Sunny 46

By the time the helpful Loj attendee had gotten us checked in, the clouds were rolling out. Sunny danced and played on the surface of the lake while numerous gustnadoes danced and played across the lake in the distance.

Camp setup was homey. It felt weird to set up a tent inside a lean-to, but that's how the Loj wants you to do it on their property. I got a fire going very quickly, in part thanks to the kindling box left by previous campers. I collected a little to add to the box.

As I sat by the fire, I noticed Sunny preening his paws, already annoyed by the snow collected while he played earlier. I also grew exceedingly bored and lonesome. I called an audible. After an hour by the fire, I packed camp into the car, doused the fire, put the rest of my dry wood in the box, and left.

It might seem weird to drive two hours in and two hours back only to drive in again the next day; weird and expensive. I keep thinking about how Sunny has had to have extensive maintenance on his paws every couple of miles on every hike this year, even with liberal applications of Musher's Secret. Golden Retrievers have webbed toes and thick hair. I think Winter hikes longer than 5-6 miiles are just not in the cards for my pal. 

What's more, these lonely solo camping trips just aren't for me. I do not crave solitude. I understand why some folks do. It's just not for me. I don't mind lonesome moments on day hikes, but I really enjoy meeting people on the trail and talking to them.

Dan suggested I bring a book next time if I have to camp alone. I think that's probably a good idea; that or download some shows.

Colden was gorgeous from the dam today. After a brief snack and a chat with some hikers heading for Algonquin (which I'm sure they loved), we moved on. We easily crossed Marcy Brook upstream a bit.

I was struck by how much nicer it was to climb up Van Hovenberg Trail without having to dodge or hop rocks. It was slow going in snowshoes in general, but these well-worn trails are actually easier in the snow, in my opinion. I found myself wondering what Lake Arnold Trail is like.

We stayed at the summit for a while; there was very little wind and the sun was warm. We could have had lunch there if we'd had our packs. Phelps is an incredible view despite Tabletop in the foreground of the Great Range.

On the way back to the Loj, the snow started going a bit rotten and the trail had a sheet of slush on it in some places. I'm not sure how much longer we have for fun snowshoeing this year, but who knows. This is New York after all, so your guess is as good as mine. We were done by 3:40, which was great considering our leisurely pace.

This was a truly gorgeous hike. I will do more Winter High Peaks in the future, but I do think I made the right call leaving Sunny behind. I'll make it up to him by taking him somewhere fun next weekend.