Jack Frost has definitely been nipping at my nose. Temperatures on the mountain remained in the teens all day yesterday. The high was 15º. The weather forecast is calling for more precipitation this weekend with freezing temperatures. If you decide to go for a hike this weekend, please make sure you have plenty of warm clothing and I would recommend some sort of ice crampon for your boots.
Now, as for trails leading to the lodge. As we all know, the park has been hit with budget restraints. That means the trail crew consists of three amazing men who are doing their best to maintain the trails on the TN side of the park. They have not been able to get up the mountain. As of now, Trillium has not been cleared. I am not sure it will be by the time we open. If any of you have been up Trillium in the past day or so, maybe you can help us out and let us know what the trail is like. Now remember, Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail is closed until April 12th. This means, if you wish to hike Trillium Gap trail, you will have to park at the Rainbow Falls trail head parking lot and hike the extra 2 miles on the connector trail. That will make for a long day. Alum Cave trail is going to be extremely icy. You will be fine as long as you have some kind of ice crampon for your boots. Rainbow Falls trail is going to be icy as well. If you do not like heights, it may be your best bet, as of now, to reach the lodge. Bullhead trail has not been cleared since the big snow in October. If you are an experienced hiker, you may still enjoy this trail, just be ready for a long, long day. I would not even attempt the Boulevard trail at this time. It is going to have deeper snow drifts and the ice tends to stick around a lot longer. I am not sure on the condition of the trail in regards to blow downs. I will keep you posted if I hear. I hope this information helps you make some informed decisions. I will keep you up to date on the conditions over the weekend. Yesterday concluded the 2013 supply drop. Thank goodness, because the temperature dropped and we awoke to 4 inches of snow. It was a blustery day under the helicopter with the high of only 30º. Last night's low was -1º. It is not warming up at all. If you have plans to hike this weekend, be prepared for snow and extremely cold conditions.
Now that we have our supplies, it is time to clean, clean, clean. I will post a picture of the t-shirt design as soon as I get to the boxes. We were able to start flying around 4 p.m. yesterday. The weather was cold but clear. The high yesterday was 35 with the low last night of 13. We are going to finish up today starting in about 30 minutes.
Someone asked about the helicopter and why we don't use a local outfit? We need a helicopter that will carry heavy loads. This usually means a construction helicopter. This year the chopper is an AS332 Super Puma. It can carry close to 6000 lbs. Sorry to be so brief today, it is time to fly. OOOOWWWEEEE!!!! It is going to be cold under that helicopter today. The current temperature is 17º. We saw hail and then snow yesterday. It was a yucky day on the mountain. Today is clear but toe numbingly cold. We are waiting on the helicopter that is stuck in Pennsylvania due to fog. Hopefully, we will be flying later today. I guess it is time to put on my layers and get to work. Hopefully I will have photos for you in the morning.
The crew had a pretty uneventful day of scrubbing the walls of the kitchen and washing every pot and pan before returning it to its rightful place. I will say, "my" kitchen looks immaculate. I should add that our day was uneventful until after dinner time. That is when the phone calls started, telling us about the fire in Pigeon Forge. I provided a link if you are interested in the details. As of right now, no one has been hurt and I believe the only cabins to burn were rentals. I do know they were evacuating residence in the area. We are sending thoughts and prayers to all of the firefighters risking their lives to get this blaze under control.
The wind is ripping through the trees as I type. We are still getting prepped to fly tomorrow. The weather is looking good except for the wind advisories. I guess we will wait and see. The temperatures have been pretty warm during the day. The high yesterday was 51 with a low of 39. A lot of the snow is melting. I am sure the trail is much better. We had a lot of foot traffic on the mountain. I will leave you with a shot of the sunset that we witnessed while watching the fire. The lodge is coming together. The new crew has been bonding over dishes and dust. We have six new crew members this year. I will work on getting their pictures and information up as soon as possible. It feels good to get the winter wiped away and the cabins set up for the new season.
You have often read about what we miss from the land of plenty while we are on the mountain. I thought I would share what we miss about the mountain while we are on winter break. One routine I miss is my morning french press coffee with my husband. He wakes up early to make breakfast for the guests, I then make my way to the kitchen and pour my self a cup of coffee. I love finding out what music he has picked out to listen to while flipping pancakes. This morning it was the Rolling Stones, or Mick and boys as he likes to refer to them. Once again, it is the little things in life that the mountain makes so special. Today seems to be a little on the cloudy side. The low last night was 39 with a high of 52. The snow is melting but the trail is still pretty slick. It looks like it may rain today. That makes for a good day to scrub the kitchen. Those of you from last year that were wondering if Chris and I made it to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, I am happy to say we did. We can now add our names to the 19,340' club. I will share pictures and stories on days when not much is going on. Time for me to get to work. Wow, it feels great to be back on my favorite mountain top. The crew had a fun filled day of slipping and sliding up the mountain with packs that were way to heavy. The trail is in pretty good shape. There is a slide right above the bluffs that is a little tricky, but passable. As for ice and snow, the upper section on Alum is slick. The snow is hard packed and extremely icy. You will need some sort of traction device for your shoes if you are planning on a day hike this weekend. The high yesterday was 42 with a low of 38.
We are getting ready for the airlift. We hope to fly sometime on Tuesday, that is weather permitting. I apologize for starting the season off with out a photo. I had a glitch with a new memory card. I will figure out the issue and get some photos for you. I know you all enjoyed reading JP's eloquent way with words. He will be missed. We are hoping he decides to return for a third season as our winter caretaker. In the meantime, Nathan and I will do our best to keep you entertained. Morning y'all,
It's a gray, wintry morning up top. The high yesterday reached 32 degrees. The low was 17 degrees. It was 17 degrees and overcast at 7 am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation or snow and there is still some patchy snow up top. The trails are still quite treacherous with the weird freeze/thaw cycles we've had recently. Use caution on all trails. I'll have a bittersweet hike down Alum this afternoon. There's never the right words for goodbye, so in lieu of making such a meager attempt, I'll just turn to gratitude instead. I'd like to offer a special thanks Tim, Chris & Allyson for all their support over the winter season. Also, thanks to all the readers for their input, especially those who were kind enough to supplement my life up here with gifts of fruit, books and all manner of treats. Your generosity is astounding. It's been another great one... I can't think of another place I'd rather spend the cold months. Enjoy the day and the summer months! The blog will return on Saturday when Chris & Allyson are back on top! Happy hiking! JP Morning y'all,
The high yesterday reached 38 degrees. The low was 33 degrees. It was 33 degrees and clear up top at 7am observation. The mountain received 1.17 inches of rain yesterday, starting at around 3pm up here. The snow is patchy up top, but there are still some sketchy sections on the trails. Please use caution! I had a great early morning hike down & up Alum this morning. I started off with the stars and ended just as the sun was hitting the solar panel. After yesterday's near hypothermic conditions, the sun was quite a welcome sight on the upper slopes this morning. The change in conditions felt like a microcosm for the transition from winter to spring - a miserable joy in harsh, cold rain with periodic bursts of beauty followed by unexpectedly warm sun, absurdly fragrant smells and the gentle sounds of the world awakening. A hike to savor, rather than survive... _Morning y'all, It's a blustery day up top. The high yesterday reached 48 degrees. The low was 34 degrees. It was 36 degrees and overcast at 7am observation. The mountain got plenty of sun yesterday, with the snow on the ground I'm getting a nice little base tan for my travels. There's only about 3 inches of snow left up top, but a bit more on the trails that don't receive plenty of sun. The snow makes for some very tricky footing, giving away like sand on a beach cliff seemingly at random. Be careful! The past few days have really smelt of spring, even up top. There's a fecundity in the air, you can almost feel the seeds stirring, waking up from their winterlong naps and starting to think about sprouting. The warm temperatures and abundant sun have added to the effect... yet another storm rolled in last night and reminded me this is still March - a transition month that brings both those beautiful, warm spring days, everything bursting with life and colour... and the gray, drizzly, windswept days that harken back to January and make you wonder where you put your hat & gloves before you head outside... _This bipolar weather reflects my mood, both bursting with anticipation of adventures & reunions to come, fine mountains with even finer people, a melange of bucolic New England scenes... yet all this comes with the bittersweet finality of a good thing come to an end. I'll miss my routine here, the gentle ease of my days, a life with no demands or schedule, the monotony that is not monotony if you keep your eyes open. The constant surprises & daily gifts of a simple life up top, where a crow gliding over Myrtle Point, majestic sunset, or evening stroll can literally make your day, molding you to expect little and in return, forever and always receive much. I hike down a new man, every day, season after season and into the night...
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LeConte LodgeWelcome to the official blog of LeConte Lodge. We hope you find the information provided here both helpful and enjoyable. Thank you for visiting the site, and we hope to see you on the mountain! Archives
April 2024
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