Another way to determine turn around time (in the winter)

[TEO]

Blue Mountain in the Adirondacks at about 11 p.m. No crowds.


A favorite memory of mine is from a solo night ski in the Camel's Hump backcountry in the midst of a snowstorm. I arrived at the base of a massive cliff, stripped my skins, donned my down jacket, turned off my light, and enjoyed a cup of hot tea in the darkness, amidst the snow and wind, soaking in the solitary wildness.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I must say a moonlight walk out of Lincoln Woods or the Tote Road in Baxter definitely makes, what many would say is tedious, much more pleasant.

Tim

 

[B the Hiker]

If objective hazard such as wet-slide avalanches and rockfall are not present, and you don't have a dinner date, what is the point of a turnaround time or needing to be back at the trailhead before dark? Did not the advent of LED headlamps make the notion obsolete?

If you're meeting people for dinner, or are carpooling back home, and you need to be at a certain location at a certain time because others are relying on you, knowing what time you need to be heading out can be quite essential.

 

[TEO]

If you're meeting people for dinner, or are carpooling back home, and you need to be at a certain location at a certain time because others are relying on you, knowing what time you need to be heading out can be quite essential.

Correct! But with today's lighting technology, absent such elective deadlines or objective hazards such as rockfall, turnaround times are an artificial and uneccesary constraint.

I avoid commitments on hiking days, as I find a deadline can hamper the enjoyment of a hike and the constricts the ability for unplanned exploration or deviations from the planned hike or unforeseen delays. And, while I leave detailed map(s) of my planned hike(s), I do not like to say, "I will be home by . . ." or "It will be a short hike."

 

[dug]

Correct! But with today's lighting technology, absent such elective deadlines or objective hazards such as rockfall, turnaround times are an artificial and uneccesary constraint.

To you. Not sure you should speak on everyone's behalf.

 

[peakbagger]

A friend and I had an unplanned night hike this past summer, we saw sunset from Caps Ridge, then walking down stretching twilight to the parking lot and then down Jefferson Notch road on a partial moon. We did miss the Boundary Line trail so went all the way to the base station road and then back up to the Ammo trail head. We had headlamps but did not use them.