29-January-2024 The Top of Texas!

I made it!

When I arrived at Guadalupe Mountain National Park yesterday afternoon, I checked in with the Rangers and was told that the hike up Guadalupe Mountain to the highest point in the state of Texas was normally a challenging hike (8.2 miles, 6–8 hours, 5000+ feet of elevation gain) but because of a storm last Friday that brought lots of snow and ice to the higher elevations that the upper half of the trail would only be passable with ice spikes and trekking poles. Thankfully I had packed all my sports equipment, and this morning I got up early and packed my things including a whole winter ensemble: gloves, handwarmers, neck gator, puffy jacket, hat and multiple other layers.

My pack was full and super heavy and even with just a long sleeve shirt on to begin the hike I sure was sweating before I even made it 100 yards up the trail.

The first 1/3 of the distance was very steep with loose rocks and for this sea-level girl induced a lot of panting (blaming the altitude not my fitness level). About halfway up the trail loops from the sunny south side of the mountain around the back to the shaded northern side and that's where the snow was. I didn't make it far until I had to put on my ice spikes and use my poles for stability and balance. Funny part is I have two pair of ice spikes and only brought one pair .... but apparently I have two left feet because that's what I have with me! 😂 Thankfully the shape and structure of ice spikes doesn't really vary much foot to foot so I was fine.

The Guadalupe Mountains are known for their wind – I had experienced that the previous day when I did the Devils Hole hike which was down in the valley. Luckily today was calm sunny and gorgeous! It gets a little tricky when the trail goes back around the front of the mountain and you are on exposed rock with ice spikes - but I managed. Took me about 3.5 hours to get to the peak - it was chilly and windy but fabulous!

There is a silver triangular obelisk at the top that is a tribute to the Postal Service who used to carry letters across the country via stagecoach and now does it in the air. I had the peak to myself for a few minutes and then one other hiker arrived and we traded taking some pictures of each other to prove we had made it to the summit. Took a short lunch break and then headed back down. The descent was as challenging as the assent - the lower half lots of loose granular with large (18+ inches) boulders and steps. It took me a total of 7 hours, and I felt quite accomplished when I got back to my car. Because of how the trail is structured where it goes up and then down and up around another peak and down and then up to the final peak I managed to do more than 5000 feet of climbing/descend - that's a work out!

Treated myself to a salad and steak dinner with a glass of red wine to celebrate.

I've been forgetting to include my WILD (What I Learned Driving) ideas each day .... my apologies! Todays WILD idea: be prepared! There were a few hikers who did not have ice spikes or trekking poles or warmer layers and it made it extremely challenging for them. Although I probably overpacked I was happy to have all the water, warmth and equipment along with me!