It's a gloomy day atop LeConte. I have a feeling that we're stuck in a temporary cloud. The high yesterday reached 41 degrees. The overnight low was 33 degrees. It was 40 degrees and cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation, but there is still patchy snow on the ground. The trails are very slick with the daily melt and nightly refreezing we've had lately. I'd be sure to pack some sort of traction devices, but I've seen plenty of folks who make it to the summit in sneakers. I guess it's a matter of how comfortable you are with descending a giant mountain covered in ice... or they have better health care coverage than I do.
I spent another day resting my knee, thinking positive thoughts and hoping it's on the mend. Patience is a virtue. I read plenty on the porch of cabin 6, soaking in the sun... I am finally starting to make a dent in my mountain man library, so there is a silver lining in being hurt. I also made a couple of loaves of 'bourbanana bread'. Guess what the delicious secret ingredient is! I've had a few folks ask me what I'd appreciate if they generously want to bring me an 'offering', so I figured it's easier to just be transparent about it. I expect nothing, but would prefer to just be open about it rather than responding to comments every now and then...
I always appreciate fresh greens, berries, smoothies (naked, odwalla, or bolthouse), interesting teas and any reading material, especially the New York Times. If you want to go above and beyond, my current wants in the paperback department include:
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihaly
The Sense of Beauty by George Santayana
Confessions of a Barbarian by Edward Abbey
Finding Beauty in a Broken World by Terry Tempest Williams
Nature's Kindred Spirits by James I. McClintock
Riprap and Cold Mountain Poems by Gary Snyder
A big thank you to all the kind souls who enrich my life up here with fresh food & good literature!