Skylight, Marcy, and Phelps

December 05, 2015

I drove down to Keene Farm last night and set up camp in the dark. Set my alarm for 04:30 and hit the sack. At 03:30 I awoke, and after tossing and turning for half an hour, decided that I might as well get up. Ate breakfast in the dark and drove off to the Loj. Hit the trail in the dark (I am sensing a theme here) and started hiking into Marcy Dam. There was about an inch of fresh snow on the path, bit it was not slippery so I just travelled in my boots along here. Passed one fellow on his way out, but other than that, I did not see a soul until I got to Skylight. About three-quarters of the way to the dam, the sky began to brighten. I switched off my headlamp and could not see much, but it was pretty hiking under the stars and moon, so I just slowed my pace and enjoyed the moment. As I ascended towards Lake Arnold, the trail got more and more icy, and when I reached Lake Arnold I finally succumbed to the slipping feet and put my microspikes on. A sudden mental relief was had as I no longer needed to plan every foot placement with perfect precision. I was worried about the Feldspar swamp, figuring that this would be the crux of my day, as this section of trail is notorious for flooding and tricky crossings on floating logs. However, it turned out to be not too bad at all, as most of the logs were frozen enough to provide stable crossings of the muck. The sun finally hit as I reached Lake Tear of the Clouds, so I stopped for a short break to refuel and to dig out my sunglasses. The climb up Skylight was very icy, but it is not a steep climb so I was able to remain in the spikes and avoid the crampons. I met a fellow on his way down and we chatted for a bit. He had climbed Marcy for sunrise and was now headed to Gray. At treeline I layered up as the wind was quite blustery. Skylight's summit was easily won and I had some amazing views of a sea of clouds below me with peaks sticking up out of them. I spent some time wandering around and taking photos. Finally I descended a bit until I found a sheltered rock to sit on with a great view of the Great Range, and also turned out to be a great place to eat a sandwich. The descent back to the four corners went quickly and I began the ascent up Marcy. The sun now quite warm and the snow in the trees was melting rapidly, causing me to get quite wet under the drips and snow bombs falling from above. Finally I broke above treeline again and dried myself in the sunshine as I climbed. I had the summit to myself and again had some amazing views in all directions. As I descended, I began to run into the crowds, if you can call two dozen or so people on Marcy a crowd. I was still feeling good at this point so thoughts began forming of extending this hike. At Indian Falls I took a long break and enjoyed the fabulous view of the MacIntyre Range while eating my second sandwich. I decided to climb Phelps as it was still early and I had nothing better to do with my time this afternoon. Phelps went quickly, but I encountered the most challenging ice of the day on it. I considered switching to crampons, but the crux was short so in the end I did not bother, getting by with just careful footing. The summit was gorgeous, calm, and warm in the afternoon sunshine. I lingered for a long time before making my way down. I was now tired and I made a couple stupid foot placements that slid out and nearly caused me to fall. Fortunately I made it down without serious mishap and at 3200' I put away the spikes and went back to booting it. One final short break at Marcy Dam, where I layered up again as the temperature plunged with the setting sun. Colden was bathed in lovely alpenglow, and I tried unsuccessfully to capture the orange light with my poor photography skills. The last stretch went fairly easily and I took my time and the last kilometer was made under headlamp as the sun finally faded to black. Arrived back at the Loj after 11.5 hours on the trail, tired but happy that I accomplished such a great hike as one of the few solo hikes of my career. I did miss the company, but it was nice to be able to go my own pace and change plans on the fly without worrying about a group. Dinner in the dark back at Keene Farm and after a couple beers I crawled into my sleeping bag.

Strolling along on a dark and crisp morning.