I enjoyed a sunny, warm, breezy hike of Guadalupe Peak on Monday, 12-29-03. The trail and hike to the summit was as easy as I had remembered on a hot August day a few years ago. This hike offered great views, clarity of many miles (>60 miles?). I’m not a summit sitter however I enjoyed watching the people come and go that day. The summit weather was brisk: >10 mph wind with gusts >20 mph and a summit temp of 27 degrees. Most hikers enjoyed the summit experience for 10 minutes then headed back down the mountain. So much for southern winter hikers.
Actually, I enjoyed a week of southern winter hikes and runs, in Petrified NP, Guadalupe NP, Chiriachua NM, Saguaro NP, and Organ Pipe Cactus NM. The winter weather there reminded me of northeast autumn hiking weather – yahoo! I’ll be scheduling another trip next year for west Texas locations; for now it’s back to winter in the northeast.