I’ve been able to get back on the trails this last week. Usually here in the Front Range, February is a bit of a dry month, and the temperatures are often in the 40’s and 50’s. So it’s prime hiking weather, at least as far as I’m concerned.
This February is not shaping up to be typical though. Today is the second snow we’ve had in the last ten days, and it’s a doozy. My completely unscientific analysis is that we have a crap-load of snow on the ground already, and it’ll continue to come down till late tonight, according to the forecast. At this rate I wouldn’t be surprised to see accumulations of a double, or even a triple crap-load.
Yesterday’s hike, before this current snowstorm set in, didn’t go that well. Much of my normal favorite trail still had snow from the storm last week, and after six or seven days of freezing nights and warmer sunny days, the snow on the trail itself was a solid sheet of ice. The rare sections of the trail from which the snow melted were slippery mud. So, not pleasant, and not conducive to grinding out any real miles.
Yeah, yeah, I’m sure there’s going to be horrible days on the AT with rain, snow, wind, mud, mosquitoes, skunks, sleet, fog, drunk section hikers, drunk thru-hikers, acts of God, Satanic rituals, ticks, no-see-ums, vegans and Ron Paul enthusiasts. And I’ll have to hike through all of that. But, I feel that I can only grit my teeth and bear it, just so much, before I snap. I’d like to reserve my tolerance, patience and love for my fellow man for when I really, really need it.