Best laid plans...

Well, damn. Another monster Nor'easter! This is not the way this script is supposed to go. My hike is supposed to be a long, gentle odyssey in the woods with birdsong and babbling brooks as the soundtrack and with the sun dappling green ferns as the stage lighting. (At least that's been my mind's eye vision for more than a year).  It is not supposed to be a struggle for survival on a frigid trail with foot-deep snow and razor-sharp winds stinging any carelessly exposed skin.

I may be crazy but I'm not insane. So after fifteen miles on the trail yesterday, I bailed out at Delaware Water Gap and came home to sit out the storm. I am just not sure when I will get back on the trail. I was surprised yesterday to find that most of the trail was still covered with snow from the last storm more than a week ago. (The picture is from Wolf Rocks yesterday.) In a couple of places I broke through the surface crust and post-holed up to my knees. Even when the snow was only a few inches deep, it was crunchy and irregular making it harder than normal to keep up a comfortable pace. All that would be fine if it weren't for the foot of new snow piling up out there right now on top of that old snow. The chance of a quick melt is non-existent with a forecast of evening temperatures in the 20s for the next week or more.

So I am recalibrating. It looks like the entire Appalachian Trail from Georgia to at
Massachusetts will be buried in a lot of snow which means there are no easy alternatives. Whenever and wherever I get back on the trail, I will need to cut back on my planned daily mileage. The hiking will be less than ideal and I will be carrying more gear to handle the cold. I will probably "shelter hop" rather than tent camp which could further cut my miles down.

In the meantime, I'll be staring out my window at the blowing snow in my yard and dreaming about birds and creeks and carpets of green ferns. Damn.


Comments

  1. Peter MackeyMarch 21, 2018 at 7:36 AM

    Keep your head up Paul! I'm looking forward to following along with you on this journey!

    ReplyDelete

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