Baby Steps Across Cougar Mountain
Photo courtesy of Emily Wetzel
By Emily Wetzel
Knowing an outdoor spot deeply has always mattered to me. Before motherhood, I spent a lot of time revisiting the same trails day after day, leading backpacking trips or climbing at my favorite crag. Time was more plentiful then, and I found myself out in Index many weekends. I cherished the sense of place that comes with knowing an area intimately—from every angle and in every season.
However, after becoming a mom, it didn’t make sense to drive so far to get out in nature. Living a stone’s throw from the Big Tree Ridge Trailhead, Cougar Mountain was a natural choice for my outdoors fix. Ryan was about six weeks old when he first got to see Cougar Mountain from the comfort of his baby carrier.
At first, I wasn’t trying to accomplish anything. I just wanted to be outside with my baby, moving and connected with the outdoors. Baby Ryan and I hiked short trails—often the same ones over and over (Red Town Loop!)—without worrying about distance or difficulty. Ryan often slumbered peacefully during these quiet and consistent outings. They were pleasant walks through green woods, creating rhythms in my new life of parenthood.
Photo courtesy of Emily Wetzel.
In May, when Ryan was seven months old, I realized we had already covered a surprising number of the trails. That’s when the idea of finishing all of them together with Ryan began to take shape. I didn’t set out with that goal, but once I saw it was possible, it felt worth doing. I printed a map and started highlighting what we had already done, meticulously zooming in on each Strava track to make sure we had tagged every single spur trail. Soon, I started devising new loops using the app Gaia, making sure to cover new terrain each time.
By the time we were finished, Ryan and I had hiked 100 miles at Cougar. For my part, I had begun to learn the feel of Cougar Mountain—how the trails connect, where the trail is rocky and where it is loamy, where the elderberries tend to grow, and where the ferns take over. Having a familiar outdoor reprieve, this time shared with Ryan, was so grounding for me as everything else was changing week by week in early motherhood.
Photo courtesy of Emily Wetzel.
There was nothing extreme about the experience—no epic scrambles, no gear emergencies, no baby meltdowns or diaper fiascos. Just steady movement through a familiar place with my baby, whose first months will always be tied to these forested trails.
Now, at nine months old, Ryan is wanting to move more on his own. This quiet season of hiking together is starting to change. It’s a bittersweet shift, but I’m grateful for the miles we shared and for the mountain that made the experience possible.
Explore our events calendar for upcoming family-friendly Hikes with a Purpose.