Hike #4: Mt. Juneau (June 30)

I've lived in Juneau for 7.5 years, and there are a lot of peaks that I haven't done. Mt. Juneau is one of those. So, a week before heading out on the Chilkoot trail, we headed towards Mt. Juneau with Jay and Em.

About the hike: The trail is ranked as Hard and is 6.8 miles from the trailhead that begins approximately a mile on the Perseverance trail. It's pretty straight up the side of the mountain with a few switchbacks when you get above the alpine. In total, it took us 10.5 hours.

How it went: The hike took us 10.5 hours, including an hour lunch at the top. The decent took us a bit of time given the trouble the knees like to cause going downhill. This hike was the first time I used my hiking poles and new boots (I know, I know, I should have broken the boots in long before this). I am now in love with hiking poles, and don't think I'll ever go back. It rained a little, and had one runner (you know who you are) jump out and scare us.

And for good measure, we did the "Fools Run at Midnight" but only the 1 mile walk. A 5K would've been too much after 10.5 hours of hiking.