hikerfast
Active member
yesterday went up valley way...what a perfect day. headed up to madison summit and took it all in. hardly any wind there..sunny clear skies. about 25 thru hikers went past me during the day. i took the gulfside over to thunderstorm junction. that is quite a sight looking to your right down into king ravine, its so steep above the ravine it almost appears to be an extension of it. It's funny, I remember camping at grey knob in 87 and coming across that slope with no 'shelf' to hike on, just planting the snowshoes on that steep slope heading to Madison. I must have climbed it in winter after all, now that I'm remembering that overnight trip. I remember thinking you wouldnt want to slip and start going down into the ravine to the left on the snow. After i got back(in 87) the caretaker says ' yeah that slope avalanches sometimes'. nice. Anyways, I went to thunderstorm junction, and thence up lowe's to adams. what a summit. It's always cool to be up there, and the only thing higher than you is washington, pretty amazing to look DOWN at most of the auto road, and way into the gulf. I felt vertigo some on the summit but lowe's is pretty mellow going down. For some reason my fear of heights is like feeling trapped at times, its not so bad if i know i can get off a steep spot. I went back down to thunderstorm junction, back down the gulfside looking warily to the left into the ravine, and back to the hut. When I got down to appalachia, there was a rescue going on. Someone had come upon a hiker that was incoherent and laying on a rock up near the chemin de dam king ravine junction. I guess his glasses were off and he was in and out of it. The fish and game had come to litter him out. The rumor was they guessed it was diabetic shock, but this was diagnosed over the phone prior to seeing him. There was a dead deer in the back of the fish and game truck to add to the mood. I hope this guy was alright. I haven't seen any thread about this, spose there will be some news regarding. I bought a disposable digital camera(hows THAT for an oxymoron), and I have to use all the film to develop it. Pictures I will put up when I get them.
