Anywhere - Sutter Buttes

I know that our bodies were made to thrive only in pure air, and the scenes in which pure air is found. ~ John Muir

Beautiful day to get out and experience anywhere. Finally, finally I was able to make an outdoor excursion with the box. Today the CrossFit Anywhere gang was off for a Saturday wod 'run' but some of us made it a 2+ mile hike. The grade was steep and constant, the first quarter mile was actually a run, but when I realized I could walk faster than run, it changed. I found it challenging to adjust my breathing in the first mile (a 2,ooo ft ascent), but as we progressed I found a much better flow as we pushed onward and upward. The last hundred yards, Blair coached, choppy fast steps and I was thankful to finish strong. A very red face, thankful for the light breeze and 39ish minutes later, I had arrived at the top of the Sutter Buttes. 

Come to find out, this was a real treat. There's an aura of mystery around the Sutter Buttes because they have been closed off. 

The Buttes, referred to as the smallest mountain range in the world, stand out in jagged craggy points - a castle in the sky. The view behind us reaches all the way from Mt. Shasta to downtown Sacramento on a very clear day. We were fortunate, it had been extremely windy the two weeks prior to our visit, so we had a great trek to the top but the far reaching view alluded us on this spring morning. As you can see, you can still see quite far behind us here. The North Butte is off to our right and a beautiful setting flowing from the valleys to the farmland.

I did not jump into the slam ball session with the crew but opted to tram it up to the tower with the 'masters' and enjoy a little historical tour of the very active relay station. Here we have the Sacramento side of the view behind us. If you look real close, you can see the rice fields and a small burn going on down there. 

We trekked down to the Sutter Buttes Brewery for a perfect post hike meal, some great small town atmosphere and getting to know our peeps just that much more.