View Full Version : Hiking in-between snow and spring/fall: ugly?
Cool Hands
02-20-2011, 18:49
I was thinking about something that usually bothers me, and wondering if anyone else shared my opinion:
Do you ever find hiking when there are no leaves on the trees and no snow on the ground (i.e. March and November/December, especially in the south where it snows so much less), well, ugly?
We all know spring hiking is attractive, with plenty of flowers and light green, fresh foliage; autumn hiking can be stunning with its rustic colors; winter hiking can be beautiful, invigorating, and raw; and summer hiking is pretty generic, put usually very pleasurable. But with no leaves and no snow, in my opinion, everything is just barren, and being in the woods is kind of unpleasant. After all, one of the primary reasons we're out there is to see beautiful things, right?
So, how does seasonality affect your enjoyment of the AT? When I finally thru-hike after college, I feel I wouldn't enjoy starting at Springer in March for this reason, actually. Does anyone else agree?
royalusa
02-20-2011, 18:54
We're on the other page. We actually got tired of being "leafed-in" on our thru-hike and seldom having any views. I'll take extended periods of "no leaves" to being "leafed-in" any day.
Actually, one of the coolest things I've ever seen is watching the green poke through the leaves on the ground for the first time this year. When you are out in the woods walking up and down the hills, heading north, you get to see this over and over and it is amazing. But I would still do a SOBO after college if I were in your shoes. You can always do a NOBO later.
Cool Hands
02-20-2011, 19:07
For me, that sounds like the perfect time to start actually, Uncas10. Do you remember around when that started to happen, maybe the first couple weeks of April? But I'm talking about toally barren, no leaves at all -- because there's about a month before spring and a month after fall when there are no leaves and no snow.
That is a good point though, royalusa, it does leave plenty of unobstructed views. I just can't get past everything being brown, barren, and skeletal.
Late Fall and Winter is my favorite time to hike. There are views, no ticks and no snakes.
Also, plenty of water and fewer people.
I love hiking in the Fall because the air is crisp and cool, no bugs, no crowds, the ground is nice and soft under the tent. Also, as mentioned the views are clearer for miles. Honestly I can't come up with one reason why I DON'T like the Fall on the trail.
Cookerhiker
02-20-2011, 19:30
No, I like the "barren" woods. I like the fact that you have views you normally wouldn't when the leaves are out. I like the profile of bare deciduous trees against the dawn or dusk sky. I like the early morning sun shining on the leaves and ground (see photo). I like seeing where the Trail goes which isn't always possible in deep snow as I've experienced myself.
And hiking in vey early Spring when the first flowers are just pushing through e.g. bloodroot is a treat.
For me, that sounds like the perfect time to start actually, Uncas10. Do you remember around when that started to happen, maybe the first couple weeks of April? But I'm talking about toally barren, no leaves at all -- because there's about a month before spring and a month after fall when there are no leaves and no snow.
That is a good point though, royalusa, it does leave plenty of unobstructed views. I just can't get past everything being brown, barren, and skeletal.
This happens on a different day at every lattitude and every altitude. So you walk in and out of it constantly. The first time I remember seeing it where it really grabbed me was on the descent to Fontana Dam, which was April 7.
The only upside to summer I can see is that the swimming is nice (and almost mandatory). Fall, winter, and early spring (before the thaw) are my favorite times to hike. After the thaw you have mud, and with it come the biting insects. They continue through the summer when you find that, out of the woods you get sunburned, and within them you find no refreshing breezes (though the shade helps a bit), but the bugs like shade, too. ;)
But with no leaves and no snow, in my opinion, everything is just barren, and being in the woods is kind of unpleasant. After all, one of the primary reasons we're out there is to see beautiful things, right?
You need to look for wildlife when the leaves are down. Example- deer change color, blend in well. I bet I have walked by deer closer than 20' and never seen them.
Now they are dark gray, like oak bark, show up well against snow. Would blend right in with no snow.
I am ready for Spring, too.:)
Diatribe
02-20-2011, 21:44
No, I like the "barren" woods. I like the fact that you have views you normally wouldn't when the leaves are out. I like the profile of bare deciduous trees against the dawn or dusk sky. I like the early morning sun shining on the leaves and ground (see photo). I like seeing where the Trail goes which isn't always possible in deep snow as O've experienced myself.
And hiking in vey early Spring when the first flowers are just pushing through e.g. bloodroot is a treat.
I love that shot Cookerhiker; I can just imagine the sound of the leaves crunching under your feet and the cool wind blowing up and over that ridge...
Cool Hands
02-20-2011, 21:44
Wow, haha, no one agreed with me except one. Well, maybe I need to experience some more extensive hiking in different seasons to form better opinion. I understand that one can appreciate beauty anywhere, but by comparison, I still don't get the draw of a leafless forest.
Diatribe
02-20-2011, 21:47
...But I do find all times of the year in the mountains special & dynamic in their own way.
challenging, enjoyable, comforting, lazily, nerve-racking, treacherous, freezing or too muggy: if you are lucky enough to be in the mountains--you're lucky enough!
Cookerhiker
02-20-2011, 22:29
I love that shot Cookerhiker; I can just imagine the sound of the leaves crunching under your feet and the cool wind blowing up and over that ridge...
Yep, you got it right. It was mid-December just south of the James River. I had spent a cold night at Matts Creek Shelter.
If you are attuned to the Eastern woods and searching out traces of those who came before you, going out in mud season between snow and leaf-out is like hiking with X-ray vision. Old foundations and such leap out at you from matted leaves, and any old trace or manway is last to hold the melting snow. Better for bushwhacking than sticking to erodible trails though.
hiking with X-ray vision
See page 14 of http://www.kta-hike.org/images/PDF_Docs/Newsletters/Feb10.pdf
Blissful
02-20-2011, 23:43
Late Fall and Winter is my favorite time to hike. There are views, no ticks and no snakes.
Also, plenty of water and fewer people.
Ditto, ditto and more ditto.
kayak karl
02-20-2011, 23:49
, well, ugly?
then stay home!!!!
Cool Hands
02-21-2011, 01:10
I'm sorry to offend anyone! Perhaps "ugly" was the wrong term. I apologize for using it.
But as far as my opinion goes, I guess it is just me, which really surprises me. Oh, well.
Undershaft
02-21-2011, 07:42
I agree with you Cool Hands. There is a feeling of everything being barren at that time of year. I wouldn't call it "ugly" but its definitely not as pretty as when the snow is still around or the green starts coming out. It's a time of transition between the seasons. Winter Temps are still present, but the snow has left leaving a barren, dead forest. It only lasts a few weeks until the spring growth starts popping out making the forest look like a more cheerful place. As others have pointed out, there are advantages to hiking in the barren seasons like more views and no bugs. One of the reasons I planned to start hiking in April was to experience the southern spring. I'd get depressed if I had to walk through the barren woods for a couple weeks until spring had sprung.. I like to see and feel that the forest around me is alive.
daddytwosticks
02-21-2011, 08:16
ANYTIME on the trail or out in the woods is better than working in a cubicle. :)
No, I like the "barren" woods. I like the fact that you have views you normally wouldn't when the leaves are out. I like the profile of bare deciduous trees against the dawn or dusk sky. I like the early morning sun shining on the leaves and ground (see photo). I like seeing where the Trail goes which isn't always possible in deep snow as I've experienced myself.
And hiking in vey early Spring when the first flowers are just pushing through e.g. bloodroot is a treat.
I love your photo.....I can feel the crisp air against my cheeks.
Fiddleback
02-21-2011, 09:58
I don't remember where we were...in the AT 'region', perhaps in Shenandoah...
I was impressed with all the views that were opened up by the lack of leaves.
FB
Pedaling Fool
02-21-2011, 10:03
what's ugly to me is tall grass and dense shrubbery.
Rocket Jones
02-21-2011, 10:05
Hiking at that time of the year lets me see the bones of the forest and the true lay of the land without it being obscured by Mother Nature's finery.
buff_jeff
02-21-2011, 10:50
Wow, haha, no one agreed with me except one. Well, maybe I need to experience some more extensive hiking in different seasons to form better opinion. I understand that one can appreciate beauty anywhere, but by comparison, I still don't get the draw of a leafless forest.
I agree with you. I still enjoy Winter/early Spring hiking, but I enjoy the long green tunnel a lot more. I'll take fewer views looking out on an endless green landscape than constant views of brown, "dead" trees.
Early spring can be a very beautiful time to start a hike.
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