Lafayette sunrise

[bristlecone]

EDIT: Change explained below

It was early and dark. It took me a while to figure out what exactly those little dots darting about in front of my light might have been. Could it be? Yes! First snowflakes I have seen this year

(big puff of steam emanated from the photographer)

Getting closer to the top, I found a fellow traveler walking up from the hut. First saw his light, then his little wet footsteps on the rocks, then caught up. Clever bloke, he had brought a sleeping pad and other warm things to keep him cozy through the show. We finished the climb close by then dove into different sheltered spots up top.

The snowfall picked up, prelude to one of the most dramatic shows I have ever seen.

This wasn't to be one of those watch-the-colors-get-painted-across-a-distant-sky sunrises (that bland old ordinary sort which I had ignorantly thought was the way that sunrises necessarily worked). With clouds swirling around the peak, I was to be in the sunrise.

The light was dramatic and changing. I captured a bit in pictures, but was also busy watching it with my own eyes, so I rationed my time looking through the viewfinder.

That's Kearsarge North pinchin' off a big ol' ball of plasma

No tricks; it looked like this. In the sunrise.

In the final act, the light and the clouds started to play; started to dance. I was in an ever-changing world of otherworldly colors.

And in an instant, the sun slipped in above the clouds and gray reigned. I compared notes with my fellow traveler; yes indeed, one hell of a show.

 

[bristlecone]

part 2

I had hardly noticed the little dusting that had been accumulating

while the vaunted colors of the valleys strained to have their voice heard after the maelstrom of light had finally subsided

Dang.

And back in time for breakfast too. (After running down against the tide of a cattle train heading up. "Good morning!" I would call out so as not to startle the next group of hikers, shortly after passing the previous group. I tired of the sound of my own voice. "Good MORning!" "GOOD morning!" "Good MorNING!")


EDIT: This thread had previously included a later slide hike. I hadn't identified the specific location of the slide, and had posted photos that failed to reveal any characteristic skyline because (from an earlier slide TR)

No, not a joke on people (leaving out the location), and certainly not a neener-neener sort of thing. It's just where I have ended up. For a long time I avoided boards like this because I thought the publishing of detailed route info on the internet encouraged overuse of certain sensitive and hitherto wild areas (as belabored, with a somewhat different focus, on the ossipee threads). But then I came to think that it was neat that people connected, shared their experiences, made new friends and hiked together.

So my compromise for lightly-used areas is to post the essence of the trip - the experiences, the pictures, the sense of adventure - just without the X on the map. In a sense, I don't think that the X really adds much to the story. It's the spruce, and moss, and collapsing gravel, and navigation folly, and all those other palpable things that constitute the experience.

As for impact, we did our share that day. Many of our steps ripped the beautiful carpet of moss, collapsed decaying logs that weren't quite ready to fall to the ground, and broke up whatever imperceptible things might have started growing in the soft gravel. Our sounds in the woods and my posting of photos did something to diminish the 'wildness' that Waterman articulated so well. But despite the few shreds of information on our route that we had picked up beforehand, much was left for us to figure out and discover - a kind of adventure that is lost when each step is mapped out with georeferenced photos.

It's the kind of place that just can't be what it is with more traffic and more posted route info. I'd argue that that isn't elitist - get out the map and compass, have a play about with google earth, and set off for adventure! And send me a PM if you are interested in slide adventures - I've got a few more to pay a visit to before the snow flies! (and again once enough of it does...)

In the original thread here, a question came up about the location and others responded (correctly, sheesh! some folks know every tree and rock up in the hills ). Unfortunately I decided to delete the entire thread and repost just the on-trail portion here. (That was the highlight anyway of this TR, just due to dumb luck on my part and a little pointing and clicking.) My apologies to those who had posted replies that are now gone, the system deletes the entire thread with the first post.

I don't mean any hard feelings. I've come to see that on VFTT the norm is to post a lot of detailed off-trail route info, and missing details are assumed to be more of a riddle than an intentional omission. I don't personally agree with that, but it is fine for a group of people to decide that is how they will use a forum. I just don't want to add to that part of it, nor do I want to attach the above ponderous disclaimer to each of my off-trail TRs. I'll still be around with the general discussion and posting some on-trail adventures, especially the ones where I end up in an amazing world of pink!

 

[w7xman]

EDIT:
No tricks; it looked like this. In the sunrise.

Still Awesome!

 

[Kevin Judy and Emma]

Agreed!

Just awesome!

KDT

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

Fantastic!!! Which day? We caught the sunrise on Osceola on Monday morning, which was nothing like yours. So, if Monday, what a difference a few miles in the Whites makes!

 

[PETCH]

Those have got to be some of the best pix I've ever seen. Certainly worth a frame........

Petch

 

[bristlecone]

It was Sunday morning. It's still hard to believe - I look at my own pics and think, "No, it can't have really looked like that."

 

[NeoAkela]

Just beautiful! You really were inside the sunrise!!

 

[hikes-with-him]

I feel so out of the loop...I can't get these pictures at work...and don't have Internet at home...