Morning y’all,
It’s a beautiful but cold morning on the mountain today.
I took a short hike yesterday afternoon and spotted icicles on the north side of the mountain. Temperatures were in the upper 20’s but the wind was blowing which made it feel colder than it was.
Picture taken from our deck as the snow started!
The past week we had a lot of snow and it was very beautiful. On Thursday afternoon late the temperatures to warmed above freezing and started to melt. During the night the temperatures dipped to 21 degrees and all the snow that had started to melt changed to ice.
The ice caused major problems for those that tried to drive their cars, ice and black ice was everywhere. At our home on the mountain the snow also changed to ice but instead of having 14 inches of snow, it melted down to 8 inches of ice. Ice is always a problem especially if you plan to walk or hike on ice.
Yaktrax on my hiking boots.
Many years ago a good friend and I had planned a 25 mile round trip hike along the Appalachian Trail during January near Gatlinburg, TN. We had planned to hike in, camp at an Appalachian Trail shelter and hike out the next day. Along this trail is always lot of ice and snow. To be prepared for hiking in the snow and ice I had packed in my backpack my gaiters and Yaktrax. The Yaktrax were a life saver, the trail was covered in snow and ice. If I had not had the Yaktrax there would have been no way I could have completed this hike.
The hike out to the car.
This week I had parked our car down the mountain which is about a one mile hike in case we had to get out. I am glad I did because we needed to get out on Friday. The hike to the car would have been extremely dangerous due to all the ice but I had my Yaktrax on my boots and away I went walking on the ice with no problems!
If you have snow and or ice a lot, I would recommend purchasing a pair or two of Yaktrax. They are easy to use, lightweight, and easy to carry with you or keep in your car for emergencies. They easily slide on your shoes and they will provide traction while walking on snow or ice. Great for any age! Here is a link on the Yaktrax, https://www.yaktrax.com/
Check out my beautiful cutting boards!
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I decided to go for a quick hike on the mountain this morning. The air was crisp, the temperature was 21 degrees when I started. There are only a few things green on the mountain now, pine trees, white pines, hemlocks, holly trees, mountain laurel and moss! As I hiked around the Northside of the mountain where it is always moist and shaded, I found a few large patches of green moss. The moss I found today was eye-catching green unlike nearly all other plants that have already turned brown.
Many people don’t give moss much thought but what’s not to like about moss? Not sure what type of moss this is but it is different than most I find on the mountain. This variety grows in large clumps.
This moss was covering large rocks.
I found a really large area of bright green color moss.
A white pine seedling growing in a large patch of moss.
The moss covers a lot of the large rocks.
Found these large icicles, the longest is about 12 inches long. After hiking for about an hour and fifteen minutes, I decided to head back to the house for hot chocolate!
We had a perfect ending to a perfect day and as it begins, so it ends. A strong cold front moved across upstate South Carolina Wednesday evening that led to the most beautiful sunset. I caught these pictures from our deck just a few minutes before dark. The reflection of the sun on the clouds was beautiful.
The cold front spawned snow flurries and bitter cold temperatures. By 9:00 PM the skies were clear, the temperature read 22 degrees and gusty winds gave us a wind chill of 12 degrees.
I found the evidence of our cold night the next morning down at our mountain spring which is on the North Slope.
Michael's Woodcrafts 