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i wanna sleep with you in the desert tonight with a billion stars all around.

1/31/2012

It is an absolute perfection and virtually divine to know how to enjoy our being rightfully. We seek other conditions because we do not understand the use of our own, and go outside of ourselves because we do not know what it is like inside. Yet there is no use our mounting on stilts, for on stilts we must still walk on our own legs. And so on the loftiest throne in the world we are still sitting only on our own rump. Montaigne

Morning,

It was another beautiful day on LeConte. The high was 37. The low was 21. It was 33 and clear at observation. The ice on Alum is still rather treacherous, so be sure to use caution.

Please remember to use the Park Service's reservation system. It is a violation of Park policy to tent camp in the 'backcountry' on Mt. LeConte. You need a backcountry permit to stay in the shelter. That is the only place to stay on Mt. LeConte while the lodge is CLOSED. If I'm being redundant, it's because people are being ignorant, stubborn, lazy, obstinate or some wonderful combination of the previously mentioned uniquely human qualities.

you you you you possess my soul and heart.

1/30/2012

The intensities of my feelings make me shudder and laugh. Several times I could not leave my room for the ridiculous reason that my eyes were inflamed - and why? Each time I had wept too much during my walks of the previous day. My tears were not sentimental, but tears of joy. I sang and said nonsensical things, filled with a new vision that puts me ahead of everyone else. Nietzsche

Top photo: Crossing the bridge at Arch Rock. Above: Trees & light along Trillium.

Morning,

It was a beautiful day up top. The high was 25, but it was clear and the air was still. The low was 15. It was 21 and clear at observation. It looks like we'll have another clear day today. There is still a lot of water draining down the mountain and the ice is treacherous on Alum. Beware.

Afternoon moon.

life goes on long after the thrill of livin' is gone.

1/29/2012

When I dance, I dance; When I sleep, I sleep. Montaigne

Morning,

It was a nice day on the mountain yesterday. The high was 28. The low was 11. It was 15 and clear at observation. It was cloudy much of the day, then cleared up just after dusk. The stars were fantastic. It looks like we'll have a cool, clear day today.

i was educated at woodstock. when i start lovin' i can't stop.

1/28/2012

There is no more beautiful life than that of the carefree man; Lack of care is a truly painless evil. Sophocles

Top photo: Light peeking through the trees on Alum. Above: BOOMER BUDDY!!! He looks like he's had a good winter.

I was fortunate enough to hike up in the afternoon with a few friends. Since I do most of my hiking from 10-3, I usually miss the way the colours and light play with the mist. Fortune is always smiling upon me.

Morning,

It was a mild day up on the mountain. The high was 36 up top. The low was 21. It was 27 and clear at observation. It looks like it'll be a beautiful, clear day up top. There's still quite a bit of water on the trails.

I got a few nice pictures of sunrise this morning. I'll be posting them tomorrow, as I already have a pile of good shots from Alum and sunset yesterday. LeConte is just too beautiful lately.

Yes, please.

Big sky.

so let it out and let it in.

1/27/2012

At present I am subsisting on certain wild flowers which Nature wafts to me, which unaccountably sustain me, and make my apparently poor life rich. Within a year my walks have extended themselves, and almost every afternoon (I read, or write, or make pencils, in the forenoon, and by the last means get a living for my body) I visit some new hill or pond or wood many miles distant. I am astonished at the wonderful retirement through which I move, rarely meeting a man in these excursions, never seeing one similarly engaged, unless it be my companion, when I have one. I cannot help feeling that of all the human inhabitants of nature hereabouts, only we two have leisure to admire and enjoy our inheritance. Thoreau

Morning,

It was a blustery day atop LeConte. The mountain received 1.42" of precipitation. The high was 44. The low was 30. It was 30 and flurrying at observation! Surprise snow! Really?! Nature! You're so considerate!

yearning for nothing
if i'm dreaming, don't wake me
appalachian light

i walk in shadows searching for light.

1/26/2012

Men are a thousand times more intent on becoming rich than on acquiring culture, though it is quite certain that what a man is contributes more to his happiness than what he has. Schopenhauer

Morning,

It felt like a May day on LeConte. The high was 51. The low was 40. It was 41 and on the verge of a gray, blustery storm this morning at observation. Be prepared for some wet trails!

i live as i live
i intend to die likewise
eyes pure, heart agape

Top photo: Tough life. Above: The sky felt such a rich shade of blue.

Cataloochee. The Cherokee had a flair for naming things.

now I don't mind choppin' wood and I don't care if the money's no good.

1/25/2012

Our thoughts are the epochs in our lives, all else is but as a journal of the winds that blew while we were here. Thoreau

Morning,

It was another brutal winter's day atop Mt. LeConte. The high was a mere 45 degrees. The low was 32 degrees. That is cold enough to freeze water! Brrr. I can't believe I have to endure 5 more weeks of this.

Just kidding. Maybe sarcasm will bring back the snow. It was ridiculously nice up top, sunny and clear. Looks like we'll have some more of that over the next few days. I was hiking in my Tevas yesterday. I brought them as camp shoes. I never thought I'd be going on 4 hour hikes with them in January. Incredible.

the smell of balsam
a dimly remembered past
i go back to Maine

Top photo: Relaxing just before Sunrise. Above: It feels like spring in the shadow of pines.

something tells me i'm into something good.

1/24/2012

He rose from where he lay on the ground, and though perplexed as to how she came to be there he longed to hold her and went to do it, but three times as he reached his arms to her she fogged through them, vague and flickery and grey. The fourth time, though, she stood firm and substantial and he held her tight. He said, I've been coming for you on a hard road. I'm never letting you go. Never. Charles Frazier, Cold Mountain

Morning,

It turned into a nice day up top. It was stormy in the morning, then cleared up around 1. The high was 41. The low was 31. It was 37 and clear at observation. The mountain received .57" of rain yesterday. It looks like it'll be another nice day. The trails should be very wet with all the rain we've had lately.

wanderlust beckons
night after eternal night
i listen, then act

Top photo: Late afternoon at Cliff Tops. Above & below: Sunrise this morning.

whenever you're near, i hear a symphony.

1/23/2012

The most spiritual men, as the strongest, find their happiness where others would find their destruction: in the labyrinth, in hardness against themselves and others, in experiments. Their joy is self-conquest: asceticism becomes in them nature, need and instinct. Difficult tasks are a privilege to them; to play with burdens that crush others, a recreation. Knowledge - a form of asceticism. They are the most venerable kind of man: that does not preclude their being the most cheerful and the kindliest. Nietzsche

Morning,

The high was 44. The low was 33. Not even freezing in January! I give up trying to understand this weather. It was 40 and raining at observation. The mountain received .72 inches of rain, most of it overnight. The trails will be flowing like rivers, so be prepared to get wet.

In spite of the numbers, it was a pleasant day on LeConte. The early morning held the promise to burn off the previous days clouds. I was treated to my own private showing of these mystical specters flying up from the valley and over Myrtle Point. I'd be surprised to hear that Tolkien didn't watch a similar showing and then write inspiredly of the Nazgul's impalpable grace. Strong storms hit us overnight and continue to rattle the windows of my cabin. It's amazing how vulnerable you can feel in such an idyllic place.

Top photo: I scrambled up some rocks to get a different perspective at Alum Cave. Above: One of the few times I wish I had a fancy Olympus, Nikon, etc. This bird (peregrine falcon?!!? red-tailed hawk would be my 2nd guess) is perched on a tree just above Alum Cave. Whatever it is, it looks justifiably proud and capable of taking off my scalp with some vicious talons should the mood strike.

let me forget about today until tomorrow.

1/22/2012

When the trees grow back/ We will not be missed at all/ Money, guns - all gone. Henry Mitchell http://meanderlog.com/january2012.html

Morning,

It was a rather nasty day up top. The high was 42, but it was in the mid-30's and grey for most of the day. It was some serious dying weather. The low was 29. It was 34 and clear at observation. The mountain received .66" of rain yesterday. We had 16" of snow on this date last year. Sigh.

A special thanks to Wes, Richard and Kim from the Tri Cities for bringing me up some veggies! There is nothing better than a fresh salad on the mountain. I hope to be thanking someone tomorrow for a Sunday New York Times!

As I watched the sun emerge through the clouds this morning at Apollo Overlook, I couldn't help but contemplate the immaculate pines & spruces & firs nearby. They were knotted and windswept in a perfect accordance with their harsh environs. I one day wish to follow their righteous example.

Top photo: Sun peeking through the clouds at Apollo Overlook. Above: Sun & pines.

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