The unofficial conclusion of summer every year across America takes place on Labor Day weekend.

For the fourth consecutive year, I went on a late summer hike with my childhood friend James Martin. Martin, who has been an avid hiker since he was in elementary school in the late 1980s, suggested we tackle the Little Si hiking trail in North Bend.

The course, which was 4.7 miles roundtrip, wasn’t the most difficult hike I had ever been on but it proved to be challenging nonetheless. The journey is short but a steep route with constant climbing at seemingly every turn. I found my legs aching immensely after just a quarter of a mile up the trail. Immediately, I yelled to Martin and voiced my opinion about the difficulty of the hike as he walked close to 10 yards ahead of me. After about a mile up, the pain subsided as I acclimated myself to the journey.

A short while later we encountered a wasp nest on the ground on the right side of the trail. After debating for a minute or so about the best way to deal with this proverbial roadblock, we decided the best option was to sprint past it as fast as we possibly could. Martin went first and got stung twice. I ran as fast as possibly and luckily got through without being stung. On the way down later in the day, it was the opposite. Martin got through unscathed and I got stung on my right arm while sprinting downhill past the nest.

All in the all, the adventure was well worth it once we reached the summit. The views of the Snoqualmie Valley were absolutely spectacular. The feeling you get after reaching the summit while hiking is something that can’t be measured. For the next few days following the jaunt on Little Si, my knees were sore. It was well worth it. I can’t wait to go hiking again!