Sun and Rain

April 13, 2009

Sunday (Easter for some) was a perfect sunny day, so I "skipped ahead" a few miles to famous Max Patch, one of the classic Appalachian balds. A snow drift still clung just below the crest where the wind must have compacted it all winter. Two days later I went by the trail head and the snow was gone. Quite a few picnickers were up there with dogs and frisbies although it's quite a remote place, about a 10 mile drive up a dirt forest road.

Most days have been cloudy or foggy - today I hiked Walnut Mountain and Bluff Mountain. Here's Walnut Mountain Shelter, built in 1938, I'm guessing out of chestnut logs.


Here's the top of Bluff Mountain, at 4600 feet, in the clouds. I was glad to be on a day hike, returning to the lowlands for the night - I met numerous hardy through-hikers who were camping in the fog and drizzle.