Another empty trailhead parking lot — This time there might be a good reason. There's a winter storm due in nine hours. Six-minute read, +2
Backpacking – 01-09-2025
Pole (Pete) Hollow Cairn Selfie — It looks like someone may have tidied the cairn. I didn't have time to check, I have places to be before it gets dark.
Icy conditions on the Pilot (Tower) Trail heading west — I wasn't expecting to find a lot of ice on the trail, it slowed me down a lot, I need micro spikes for these conditions.
Ice Crystals.
Glades (Upper Pilot) Trail Junction. The good thing about all the ice on the trail is that it means there's plenty of water.
My first icicles of 2025.
Creek and spring in 'Deep Hollow' — time to top up my water before it gets dark, and the storm arrives.
Waiting for 'Snowmageddon' — there's five to seven inches in the forecast. Should be fun! (Plus, Day One stats.) +1
Hammock camping in the snow. 7:20 a.m. and it's been snowing for around nine hours. I was nice and cozy in my hammock.
Keeping my nose and ears warm. I'm just out of bed, and I didn't bother to remove the buff I use to keep my nose and ears warm while I sleep.
Wintery view from my hammock.
Hammock camping in the snow, January 2025.
Hammock camping in the snow, January 2025.
Hammock camping in the snow, January 2025. The 'doors' on my bad weather tarp help keep the weather out and the warmth in. I could have set the tarp closer to the ground, but I prefer more standing room.
Snow covered treetops.
Gary camped here. There was a fair buildup of snow around the edge of the tarp from where the snow kept sliding off.
Winter view from Hercules Glades Wilderness. Two-minute read.
The trail wasn't always obvious. There was a slight indentation where it ran, and I'd already figured out to look for the gap in the grass stalks.
A fleeting burst of sunshine. Right place, right time. A lucky shot as the sun shone for just a minute.
At the Devil's Den (Lower Pilot) Trail junction. The Pilot (Tower) Trail is straight ahead and should be easy to follow from here on. I stopped to re-secure my camp shoes which had come loose and to brush some of the accumulating snow off my pack.
Pilot (Tower) Trail heading east.
Glades (Upper Pilot) Trail Junction in the snow. It's odd how mine are the only tracks in the snow. +1
Day Two stats. I arrived at my campsite at three-fifty, with just ninety minutes of daylight left to set up camp and finish all my camp chores.
First Breakfast (in the hammock). Yes, I am taking a page from the Hobbits' playbook and having a first and second breakfast! One-minute read, +2