Hiking in winter

I thought we would be the only crazy people hiking to a frozen waterfall in January, but as it turns out, we crossed paths with a dozen other hikers on the trail to South River Falls. The bare trees and patches of ice and snow have a beauty that I don't think I've appreciated much in my life, since I generally prefer a snuggy and a cozy fire on days below 50 degrees.

 

I was pretty cold when we started out even though I had on long johns, jeans, sweater, jacket, scarf, two pairs of socks, hiking boots, two pairs of gloves, a baseball cap and a head and neck warmer I got for Christmas.  The hike was mostly downhill to the falls, and I was warming up about halfway down.  Coming back up I was getting HOT! Imagine me....hot.  I had to start shedding layers and stuffing the extra clothes in my backpack.  Yup - I carried a backpack.  None of the other hikers we encountered were carrying anything, but since I've started hiking with a former Army ranger I am now prepared to survive a nuclear holocaust, should that happen while I'm out in the woods. I know being prepared is wise, but still, I feel foolish wearing a pack with so much gear on a 3 hour tour (hear the music?)

Here's what I have in my back pack:
extra pants (rainproof)
first aid kit
water bottle and granola bars
lighter and flashlight
whistle
cell phone
camera
chapstick, hairbrush, tissues

The most useful items so far?  Water, chapstick, camera. I have no idea why I carry a hairbush.

The Skyline Drive was having a FEE FREE day yesterday.  Next time I will buy a season pass, a bargain at $30.00, since a day admission is $10.00.  There is a lot more exploring to do.

PS  I thought I would get a start on my next ridiculous project yesterday.  Every time I hike I see rocks that look like the shape of states, like Utah and Idaho, so I'm going to start collecting them to build a map of rocks.  Yesterday I saw nothing suitable but a squarish rock that could be Colorado, and even that's a stretch.  I expect the entire project will require an impressive stretch of the imagination.