Mount Si 12.21.04

I was hoping to something a bit more exotic on the shortest day of the year, but time became it's usual impedance. I decided to stick close while still getting some sort of work out. Today's goal was to mountain bike as far on the Mount Teneriffe logging road as I could and then hike the rest of the way to Tenriffe's summit. I made great time the first 3 miles where I decided just to leave the bike for the coast home. I hit sustained snow near 2400ft but not nearly enough for snowshoes. I continued climbing until I reached a juction near 3100ft. I decided to follow the right fork that I knew took me towards Mount Si. It was much farther to Si's summit than I remembered but I made the top before I lost sunlight. I only stayed long enough to open something to drink and put on my headlamp for the long run back to the bike. I enjoyed the nice cushion of snow beneath my feet as I made my way down. I was thankful that the weather had improved the whole day and I missed any rain. The coast out was made more interesting due to the fading light. By the time I reached the truck it was quite dark.