daxs
Active member
The best made plans - sometimes do not work out. ADK4487 and myself planned a New Years week end in the Sewards. We met on Friday morning at the winter trailhead. There was a steady rain. The road was already rutted. The weather forecast called for rain, wintry mix and then a plunge in the temp to below zero. Not wishing to risk the drive out on Sunday on an icy rutted road (winch bills can get very expensive so I'm told) we changed our plans and hiked out of ADK Loj. The "boulevard" to Marcy Dam was hard packed and a bit slick but bare bootable on the way in (this changed by the next day). We hiked in with the steady rain. At the dam we decided to grab an empty lean-to and forego hiking to Avalanche camps. An empty, dry lean-to! What a luxury! We settled down to enjoy the rest of the afternoon and watched the rain fall. A group in the lean to across the water kept us amused with their antics over the course of the day which lead Ed and I to muse that its not bagging peaks that matters but getting out and enjoying the mountains. We soon broke out a New Years Feast - bourbon, cheese, crackers, bread, chocolate, an assortment of sea food, wine, bourbon and champagne! Did I mention several types of small batch bourbon? We feasted and relaxed. Dry from the continued rain. We toasted New Years a few hours early and settled in for the night. The night was fairly warm and we only had 2 visits for food raids from the local red squirrels. They tried the chocolate and not finding it to their liking left it with only a few nibbles out of it. The rain finally let up during the night. We awoke on New Years day to dry weather but dense clouds. Up we went - to Phelps. Ed's second trip to this mountain in a week. The trail was mostly hardpacked and icy. Crampons are a must. This was my first time with crampons so I was nervous. I kept waiting for an unceremonious butt slide down the mountain. But aren't butt slides why we have cushioned butts in the first place? We carried our snow shoes but they weren't needed. On the way to the summit a light snow began to fall. Rime ice was beginning to form on the trees higher up. Soon the summit - completely socked in with clouds. On the way down we met several groups out celebrating the New Years with a hike. Soon we reach our base and load up our packs for the hike out. We find that the squirrels have been back. This time they eat only the bit of cheese left from the night before. I think Ed has brought these squirrels from Wisconsin although I have no definite proof. Unfortunately I could not get the camera out in time to get a picture of them with their cheesehead hats to validate my thoughts. On the return, the boulevard is now considerably icy requiring crampons. Does that small up hill at the end of that trail annoy everyone else as much as it annoys me? In spite of the weather a good time was had. As Ed and I discussed with a hiker we met on the way down the mountain, there wasn't any other place we would have liked to have been. Happy New Years !
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