Sleeping Beauty is a rocky outcropping high above the valley in which Trout Lake sets. Best viewed from the back deck of the Country Inn, with a beer in hand, Sleeping Beauty looks kinda like a woman lying down. I've heard she looked more like a woman before the government dynamited her nose for a fire-watch. The Stairmaster®-like trail to the top makes for a decent work out. On a past trip, upon summiting, Allyson and I spied a family of mountain goats jumping around effortlessly on places I would never go near for fear of falling to an unpretty death. Today, I headed up knowing that the view might be obscured by a cloud. Sleeping Beauty was performing its duty of blocking some of the marine-like clouds that has socked-in Portland. It was bright and sunny in Hood River, and partly sunny in Trout Lake. Part of the goal was to test my bionic hip on a steep incline and decline, so a view would be a bonus, not the purpose of the trip.
The trail was clear. But the top remained in the clouds, with a blustery wind. Occasional drops fell from trees, not clouds. It was condensation hitting me near the top. So, workout accomplished, but no view down to the Country Inn or the rest of the valley today.
Below is video from the hike. Top photo taken the following evening. (Timing is everything.)
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