Morning y'all, It's a beautiful, clear morning up top. The high yesterday reached 39 degrees. The overnight low was 28 degrees. It was 36 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation and there is patchy snow remaining up top. The trails still have quite a bit of ice. I would recommend Microspikes if you intend to safely reach the summit. Get out and enjoy this beautiful day! My weekend was a study of contrasts that perfectly illustrates why I love living up top. On Saturday, my friends Ryne, Kyle and I ran out the Boulevard trail, turned right on the AT and then ran up the Clingman's Dome road. The trail conditions were surprisingly ok, with plenty of hard packed snow providing traction in sections of the Boulevard. There were a few icy sections along the both trails, but nothing worth putting our spikes on for. We were able to carefully pick our way from rock to rock, which helpfully slowed us down and allowed us to enjoy our pace moreso than if we'd had perfect trail conditions. Once we crossed Newfound Gap, things were expectedly quiet on the closed road. We took our time, walking the steeper sections and marvelling at the ice formations on the roadside cliffs. We reached the gigantic, empty parking lot and walked the steep, paved trail to the always larger than I expect concrete monolith at the summit. We enjoyed the views, snapped a few photos then proceeded down the road. Newfound Gap was a zoo when we got back, but things quieted down after a mile on the trail. We enjoyed the solitude of the rolling Boulevard, smiled at the summit of LeConte and had a nice, easy jog back into camp. It was a joy packing so much stimulus into one day. I've always looked at Clingman's from Cliff Tops and wanted to get there and back in one day. Grace was kind enough to make us some mountain top pizzas while we played, so we enjoyed those and went to bed at 8 or so. Yesterday, Grace and I relaxed around camp. We did a few chores, then quietly read our books and enjoyed the sunny serenity. We did not realize that the road had closed. By the time it opened, I guess most people were getting ready to enjoy the Super Bowl, so we only heard a few small groups up top. It was a day of great leisure and recovery. My deep fatigue made the peace and quiet about as joyous as our riotous explorations of the day previous. Between those two days, somewhere, lies a steady contentment.
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However, I think I run simply because I like doing it; I enjoy every minute and don't wonder why. I know that when I am running and skiing, my body and mind are in harmony and allow me to feel that I am free, can fly, and can express myself through my talents. The mountain is a blank canvas, and I'm the paintbrush that refuses to obey a paint by number pattern. Running provides my imagination with the means to express itself and delve into my inner self. Killian Jornet Morning y'all, It's a chilly, foggy morning up top. The high yesterday reached 35 degrees. The overnight low was 18 degrees, recorded early yesterday morning. It was 30 degrees and foggy at 7am observation. The mountain received no new measurable precipitation and there is still patchy snow remaining up top. The trails are slick, I would definitely recommend Microspikes for the day. There is a slick layer of fog ice on the rocks right now and there are longer, icy sections on every trail. Get out and enjoy this taste of winter! Morning y'all, It's a beautiful, cold & clear day up top. The high yesterday reached 32 degrees. The overnight low was 5 degrees and it is currently 18 degrees and clear. The mountain received no new precipitation and there is still some patchy snow remaining up top. I was able to hike down Trillium and up Alum yesterday without spikes, but I would bring them today. We had a hard freeze last night and there are sure to be some slick sections. Get out and enjoy the mountains! Perhaps the genius of ultrarunning is its supreme lack of utility. It makes no sense in a world of spaceships and supercomputers to run vast distances on foot. There is no money in it and no fame, frequently not even the approval of peers. But as poets, apostles, and philosophers have insisted from the dawn of time, there is more to life than logic and common sense. The ultra runners know this instinctively. And they know something else that is lost on the sedentary. They understand, perhaps better than anyone, that the doors to the spirit swing open with physical effort. In running such long and taxing distances they answer a call from the deepest realms of their being - a call that asks who they are. David Blaikie Morning y'all, It's a cool, blustery day up top. The high yesterday reached 35 degrees. The overnight low was 31 degrees. It was 32 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation and there is still some patchy snow remaining up top. The trails are definitely sloppy and require Microspikes in sections. It is possible to get up without them, but getting down is the tricky part! Get out and enjoy the mountains! So behave that the odor of your actions may enhance the general sweetness of the atmosphere, that when we behold or scent a flower, we may not be reminded how inconsistent your deeds are with it; for all odor is but one form of advertisement of a moral quality, and if fair actions had not been performed, the lily would not smell sweet. The foul slime stands for the sloth and vice of man, the decay of humanity; the fragrant flower that springs from it, for the purity and courage are immortal. Thoreau Morning y'all, It's a blustery, soggy morning up top. The high yesterday reached 45 degrees. The overnight low was 32 degrees. It was 34 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received .21 inches of rain last night and there is still patchy snow remaining up top. It feels like the remaining snow will melt out later this afternoon. Get out and enjoy this quiet day on the trails! Yesterday was yet another wonderful day to enjoy a 'staycation' up at the lodge. As my friend Dick can corroborate, there was nothing to do and I did it. It was a fine day to watch the snow melt, make some progress in my books and do some dishes. I had to run out to sunset, both to move my bones and my mind. It was a big sunset, with large clouds looming in the foreground and the bright orange sun mingling with the Smokies' characteristic haze and creating new colours by the moment. I walked back slow and satisfied, content with the show and enjoyed the night's coming quiet in the spruce-firs. Morning y'all, Happy February, the greatest of winter months! It's another beautiful, clear and calm day up top. The high yesterday reached 39 degrees. The overnight low was 29 degrees. It was 35 degrees and clear at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation and there is only about 2 inches of snow remaining up top. It is packed down in most areas, but I would still recommend Microspikes if you intend to reach the summit. Get out and enjoy this beautiful day! Yesterday was another in a series of lovely days up top. I love letting the time meander up here. I've been trying hard to focus on recovering well from Mountain Mist so that I can feel myself as soon as possible, while also getting out on microadventures and enjoying the mountain. I hit my first sunset / sunrise of the season with snow on the ground. I'm usually able to do this in December, but such is life... It's still been really wonderful to have a taste of proper winter up top, although it doesn't look like it will be sticking around much longer. The golden sunlight in the trees this morning was doing its' best to make up for any winter 'what could have beens'... |
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April 2024
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