OCTOBER 24-25, 2024 Taking advantage of a short weather window, I went to a place I had visited in 2006 to record a timelapse sunset: a hummock above Emerald Ridge. I thought a revisit was in order, and carried 4 cameras with me; a Panasonic G9, GoPro Hero 11 Black, GoPro Hero 12 Black, and a GoPro 360 Max. As it turned out I only used 2 cameras, the H11 and 12. I failed to record a timelapse sunset on the G9 due to user error, and I never set up the 360 Max.

*Looking west: Emerald Ridge lower left frame*

I parked at the West Side Road and walked the road to the Round Pass trail, then intersected the South Puyallup trail to the Wonderland, continuing CW on the Wonderland to Emerald Ridge. An extension of the ridge continues to the base of what I call “The Hummock”, a grass topped rocky mound that actually blocks a good portion of the mountain from the Emerald Ridge vantage point. A short class 2/3 scramble put me on the apex of the mound, where I saw 3 mountain goats below me heading for the base of the Tahoma Glacier. From there it was a matter of setting up the cameras, with the 2 GoPros plugged into a power brick to keep them going all night. It wasn’t especially cold, but there were brisk gusty winds on the mound. I found a flattish spot for the bivy (with a cross country permit) below the mound and hunkered down, letting the cameras run all night long. I had excellent vistas to the west, finally seeing the comet along with the lights of Puget Sound.

*Mt. Adams perfectly framed from The Hummock*

During the night the moon rose behind the mountain, and I figured that amount of light would wash out the GoPro timelapses, with the 11 set to “nightlapse” and the 12 set to “star trails.” However, I was pleasantly surprised with the results, as you will see in the video. As I retraced my steps back to the vehicle, there were brief moments of sun and pleasant temps. Although I was schlepping more weight than I am accustomed to, this was a great way to cap off the hiking season. Happy Hiking everyone!