A cool damp smell rose from the soft ground as I made my way up the trail.  The chartreuse colored plants grew up over my head, pushing outward into the trail as it unfurled its leaves.  Filtered light from the morning sun warmed the dew until a mist rose from the ground.  Soft muted bird sounds provided clues that we were not alone in the forest.  Striped grey and solid tan mushrooms grew on moss covered downed trees.  Purple and violet stems thrust upward from clumps of leaf emerald green plants.  Bends in the path were hidden and only sections were unveiled as we continued upward on the trail to the Lookout.  As we continued to climb upwards I felt as if I had sensory overload due to having hiked the last two weeks in Arizona and Southern Utah.  This was such a change, not only in temperature but in the amount of vegetation.  After a while the trail came to an end on an old forest road that led to what once was a fire lookout.  We continued on this road and were treated to views of Mount Baker to the east along with Lake Whatcom. A group of hikers passed us as we stopped for photos.  Around the bend we came to an overlook but not the summit.  It was here that we sat upon large boulders to have lunch.  Lake Sammish was spread out before us to the west with faint peeks of the San Juan Islands and the Straight.  At this point the hikers who passed us returned for the view as the summit had offered them only trees.  We had already spent 30 minutes and were ready to return to the house, once again in love with our pretty little corner of the world.