april 4 - ice storm

We got back to the trail on april 4. It was raining in the morning so i wasnt in the mood to hike. After a big breakfast and a feww cups of coffee i was feeling great. When we got to the trail i had a ccrazy amount of energy. The first 7 miles flew by. It was a 15 mile day total though, and the weather on the mountain was worse than just rain. It was sleet, and freezing rain. All the trees and plants had a layer of ice on them. The higher elevations had thicker layers of ice. And the trees branches were all bent over from the heavy ice on them. The wind was blowing through the trees too. And many branches were breaking and falling when they became unable to support the weigtht along with the wind. One very large branch broke above me, and embedded itself into the ground while standing straight up. It fell into the ground about 6 feet away from me. After that, whenever i heard a branch cracking id stop and look up. Afraid to be under one when it fell. There ws one particularly scary stretch of the day, and it didnt involve trees at all. It was while going over a mountain called max patch. Known for its beautiful views and starry night, we saw nothing but grey. The fog and sleet so thick we couldnhardly see the next trail markers, signposts placed every so often, with a white blaze on it. The wind on max patch was so strong and so cold, and we were soaking wet. there was a thick layer of ice on the ground and grasses that cover the top of max patch. I though i was going to get frostbite on my face or fingertips. My hands were mostly numb. It was scaryy, and amazing, at the same time. When we got to the shelter it was full. So we looked for a safe spots to pitch our tents. I put mine under a pine tree, in the hopes that it woujld catch or sloow down a branch that fell from one of the taller trees. Shortly after my tent was set up, a branch fell down and nearly hit another hikers tent. I cooked dinner and quickly got into my sleeping bag.