Early morning hike up Spencer Butte

So, this morning my cohort and I set out very early, around 6am, to hike the biggest thing in these parts: Spencer Butte. I lived near it for over a year and never got the nerve to try it. She's done it, but from a different trailhead which she said seemed easier. With all the hiking and cycling we've been doing, we figured we could make it.  Elevation: 2054. Elevation gain from the trailhead: 1094. Distance (per the map) 2.1 miles.  My Fitbit says it was longer, but I'm not going to argue. It's steep and felt like forever. Our legs were shaky by the time we reached the top and it's been a long time since I've been so happy to see my car in the parking lot! My Fitbit says it was over 14,000 steps and it took us 2.7 hours. Her device said it was over 3 hours. I expect hers was more accurate, as it's a better device.

However, as promised the 360 views are superb, and it was a sunny morning with mild temps. Don't think I'll be doing it again any time soon, but I'm glad to have done it once. Heavily traveled -- lots of people by the time we headed back down the hillside.

Not the best composition, but with the glare on the screen of the iPad it's hard to see what I'm actually getting. Nice view, regardless.

Love the hovering clouds as we got closer to the top. Still a long hike from here, unfortunately. But beautiful.

Looking down to the north, with the UO campus beyond some residential areas in the 'foreground' and the Coburg Mountains in the distance, not far from where I live. If you look under the highpoint of that distant peak, then straight down, you'll see a couple of shiny objects just above the tops of the trees. The one to the left is the newly completed Hayward Field, now one of the finest T&F facilities in the world. The T&F Olympic trials were due to christen it this summer, but of course, won't. Next summer it's scheduled for some major International T&F event, which hopefully will happen. Along with the rescheduled Olympic Trials and lots of other events.  Just to the right of Hayward Field is the shiny dome of Matthew Knight Arena, where the BB teams play in a mini-NBA style arena.

One of many flights of stone steps that I mostly walked up monkey-style, on all fours. My legs were too tired to merely walk up them. These were just installed in 2015, and while I'm sure they make things easier for most people, compared to whatever was there before, they made it harder for me. Still, a lovely morning and, whining notwithstanding, a good hike.