on this ride i'm the captain. all my friends call me shackleton.

1/30/2015

Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. Thoreau

Morning y'all,

It's a beautiful, blustery morning up top. The high yesterday reached 36 degrees. The overnight low was 6 degrees. It was 11 degrees and cloudy at 7am observation. The mountain received one inch of new snow. Our snowfall total is 8 inches. As of this posting, Highway 441 is closed. Check the Park Service's twitter feed for updated road status. Enjoy the snow world!

I spent a good portion of the day yesterday collaging and watching my invisible friend Wind rearrange the mountain outside of my loft window. The action was impressive all day. I felt like I could take a photo every 5 seconds and notice something new, changed, reborn. The clouds rolled calmly through the sky, like ships in the night. The sky would open and close in one slow gesture, like one hand clapping. First sun, then overcast, then a sprinkling of snow. It settled on sun for most of the afternoon, but the Wind was still indecisive and had the breath of a miler throughout the day. In control until it reached a breaking point, then gusting and gasping. It is easy to pay attention when you sit still enough.

Raz Theo

1/30/2015 01:07:55 am

JP,
Thanks for the daily screen savers and for brightening up these interminable winter days with your inspirational gems.
What is a normal (reasonable) round trip (or one way) time for traversing Bullhead?
Raz Theo
Music City

tomk in SC

1/30/2015 01:19:35 am

Round trip time with no stop at the top is going to vary with your physical condition and trail conditions. I would guess that the median round trip time would be between 7 and 8 hours. Add snow and ice, add a stop at the top. . .With sundown at 6PM that means your turnaround time or start down time is 2PM at the latest. If you want to spend an hour at the top that means you need to be at the top by 1PM which means you need to start up by 9AM. You can always start down early, but starting down late is fraught with risk as it gets cold quickly this time of year and not many folks hike Bullhead.

Raz Theo

2/2/2015 02:13:11 am

tomk, thanks for the info. It seems that most folk use Rainbow or Alum but I hear very little reference to Bullhead. Yet I'm told that Bullhead, even though the longest and perhaps the most difficult (???), is the most interesting climb of them all. Eh?

dan waits

1/30/2015 02:03:52 am

I really enjoy your blog posts.

I was wondering if you might considering doing 2 things...

do you think you could take some pics out of your loft window? it would help us see what you see.

also, would you be comfortable taking a pic of your loft area in which you sit when you're gazing out on your world? I would help us all picture what the area in your cabin is like & where it is your arching the panoply of the mountain.

and if you're comfortable with it, would you consider sharing some pics of the interior of your cabin? many of us have seen the cabins during the summer, but very few of us have seen the interior during your stays during the winter.

anyway, like I said, if you're comfortable sharing these things with us, great. but if you'd rather not, no problem! ;-)

Paula

1/30/2015 02:07:36 am

JP, I always look forward to your pictures of the snow. I am so envious. Are you still having problems with your foot? I notice that you've not been talking about hunting bob kitty or had many pictures from around the mountain and various trails. I hope you are OK.

1/30/2015 03:27:44 am

Paula,
My foot is still healing. Soft tissue injuries take patience and being healthy for my 'real' job this summer is my top priority. I will be hiking again as soon as I am able...

Tom C

1/30/2015 03:32:38 am

As always JP, great prose! Keep it up!

shakespeare

1/30/2015 05:23:40 am

And the poetry ain't bad either!

norman

1/30/2015 05:41:34 am

JP, are you comfortable with Dan's request? Yes or no.

Jenny B. link

1/30/2015 08:33:56 am

Regarding the requests for views of JP's living area and his views from that area, I believe it is JP's right not to share every aspect of his life on the summit. I must admit I am curious myself, but I put that aside in favor of his privacy. Nothing wrong with Dan's request--he expressed it very politely--but I think in this day and age we expect to be able to see everything, know everything. And that is not actually right, in my opinion.

elaine c

2/2/2015 04:54:59 am

Agreed, Jennie; well stated on JP's behalf, who may have feel too kindly to reply.

Franklin

1/31/2015 04:46:49 am

Did I offend someone ? Sorry. Just stating the obvious.

Comments are closed.

on this ride i'm the captain. all my friends call me shackleton.

LeConte Lodge

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