Mt Zion 8-3-13

It was a cloudy day so I wasn't expecting a view on my Mt Zion hike.  Cedar and I drove up into the hills, and the trees and rhododendrons were shrouded in mist.  The trail is called the Sleepy Hollow Trail, so this set the perfect mood.

This trail was 4.6 round trip and not too bad in elevation gain.  I met a few friendly hikers (who like me hoped the clouds would clear or we'd get above them and look down on the cloud bank) and it was a fun and pleasant hike except for people target practicing in the area.  Gunshots would ring out now and then and Cedar was extremely jumpy.  It definitely detracted from the hike.
We saw a few mushrooms and some interesting flowers of the non-chlorophyll sort.

This would be a gorgeous hike when the rhodies are blooming.. they were found along a lot of the trail and at the top as well.  There was fireweed blooming and although the tiger lily you can't quite make out in the background is past its prime, I enjoyed the humor someone leafed behind. haha

I believe this was the actual summit, although mostly blocked with trees.  I'm not sure how much you would see in between the trees since I saw mist and clouds in between. 

I did take the 1/2 mile hike along the ridge to the southeast to a rocky outcropping that hinted of stunning views if it wasn't sitting inside of a cloud. 

 

There used to be a fire lookout up here, and they got their water from a spring that is actually right up on top of this ridge.  There is nothing much but bolts in the rock from the fire lookout, but the spring is still springing along.

What a nice hike!  I'd like to do this again on a clear day.