To conclude my SD challenge, it was just right to hike the highest peak in SD county.

We were by the office at exactly 8am but 3 cars already ahead of us and still noone was there to pay but fortunately there was another person on her way to open the gate. Parking was almost full when we got there.

I wasn’t feeling very good these past few days and today wasn’t an exception. The first 2 miles was a slow start for me but after that, I felt fairly ok. I guess I just needed some mountain air to alleviate the light headedness I had.

Unlike last year, there was no snow at all along the trail but not too hot that made it a little easier hike.

Based on some posts, we noticed that a ladder was placed by the boulder to go to the sign/marker. We decided to check it out and see if we were able to go to the top. We passed the tower, since too many people already taking turns for photos, and we headed to the summit.

There was a new sign but noone from my group attempted to go to the top of the boulder. Although the aluminum ladder was there, it only reached halfway the boulder and one has to hoist him or herself up with some sort of rope, that looks very very sketchy. Other people tried and successfully climbed. Going down was another story. It just looked so unsafe and hopefully noone gets hurt in the future. Had our photos taken next to the boulder and back to the tower for our  lunch.

Going back to the car, I was entertained by massive conifer trees that covered mostly by moss that I barely noticed last time due to the snow. Some small trees were perfectly shaped ready for christmas ornaments.????