High On LeConte
  • Home
  • Daily Posts
  • LeConte Team
  • FAQ's
  • Trail Guide
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer

don't forget the nights when it all felt right.

12/9/2014

 
Picture
To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles… And indeed, that IS the question: whether to float with the tide, or to swim for a goal. It is a choice we must all make consciously or unconsciously at one time in our lives. So few people understand this! Think of any decision you’ve ever made which had a bearing on your future: I may be wrong, but I don’t see how it could have been anything but a choice however indirect — between the two things I’ve mentioned: the floating or the swimming. Hunter S. Thompson
Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, blustery day up top. The high yesterday reached 34 degrees. The overnight low was 22 degrees. It was 23 degrees and mostly cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received no new precipitation and had no snow on the ground.... until I awoke at 10sh from my post weather slumber and we got an inch in about 20 minutes. The trails were in great shape yesterday, but I'm sure the footing will be a little slick with this new snow. Be prepared for cold temps and slick trails if you intend to summit today!
Picture
Top photo: So smoky! Above: My older brother.
I spent yesterday out exploring, knowing that the forecast was calling for colder temps starting today. I wanted to take advantage of this last bit of warm weather before Jack Frost settled in for the season and unofficially started my torpor. I love deep winter and will always root for snow, but if it's not snow, the next best thing is clear trails. I was running up and down the mountain with no regard for black ice, feeling so free and unencumbered with my little 13 liter day pack. It was outrageously fun, an effort that felt like no effort because it was fueled by pure joy. These types of spontaneous micro-adventures make memories, as my friend Jimmy Jam would say. It is so encouraging to remind yourself that experiences are all we have and if we work at it, we can cultivate the spectacular.
Jenny B. link
12/9/2014 03:16:51 am

How did we get from Shakespeare to Hunter Thompson? :) I think we need a transition point. I propose Alfred Jarry.

phillip
12/9/2014 04:57:13 am

Excellent question Jenny B. Hunter S. Thompson isn't on the same league as Shakespeare. Thompson was an agitator and a despot at best. I know one thing, Thompson could never make the hike up the mountain !

Jenny B. link
12/9/2014 05:55:43 am

Thanks, Philip. Actually, I have nothing against Hunter S. Thompson. I thought "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" was great. But I was amused that JP connected him with Shakespeare and in the interests of a fun discussion I thought I'd say something about that.

Kent
12/9/2014 05:58:50 am

Thompson was was far more than just an “agitator.” I don't agree with everything he wrote by a long shot, but the one thing that I admire about him is he was not afraid to question the accepted social order and expose venerated institutions for what they were. I'll always admire anyone that fearless and iconoclastic, to a large degree. He was a troubled man to be sure – hedonistic, maybe even sociopathic – but his contribution to journalism cannot be underemphasized.

Joel
12/9/2014 06:01:19 am

I was intrigued by the tree - I lost track around 250 - is there more to this story?

norman
12/9/2014 06:21:35 am

I was lost to start with!! Sun coming through the tree was good !

Phillip
12/9/2014 06:47:24 am

Ok. But Thompson would have been censored immediately if he ever posted his comments here !

Kent
12/9/2014 08:17:08 am

So would Shakespeare, I suspect.


Comments are closed.
    Picture

    LeConte Lodge

    Welcome 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!

    Online Store

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010

    RSS Feed

For current GSMNP road and trail information, visit the Park's Twitter page, official website, or call 865-436-1200 and follow the prompts.

Picture

Picture

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture