Daily Posts

i tried to pass for nothing, but my dreams gave me away.

3/4/2015

A pain stabbed my heart, as it did every time I saw a girl I loved who was going the opposite direction in this too-big world. Kerouac

Morning y'all,

It's another grey, blustery morning up top. The high yesterday reached 46 degrees. The overnight low was 41 degrees. It was 44 degrees and mostly cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received .42 inches of rain yesterday and there was plenty of melt. We are down to patchy snow up top. There is considerable water melting off the mountain, so be prepared for a sloppy hike if you intend to reach the summit. Get out and enjoy the quiet majesty!

I went out for a nice rainy wander yesterday afternoon. I went out to Myrtle Point and the trails were a slushy nightmare. It was pretty uncomfortable hiking and it was impressive how much water was coming down the trails. It is pretty wild to think that as of Sunday night we still had a foot of snow up here and all that water is trying to get off the mountain right now... We watched a few ravens riding thermals for half an hour, as we were soaking in the stillness of a quiet, warm day on the mountain. Visibility was limited to 30 feet, but every other sense was fully alive. The ever active gusts of wind, the rich smell of spring on the horizon, the hard, real rock under our bodies... Another year, and I get that familiar feeling. I miss this place even though I haven't left yet.

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i sing it over and over til she comes back to me. i make a sad, make a sad, make a sad, sad song.

3/3/2015

4 Comments

I was surprised, as always, by how easy the act of leaving was, and how good it felt. The world was suddenly rich with possibility. Kerouac

Morning y'all,
It's a dreary, grey day up top. The high yesterday reached 42 degrees. The overnight low was 33 degrees. It was 42 degrees and mostly cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received .02 inches of rain yesterday and the snow keeps on melting. We're down to about 2 inches remaining up top. The trails are still very sloppy, so be prepared for a wet day if you intend to reach the summit. Get out and enjoy the quietude!

I spent a nice chunk of yesterday afternoon relaxing on the porch of cabin 6. It cleared out around noon yesterday, leaving us above the clouds for the remainder of the evening. The still blue sky coupled with some patches of bare ground (the first I've seen since January!) made for some wonderful porch sitting conditions. You could hear the entire world melting, drips in all directions, a small rivulet of water making it's way down the main staircase, it all ends and ends well...

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i don't who i am this year. my feelings are nothing but fear. my head, my heart open wide.

3/2/2015

23 Comments

The greatest thing in the world is to know how to belong to oneself. Montaigne

Morning y'all,

It's a grey blustery morning up top. The high yesterday reached 42 degrees. The overnight low was 28 degrees. It was 34 degrees and mostly cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received .26" of rain yesterday and there's been quite a bit of melt. There is still about 4 inches of snow remaining up top. The trails are pretty packed down and very slushy. I would definitely recommend Microspikes and some sort of waterproof footwear. Enjoy the day!

I had a really nice hike down Alum yesterday. The trails are in very sloppy shape, but it was great nonetheless. The air was refreshingly crisp rather than purely frigid and it was comfortable shorts weather. I could hardly believe it, but I smelled spring on the horizon as the warm rain was falling yesterday afternoon. There is still snow on the ground, but it is trending towards more spring like conditions on the mountain. The seasonal change always seems to catch me off guard... I miss the winter gone by, think of all the good times in deep snow, have a short period of mourning and then, all of a sudden, I am ready to welcome spring, in all it's generosity.

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what i wish i was made of isn't what i am. but we can, we can pretend.

3/1/2015

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The stillness, solitude, wildness of nature is a kind of thoroghwort or boneset, to my intellect. This is what I go out to seek. It is as if I always met in those places some grand, serene, immortal, infinitely encouraging though invisible, companion, and walked with him. Thoreau

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, blustery morning up top. The high yesterday reached 36 degrees. The overnight low was 18 degrees. It was 34 degrees and mostly cloudy at 7am observation. There is about 8 inches of snow remaining. There has been plenty of melt on the mountain and the trails are sure to be sloppy. Get out and enjoy the day!

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i'll never know if i'm delusional, i just believe that i am not. i'm gonna work for my sanity, give it everything i've got.

2/28/2015

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No wealth can buy the requisite leisure, freedom, and independence which are the capital in this profession… It requires a direct dispensation from Heaven to become a walker. Thoreau

Morning y'all,

It's another beautiful morning up high. The high yesterday reached 23 degrees. The overnight low was 7 degrees. It was 19 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no new snow and our snowfall total is around 12 inches. Some of the trails are packed down, but I would encourage Microspikes and winter boots if you intend to reach the summit in comfort. Enjoy the day!

5 Comments

i do believe i do believe i do believe i saw you standing there. sunlight in your hair, reflecting in your eyes.

2/27/2015

11 Comments

Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly. Kafka

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, clear morning on LeConte. The high yesterday reached 27 degrees. The overnight low was 7 degrees. It was 7 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation yesterday. Our snowfall total is still at around a foot. The trails are still pretty deep, although Old Sugarlands to Bullhead is packed down due to 6 tough guys who came to stay in the shelter last night! I'd still recommend Microspikes, winter boots, wool socks and gaiters if you want to ascend in comfort.

Top photo: Sunlight above the kitchen. Above: Camp around dusk.

Heading towards the shelter.

I spent an hour last night wandering around at dusk, marveling at the snow laden trees and darkening sky. I talked to the tough guys in the shelter. At first, I was concerned when I saw the tracks, but I could hear them laughing before I saw them and knew that I had nothing to worry about. If you're laughing at 15 degrees, you're fine. I noticed their Feathered friends jackets and Reactor stoves and was able to discover - (I'm basically a backcountry Sherlock Holmes) - that they'd been mountaineering all over the world for longer than I've been alive. It's always a pleasure to meet other crazies, it makes me feel more at place in the world. There are others who chase experiences like leaves in the wind, who risk everything in efforts to create more memories, who feel most alive challenging themselves in wild places. The deeper the cut, the better the scar. I am not just a lonesome outlier, but a part of a community that lives in moonshadow. My brothers and sisters are out there, for reasons just as difficult to pin down as my own. We will meet in the best of places.

trees in their snow coats.

darkness and perfection.

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but i miss you like the wind misses the trees. cause i'm a stranger in a strange land, guess i left the world behind. but my love is like the galaxy it seems slow but it sure does shine.

2/26/2015

6 Comments

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. Aristotle

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, snowy morning up top. The high yesterday reached 36 degrees. The overnight low was 10 degrees. It was 19 degrees and cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received 6 inches of additional snow, bringing our snowfall total to 12 inches. There are sure to be deeper drifts in windswept sections, so prepare for a tiring day if you intend to hit the trails. I would still recommend Microspikes, as there are some slick spots underneath the powdery goodness. Get out and enjoy this taste of winter!

I spent a nice chunk of yesterday wandering around in the afternoon, before settling in on my porch just as the snow started falling. It was perfect timing - the dusk hours had provided a slate gray backdrop to the highlight the fast falling flakes. There are few things that beat spending the final daylight hours huddled in a sleeping bag, sipping tea, enjoying the caretaker tv.

6 Comments

i'm falling hard for every yard of the dream you sold me, dream you sold me.

2/25/2015

10 Comments

Lately, since love had seemed an impossibility, I had steeled myself against it. But I held Claire, and that was that forever. Something was sealed. Desire abides. It is all people have that stands proof against time. Everything else rots. Charles Frazier

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, clear morning up top. The high yesterday reached 22 degrees. The overnight low was 10 degrees. It was 22 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no additional precipitation. There is about 6 inches of varied snow on the ground. I would highly recommend traction devices and full winter gear if you intend to reach the summit. Get out and enjoy the wintry beauty!

I spent a great day wandering around camp yesterday, planning for my departure and enjoying some quiet time in my cabin. I was still pretty exhausted from my night hike, when we didn't get back up until an hour past my typical bed time. It was a great joy to be reading and planning in bed, watching the snow swirl and trees sway in my skylight. I relish these quiet days, knowing that the majority of my days in the coming year will be spent exhausting myself both physically and socially. It is an ideal opportunity to recharge mentally, recover physically and enter my next challenge with the proper mindset and appropriate confidence level. Just as I miss what is coming next right now, I will surely look back on these quiet, lazy cabin days with a certain nostalgia... the cycles of a life well lived.

10 Comments

i am gonna make it through this year if it kills me.

2/24/2015

14 Comments

I personally would rather do the existentially essential things in life on foot. If you live in England and your girlfriend is in Sicily, and it is clear you want to marry her, then you should walk to Sicily to propose. For these things travel by car or aeroplane is not the right thing. Werner Herzog

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, snowy morning up top. The high yesterday reached 29 degrees. The overnight low was 17 degrees. It was 19 degrees and cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received 2 inches of new snow, bringing our snowfall total up to 6 inches. The trails are very slick, so be sure to pack Microspikes if you intend to reach the summit. It's a beautiful day, get out and enjoy it!

I had a great night hike up Rainbow last night. I took off at 6:30 with my buddy Pretzel and we walked up the road from Twin Creeks. We made it to the trailhead just as night was darkness was settling in between the snow laced trees. There were plenty of blowdowns, adding a new wrinkle to a trail I've done more times than I can count. The moon's crescent was bright enough as we turned near the Falls that I thought there was someone else night hiking down. The stream crossings were a bit of a gamble in the dark, the snow covered rocks gave no hints as to how sturdy they'd be as stepping surfaces. We plunged our feet in a few times and laughed it off because there was nothing to do but go onwards and upwards. The Falls roared, but our headlamps were not bright enough to see them from the bridge. The first flakes of last nights' snowfall greeted us as we trudged up the final .6 from the Bullhead junction, giving us a taste of what we'd have in store come morning.

14 Comments

if love, if love is a poison cup. then drink it up. cause a sip, a sip or spoonful won't do. won't do nothing for you. except mess you up.

2/23/2015

20 Comments

The pain is a toll I willingly pay on my way to the top, for here, amid these mountains, I restore myself and lose myself, knit together my ego and then surrender it, detach myself from the mass of humanity so I may learn to love them again, all while coexisting with creatures whose kind have lived here for millenia. Phillip Connors

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, cloudy morning up high. The high temperature yesterday reached 37 degrees. The overnight low was 25 degrees. It was 26 degrees and cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation. There is still about 4 inches of drifty, hard packed snow remaining up top. The drifts are especially high along certain sections of trail, so be prepared for an adventure if you intend to reach the summit. I would still recommend Microspikes if you intend to reach the summit. There are some very icy sections of trail. Enjoy the day!

I had a fantastic hike up Alum yesterday afternoon. The mountain was tucked into its friendly cloud blanket and it was as still as it's been for days. It was a great day to wander around and see what the past few days of serious wind did to the trails. There are a few blowdowns, a lot of icy branches strewn across the trail and a seemingly infinite number of little fir tree clusters. There is a snow drift on Alum just below Cliff Tops that is larger than any I've seen in the Smokies. It almost seemed like a practical joke when I first discovered it. The slushy snow conditions made for some difficult trudging, but it was all worth it, as always. I forgot just how quickly some warm, wet conditions can accelerate the melt around here. I am looking forward to seeing the sun again and welcoming my old friend Spring any day now!

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