This approx. 6 mile walk began at the Middle Prong trail on a cold and partly cloudy day. The difficulty is easy to moderate w/ the moderate section contained in the last 2 miles. My walk began w/ snow in the woods and for the last 3 miles or so the snow was frequently covering the trail. By the time I made it to the site it was probably 6 inches deep off the trail.
I got on the trail about 2:20pm, and made the trip to #28 on the Lynn Prong Trail about 35 minutes before it got dark. Upon arrival I set up my tent, prepared my cooking stuff, and gathered some small sticks for a fire. After eating some Zatarain's chicken and rice I got a small fire going w/ the sticks I had gathered, and the help of a small fire starter. Just as the fire was getting strong the crescent moon was showing w/ Jupiter and Venus bright in the sky beside it. A friend and I were talking the other day about how fast these celestial bodies move through the night and I was reminded of this as these two planets were hard to locate mixed amongst the stars a short time later.
Tuesday night was cold! My sleeping bag is rated to zero and I was glad because it felt like the temperature dropped easily into the low 20's maybe lower, w/ the elevation gain and all the snow. As a fellow hiker had cautioned me several days before, I chose not to make an attempt for Derrick's Knob on Wednesday alone and had canceled my plans w/ the Backcountry office already.
I took this picture along the walk as it reminded me of a good friends favorite childhood story. This excursion tested my relative inexperience in these conditions and will better prepare me for my next! Peace
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