For the first new hike of our JBL trip, we decided to tackle Mount Marcy; the biggest of the group. The forecast was for 40% chance of rain, but the morning started out very dismal with cool air and fog. Our plan was to get to the top of Marcy as fast as we could, and if we had enough time and energy, see if we could also conquer Skylight before getting back for dinner. We wasted no time getting out on the trail after breakfast, leading a pack of JBL guests that were also planning to climb Marcy. As we made our way up to the summit, if became increasingly clear that we were not going to get much of a view. As we worked our way to the top, the weather deteriorated even more with high winds and sleet. Luckily, we had a couple of pairs of gloves in the pack from our last winter hike (not that we expected to need them in July).
We spent very little time on the peak, since it was cold and uncomfortable. Once we reached the tree line on the trail down toward the Four Corners, we were able to warm up and regroup. Since we worked such a good pace in the early going, we had plenty of time to get over to Skylight before we needed to head back to the lodge. On the summit of Skylight, the temperature seemed a bit warmer, although we still needed to seek shelter from the wind in order to eat our lunch.
On our way back toward Marcy and JBL, we decided to make a small diversion to see the Lake Tear of the Clouds. A fellow hiker pointed out the cairns which marked the trail to Gray Peak, and we took a photo for us to use in finding it for some future hike. As we turned to leave, another hiker encouraged us to not waste the opportunity to climb Gray, being that we were so close. Even though we were worried about missing dinner, that was all the encouragement Jack needed to hop across the creek and start the climb. It only took us about 25 minutes to reach the top, and the views improved significantly as we climbed.
Once back to the summit of Marcy, the cloud cover still had not improved, but the winds had died down and the temperature was warmer. As we were about the leave, the clouds magically parted and we were treated some outstanding views of the entire range. We were significantly harming our chances to get dinner, but spent 30 minutes soaking up the sights anyway.
We worked hard down the trail to make it back to JBL just as they were serving dinner. It was fun describing our outstanding late afternoon views on Marcy, all while listening to all the other guests complain about heading back to the lodge long before the clouds parted. The total hike was a little over 15 miles in an exhausting 10:15. Nineteen (19) High Peaks down; 27 to go.
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