Guadalupe Mts part of the trip. In an afternoon and a day I hiked to devils hall, Guadalupe Peak, and drive to McKittrick canyon and hiked to the grotto.
Sorry about the sideways vertical shots. I can't figure out how to rotate them.
Anyhow. Devi's hall was a warm afternoon and that canyon was in full color change. It was great.
That evening the first surge of cold came in and I got up to overcast just above freezing cold. Bundled up and started up the mountain at 8am. Made good time by myself and as I climbed I started seeing sleet and ice in the cloud layer. It gave me a literal "frosted tips" hairstyle. It was accumulating on everything not on the ground. Eventually I broke out of the cloud layer into the sun about 7500 feet or so and it started getting warm. I mean, 25-30 degrees warmer than just below the cloud tops as I climbed. A combination of cool air sinking, the direct sun, and a west breeze blowing warmer desert flats air in from the west. Removed lots of layers, liked to the top, took pics, and came back down. When I hit the cloud layer it got bitterly cold again and there was lots of ice and sleet.
Got down, had lunch, then drive over to mckittrick and didn't get started until about 2:45 so I had to do a forced March to make the grotto and get back to get out before the gate was closed. That entire hike was overcast and sleeting, and temps never above mid 30's at best.
Sunday night was canned chili heated behind a Boulder for a wind block, in freezing temps and sleet. I had to forgo my planned victory beer. And slept in 2 mummy bags in the back of my Nissan. It hit 23F and started snowing briskly at about 5am. That made packing up and driving home interesting for the first 40 miles or so but then the accumulation thinned out on the roads. It was icy with intermittent sleet nearly to Menard, however.
Great trip. Will post some on Big Bend Ranch portion later.
