Yes, that’s the real name.
I’ve driven past Mt. Humbug on highway 101 many times, and often had the vague thought that I should stop and explore it someday. I eventually realized that I would never do it as long as I was on my way somewhere else, that it would have to be a destination in its own right. A couple of weeks ago, when there was a weather window (a couple of days with no rain), I decided the time had come. There’s a campground on one side of the highway, and a trail up the mountain on the other. I loaded up for one night out and drove down after lunch (it’s just over an hour from my house.)
Picked my spot, got set up, and set out to explore with Scamp. There’s a trail under the highway from one end of the CG, off the loop that’s unused this time of year, so it made a just-right walk for us. Well, for me–I have yet to find Scamp’s walk limit.
Here are a few pictures of the beach you get to, looking south to north successively. That’s the base of Mt. Humbug on the left of the top picture.
After supper, I decided one more walk seemed like a good idea, and I was curious about a gated-off road up a mountain that you see just before you get to the CG, so grabbed my flashlight and Scamp and moseyed up it a ways. Maybe a quarter mile or so up, you get to a person-sized bridge over the creek; there was just enough light to see, and take a picture of, this.
And on the way back, the moon.
The next morning I cooked myself a hearty breakfast, made a sandwich for lunch, and set out to climb the mountain. The trail sign says it’s about three miles each way (there’s a loop); my step app either underestimated the distance or the sign overestimates it, because the app only told me I had done about five and a half miles when I was finished.
Anyway, it was a beautiful day. The loop I took on the way out was virtually all up, some of it quite steep (for me), with several little peekaboo views that gave me nice excuses to stop and gaze.
Those were at three different points along the trail–no cheating to make it look longer was involved.
There are mileposts every quarter mile or so along the way, which helped keep me going. I stopped to take a picture of this one to document that I got at least this far, just in case I didn’t make it all the way to the top.
My stubborn streak kicked it, and I did make it to the top. I figured since I was that close, I should go all the way then, because I sure didn’t want to have to do that two and a quarter miles again in order to make it to the top, and I had been told that there’s nice benches and a good view from up there.
And that turned out to be true. First, just the view.
Having taken that, I decided to take a picture with the feet that carried me up there in it, just to make it clear I didn’t just buy a postcard.
And couldn’t resist one more.
Ate my lunch while contemplating the view. Noticed a man with a real camera pointing it toward the ground and taking a bunch of pictures from various angles, so after half an hour or so, went up to see what he was looking at, which turned out to be this.
And since I was up there–a few feet higher than my lunch bench–I looked around and took a few more pictures. Can’t decide which of the following two I like better, so you get both.
Since it took me about two hours to climb up, and it would likely take almost as long to go down, I decided it was time to go. One final picture of the water, taken shortly after starting down.
It did take nearly as long to get down, and I was well and truly ready to head for home once back to the van. Munched on a few potato chips to bring the blood sugar back up, and feeling contentedly tired, headed home.
I think you may be lucky this is a relatively dry Winter. I seen that stream berside the CG overflow its banks.
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Or, not an unusually wet winter. My impression is we’re within our normal range of rainfall.
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Gorgeous beaches and views–definitely postcard worthy. And that blue sky! Wow! Mt. Humbug is a great name.
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Magnificent views. What would Scrooge have thought?
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Great post, Jean. I love the picture with your feet. Was the survey mediallion imbedded in metal as well as the rock? Looked like it. ILN
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Spectacular scenery, as always, and good story!
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Haven’t seen an update here in a while. Everything OK?
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