike to the top of Rattlesnake Ledge with friends James Martin and Marvin Griffin. The journey was just four miles round trip and wasn’t difficult for our trio to complete.

Martin, who climbed Mount Saint Helens as a 10-year-old in 1992, wasn’t fatigued in the least bit after completing the hike. Griffin, a life-long Tacoma resident who was partaking in only his second hike of life, completed the four-mile trek with ease as well.

The view atop of Rattlesnake Ledge was absolutely spectacular. Dozens of individuals utilized their smartphones to take photos of the breathtaking scene at the summit.

The trail was extremely crowded as we descended back to civilization. A multitude of individuals of all ages were making their way up the switchbacks as we meandered back to our vehicle. Following our hike, we stopped at Twede’s Cafe in North Bend for a post-hike lunch session to replenish ourselves. The past three years I’ve had the opportunity to hike Mount Si, Poo Poo Point and Rattlesnake Ledge.

Our trio has already discussed finding another hike to tackle on the Eastside in the next few weeks. Next time, we want to find a more much physically challenging route. Even if we do succeed in discovering a more difficult hike, it may be impossible to top the views we saw on Labor Day 2017.