Ty asked after we walked a few feet. He had given me a small pack while he had a huge one on his back.“Oh, it’s so heavy,” I said. “Could you take a few more things?”He laughed.“Anything you want,” he said. “So, really, it feels okay?”“Come on, it’s like the pack’s empty. Even Kate makes me carry more than this when we go out on a day hike. Seriously, give me a few more things.”“Keep walking,” he said.The air was cool as we hiked along the dirt trail, following the stream past loud waterfalls and small meadows. The path kept climbing up, eventually meeting the first Green Lake at the base of South Sister, with Broken Top to the right, where we took a candy bar break. “Beautiful,” Ty said. We took off our shoes, sat down by the lake, and soaked our feet in the cold water.“I haven’t been up here in a while,” I said. “But it’s just like I remember it.”Ty took some pictures before we got back on the trail. We made it up to Golden Lake by late afternoon, the sun slanted in the sky, the warm glow catching the grasses just right.
