Surprise

3/6/2011

High 39, Low 27. 2" Rain, 7" Snow.

Woke up to a surprising view this morning:

When I went to sleep it was 39 and raining. Since it rained so hard before the snow, it's made a very cold, very wet, slush.

Seems the roads are closed this morning.

As for hiking up here this week... it's going to be wet all week, because its a mountain all the water runs downwards, and the rain usually finds the trail a good place to run. I wouldn't say any trail is better than the other in the rain for water, Alum can really seem treacherous if it's windy as well. It is comparable to hiking up a river at times. It's hard to say what the weather will be wednesday, considering our thunderstorm yesterday turned into snow.

It's still snowing hard now, and supposed to keep going for a little while. The guy in the shelter was even more surprised by snow than I, being from Louisiana, never having had hiked in snow. We persuaded him, over some hot coffee, that Boulevard to Icewater isn't a good idea to do in trail runners today.

sandee link

3/6/2011 02:05:22 am

Guess mother nature hasn't heard the news that spring is almost here? lol The pictures were a snowy delight to me this morning, sure wasn't expecting it!

3/6/2011 02:10:28 am

Once again beautiful pics!!! Expect the unexpected!!!!!

Wanda Kohlmann

3/6/2011 02:15:40 am

March Madness, huh!!!

Guy2

3/6/2011 02:17:09 am

Thanks. We are still not sure what we are gonna do yet. I hate to miss my chance for this hike but at the same time I dont want to be miserable. Im from South Mississippi so snow isnt something I am used to either.

3/6/2011 03:16:15 am

Just goes to show you how unpredictable the weather can be on any mountain especially ones above 6,000ft. Always be prepared! Thanks for the great photos and enjoy the SNOW!

Clair Johnston

3/6/2011 03:47:02 am

I have enjoyed the photographs and commentary from LeConte for a couple of years. Thank you very much.
Yesterday, you commented about photos turning out "gray". The problem occurs when photographing snow (or sand) because the camera averages the exposure for a wider range of brightness. Technical discussion to long for here. Most P&S cameras have a mode to compensate for this. It is usually something like beach or sand and adds about 2 stops to the exposure.
There are post processing techniques that can partially correct for the under exposure and lack or contrast. I would be happy to explain some of these techniques if you are interested. I am retired and live in the Blount County area so if you are off the mountain and would like to meet some where, let me know.

Michael

3/6/2011 03:52:46 am

So happy to see the snow again!

Tony

3/6/2011 04:29:07 am

Ain't you glad you got to see snow up there one more time before you leave? Thanks for sharing.

Diane

3/6/2011 05:33:58 am

It may be slushy, but it sure is lovely!

Sharon

3/6/2011 06:31:17 pm

Got the same rain and then 3 inches of snow here in Ontario Canada last night. Coming down that way on Friday. Wonder if there will still be snow in the mountains. Would make for a lovely view from the cabin. Can't wait to get down there no matter the weather. Love it there!!

Devin

3/6/2011 11:21:37 pm

Yikes. We're planning to hike up Alum Cave next Monday 3/14. I hope things have a chance to thaw out a bit before we get there so we don't end up hiking up a river!

Thanks for the photos!

3/6/2011 11:40:49 pm

@Guy2 - We're new at hiking during this time of year so we're going to take it as we go. Luckily for us we have a whole week from 3/12-3/19 to try to get a few hikes in. If I remember correctly, Alum Cave is the steepest and shortest route to the top, and offers more of those "cliffhanger" and rocky areas than some of the others. If runoff is that much of an issue for you next week, you might want to try Rainbow Falls or Bullhead instead...longer, but not as steep and not as rocky and they will still get you to the Lodge. =)

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