Carr Peak at sunrise with Bill and Zeke

Today was the big early morning hike.  I had fallen asleep last night without setting the alarm, but luckily the bedside light woke me up with its brightness.  It was 3:50am and I decided to get up then.  I made coffee, fed the dogs, filled up my water bottle, packed some clementines (I love those on a hike) and took off at 4:50am for our 5am meetup at the lower Carr Canyon parking area.  I got there at 5:03 and Bill arrived two minutes later.  We drove up the mountain in my old truck and got started at 5:43am, making it to the intersection with the Carr Peak trail just as the sun came up at 5:51am.

Today's hike was unique in the lighting of the trees.  This is only my third sunrise hike up Carr Peak.  The first one was in June 2011, two days before the Monument Fire.  The second hike was in June 2014 during the World Cup.  I did that one with Ellen without any dogs because of the heat.  Today I had Bill and he's always a pleasure to talk to.

Today's low sun gave the mountainside a different perspective of color and shade.   One could actually see the damage from the 2011 more clearly: the eastern front was laden with large barren spots of dead trees.  We walked right into the golden hue that the mountains have at sunrise.

I never took my fleece sweater off.  It was 48F in town, but in the low 40s at the trailhead.  My hands took a while to warm up.  I figured once the sun came up and heated the ground, that I would take off my sweater, but I never got warm enough.  The peak was quite cold and we only stayed on it long enough for Zeke to eat his lunch.  Then we scampered back down, where we warned a group of three and later two men about the cool wind.  One gal came up in a tank top with no windbreaker.  Aiy!

One thing Bill and I noticed was the lack of wildflowers.  We saw a few yellow ones, but nothing else.  The buckwheat was blooming in the aspen grove and the trees were starting to bud.  It seems rather late this year for the flora to sprout.

We were both surprised that the waterfall was still trickling, under a layer of ice that would surely melt before day's end.  Today's high was 82F and a warming trend is coming.  It sure beats the horrific cold that the East Coast continues to suffer from!

I never took my fleece sweater off.  The wind picked up during our descent and my hands got cold again.  Today's hike took us 3:17 hours for 5.65 miles.  I was home by 9:30am and feeling drained.  My laceration on my left thigh was hurting, both ankles were sore, and I felt drained.  I wanted to nap when I got home, but I had to stay awake for the vaccine clinic at 1:30am.  Sweetie and Minnie were due their shots.  I got to the store at 2:20pm and waited an hour.  The vaccines tired out both dogs and neither bothered me about going for their daily walk!

Sweety has really come out of her shell over the last few years.  While she's always shy around strangers, she didn't seem too nervous today.  Whenever I got near her face, she wanted to lick me.  The doctor running the vaccine clinic today is from Bisbee and does house calls. She told me she remembers both Sweety and Minnie from last year.  Both were well behaved.  Minnie continues to gain weight and is at 93 pounds.  I'd like for her to lose ten pounds.