February 8, 2009
Today was one of the few days that I wasn't particularly motivated. I'd be hiking solo and the forecast was calling for freezing drizzle and snow showers. I wanted to take Madison but the thought of freezing rain and a 'pup-sickle' helped me decide to leave her home. Too bad, turns out today would have been great for her. Better safe than sorry. I arrived at the trailhead at 8:15. There were two hikers just leaving and two ahead of them.
I caught the first two on the road. I wouldn't see them again. They said they were climbing Carrigain, but apparently they later turned back. I caught the next two hikers at the summer trailhead. I switched from my microspikes which I used on the road walk to my snowshoes. The trail was well broken out. Cath and Larisa were here yesterday. Seems Cath is a bit too quick for me. I've been a day behind her for a couple days now. She's been doing a great job making sure the trails are broken out for me. Thanks Cath.
Part way in, I met a hiker coming down who had camped near the summit last night. The drizzle that was in the air had turned to snow by now. Up, up, up I went. It seems the trail up to Carrigain gets longer every time I climb it. I finally made my way up to Signal Ridge. The cloudy, overcast day was starting to break up. It didn't surprise me. I refer to Carrigain as my mountain. At times I have awful luck in getting views when hiking, but this is my 5th time on Carrigain and my 5th time getting a view. The Presies to the north were still engulfed in clouds, but the weather was clearing to the east and south.
Because I've hiked this mountain in winter and summer with ideal weather and the fact that I was hiking solo today, I decided to give my camera the day off. But here's a picture of Mount Lowell from my last winter trip to Carrigain.
The view today wasn't as good as the picture above, but Carrigain didn't let me down. I made my way across the windy ridge. Once safely out of the wind, I decided to drop my pack. I saw no reason to carry it all the way to the top. Another 15 minutes later I was at the summit. That makes #34 for this winter. I only had my shell on, but I climbed to the top of the tower anyway. It was cold and windy so I peeked around quickly before making my way back down the mountain reaching my vehicle about 4:45.
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