[at-l] On the autobahn... (Trip Report)

[pmags at yahoo.com (Paul Magnanti)]

This Sunday went to Mt. Audubon, a 13er that
is very popular to hike during the Summer and Fall.

And why not? Great views of the divide, not a very
hard hike,
get some apline hiking in. It is a great hike!

Winter is another ball of wax. The access road is
closed,
so it becomes an almost 14 mile R/T hike with 3000' +
elev gain on a trail that can be buried in snow, not
too
well marked. The winds can be quite brutal. But it is
so worth
it. The Rockies covered in snow with a bright blue sky
as a 
background. Oh yes!

The hike was interesting as well for a few reasons.

Reason 1: Some of us spent a little too much time at
a Christmas party the night before. I did not get home
until 2am. :O

Reason 2: At said Christmas party, some of us may had
a little too much holiday cheer (in the form of eggnog
with
brandy, wine and whatever else). :)

Reason 3: I ended up walking home about 4 miles or so.

Reason 4: About three hours of sleep after said
Christmas cheer. Ahem.



So the alarm clock goes off at 6am, say a few choice
words,
grab some coffee to wake up and arrived at the RSVP
place to
see some of my friends who also felt the same way I
did!

We made it to the windy trailhead (at 10k feet). And
trekked
off.

The road, which is closed in the winter, had little
snow. But
once we made it to the base of the mountain, lots of
snow! 
On came the snowshoes and lots of powdery off trail
snowshoeing.
A bit tiring! :-)

Because it was cold (and probably because we were a
bit crusty from the night
before..er..), we did not eat enough. We all knew
better... Stupid!

Made it to the summit and CHOWED on a cold bagle, egg,
cheese and sausage
sandwhich, followed by a brownie. Felt much, much
better. My friends
also did the same. 

The summit view was gorgeous, if cold. Once above tree
line, had goggles, balaclava and a a face mask on. 

We headed down the mountain and the wind shifted
behind the divide. Much warmer! The tundra felt
inviting. The sun was nice on our face. 

We made it back to the road at dusk. The alpenglow on
the moutains was a sight to behold.

The almost full moon came out, lighting our way. Could
see our shadows by the light of the moon. Beautiful!

Made it back to the car, broke out the thermos of
still hot tea I had waiting and relaxed a bit in the
suprisingly warm night air. 

Wonderful trek.

I made it back home in time for an early (2 weeks)
Hanukah party. A bit less Hanukah "cheer". :) (Though
my homemade almond ricotta pie seemed to have made
people happy). At 11pm I finally settled down for a
long winters nap....

This week? No holiday cheer before the ski trip..can
tell you that much! :)

Pics at: http://gallery.backcountry.net/cowint06

They are lo-res pics, if you want some hi-res pics,
e-mail me.





************************************************************
The true harvest of my life is intangible.... a little stardust 
caught, a portion of the rainbow I have clutched
--Thoreau
http://www.magnanti.com