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| Sunset |
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| Moonrise |
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| Algonquin with Mt Jo in foreground |
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| Trail from Loj |
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| Of course I proceeded anyway |
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| Whiteface |
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| Lake Placid |
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| Street and Nye |
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| Summit of Algonquin looms ahead |
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| Marcy |
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| Great Range |
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| Wright Peak |
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| Marcy |
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| Big Slide |
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| Heart Lake and Mt Jo (Barely a bump from this locale) |
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| Chris Hiker, Pitchoff, Cascade and Porter |
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| Harsh climate above treeline |
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| Cairn |
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| Sunset over the Sewards |
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| Sunset |
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| Moonrise over Gothics and the Great Range (sorry, no tripod). |
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| Full Moon |
I've long wanted to do a full moon hike in the Adirondacks, especially in the winter. Being this winter has mostly been one of recovery and crappy weather each time there was a full moon, this would be my first and last chance of the 2011 winter season. Finally, the weather cooperated. If only my brain did!
I started out from the loj at 4:15. This would be perfect. The sunsets at 7 and the moon rises at 7:30. This would allow myself time to summit Algonquin to watch the sunset and still be above timberline to watch the moon rise.
The trail was hard packed. Many hikers and skiers coming out. The beautiful weather attracted the crowds. Quite a few back country ski trails. Next time I visit, I'm going to visit a few of the outdoor shops and find out what that's all about. It looks like a great way to travel. There were a few steep sections, but I was moving at a fairly good clip the entire way.
That is until I reached timberline. The temperature dropped and the wind picked up dramatically. This was not that big of an issue. In many ways, it made the drop below timberline feel as if you entered the tropical zone. What was an issue, was the ice. With only snowshoes at my disposal (no crampons, ski poles or stabilicers, which i left in my car) the going was slow and unsafe. Safety was an issue, although I probably couldn't have fallen too far, but I really didn't want to mess up my back again. But, going slow was not an option. Only 200 feet from the summit I turned around.
The views at this point were amazing. The sun was setting over the Sewards to the west. Lake Placid and Whiteface were to the north and west. Cascade, Porter and Big Slide (rightfully named) were to the north while Giant and the Great Range were to the east.
While I was struggling to make it down through the icy rocks, the moon started to rise. It looked like Mars and not all unlike the sun that just set half an hour earlier. It rose right above Gothics. An amazing sight. Now, if only I can photograph such beautiful moments.
After staring at the moon in awe for minutes, I barely noticed that I was freezing. It was time to start the descent. The descent probably took longer than the ascent. The steep sections had to be done slowly. But, once down, the walk was pleasant. Almost no use of the headlamps. One of the simplest pleasure has got to be walking outdoors in the remoteness of the wild under a full moon.
Once back at the car, I decided I hadn't had enough yet. "Fuck it. I'm here, might as well hike up Mt Jo", I thought. Again, I used snowshoes when I should have used my stabilicers. But, it was a great walk regardless, despite a few tricky sections. Stopped at a view point near the summit to take in the views of Heart Lake, and the surrounding mountains before heading back down. Looking out, I notice the views are in black and white. Definitely darker, but clearly in black and white. So maybe, to capture this, I'll take photos during the day, photoshop them to black and white and dim the lighting until I get the essence of it all. But, nothing can replace being in the moment. Feeling the solitude. Being in the mountains under a full moon.
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