              |
Spending a Winter at 4370' I was lucky enough to spend a winter at RMC's Gray Knob cabin last year -- working 11 days on and 3 days off from November through April. Several people have asked me what it is like to spend a winter in an unheated cabin on the side of a mountain in northernmost New Hampshire. During my time at Gray Knob, I kept a journal of my time spent at Gray Knob or, as I called it, 4,370. Here are a few excerpts that I thought RMC readers might enjoy. “Wednesday, December 8, 2004: I did get my first sub-zero day this stint (-7F), but that was tolerable. I was in my sleeping bag pretty early that night. I only had sunshine one day this week (not on the actual cabin but in the sky), but that one day was wonderful. I had waist deep snow in Edmands Col, Ice above tree line, rime ice at Thunderstorm Junction, and my crampons and snowshoes back at the 'Knob.’ ” “Wednesday, December 22, 2004: I am over at Crag Camp at the normal radio call time, and since I have my portable I decide to just hang out and do the radio call from there. When my page comes through, I go out to the porch to call and go to turn on my radio. Strange, it is already on... and the battery is dead. I must have accidentally turned it on during one of my unscheduled rests while skiing — that is, a fall.
“Thursday, January 6, 2005: Two amusing events this past week. First, a slightly funny but potentially dangerous event: a couple of guys showed up at Gray Knob sharing a pair of crampons. Imagine slide, stick, slide, stick. Then there was an Australian bloke visiting whose favorite expression was unprintable. He used it a lot. He went out the back door for something and put on his boots without tying them. He came back in the door and I hear the door slam, then I hear his favorite word -- and then I hear the sound of a melon being dropped. He had apparently closed all four ends of his laces in the door and tried to walk. The melon dropping was actually his head hitting the wall.” “New Year's Eve was a grand time. It was the first time in 7 or 8 years that I actually made it to midnight. RMC trail crew alumni Dan, Laura, and Curtis all came to help ring in the New Year, share chili, drink adult beverages and beat me at Scrabble. Laura, being the only girl, had to kiss us all when the New Year rolled around.” “The next day we turned into the Gray Knob Humane Society, providing shelter for the lost dogs of the Presidential Range. A local day hiker lost her dog, Callie, while hiking in the area. Luckily, a couple of my guests found her, but it was too late to get the dog down to the valley for the night. Barbara Arnold quickly located the owner and she came up the next day to pick up her dog, bearing cookies and brownies for me -- and big bone for my dog, Gecko. Gecko enjoyed having a friend over for the night, even if she did get kicked off of her own dog bed.” “Friday, January 21, 2005: A high of 48 degrees this stint and a low of -22. The sun is edging closer to Gray Knob. Gecko and I enjoyed a little sun bathing one day. With a high of 48 this stint, I had to open up windows and doors because it was warmer out than in! It was great though. I got some mopping done and a lot of frozen things thawed. The Summit of Washington recorded a 53 difference in temps in 24 hours.” “Wednesday, February 2, 2005: Fourteen straight days of sub-zero weather.” What's it like to live with the inconveniences of the sub-arctic-like conditions? Here are a few examples: I like to do my writing with pencils. I like my pencils sharp. The only problem is that when it is below 10 degrees you have to thaw the pencils out to sharpen them. I enjoy my morning coffee hot. So imagine my surprise when it would freeze to my beard as I drank it. When I was making coffee last week, I spilled the boiling water that froze with a loud crackle immediately upon hitting the counter. Tuesday, February 15, 2005: Over 40" of new snow this stint! 33" in one storm. To put this into perspective, you have to know that we received only 47" from November first until now.” “I saw my first snow fleas of the season, got sun burnt and spent 12 hours above tree line. During my romping around I saw a sight that one would not expect during February: a couple of hikers clad only in crampons and boots. At 10 pm, on the summit of Adams, it was 48 degrees with a light wind.” “Wednesday, March 16, 2005: Happy Birthday to me! I lit a fire for myself -- at 3pm, as well. That is right: the firewood miser, the grumpy bearded guy, broke down with less than 20 days to go and lit a fire in the afternoon. There, I said it.” For those of you who wonder
what life is like at Gray Knob in winter, I hope that these excerpts
from my diary have given you a glimpse into that life -- and
convinced any of you crazy enough to consider caretaking to reconsider!
|
Oh
man! I start to hustle back to Gray Knob in a bit of a rush when
I get paged a second time, which is abnormal. So I decide to
run. I make it back in record time, grab the radio breathlessly
and make the call. I get the normal greeting, and then I'm asked
to stand by for a second for a message. I decide to gather everyone
inside by the radio and turn it up, and I am glad I did, because
over the radio waves comes a wonderful version of We Wish you
a Merry Christmas from carolers down in the valley. That was
a great surprise! (Note to self, double check portable radio
batteries before going out.)”