Snowy AT to Pulpit Rock and The Pinnacle

It has been a busy week.  I worked again today.  I had time to travel a bit, if I got going right away.  That's exactly what I did, as I headed out the door shortly after lunch.  I went out to the Hamburg Reservoir for some trail running.

The temperature was supposed to be around the freezing mark, so I dressed in the usual.  That almost cost me, as I ran miles along the ridge, with the wind pounding me the whole time.  I got quite cold.  I made it through alright though.

I arrived before 2:30 PM.  There was no one in the lot.  This is a popular place, so even in the snow, I was kind of surprised by that.  By the end of the run, the lot had several cars.

I ran here over the summer.  It was a great run along the AT, but it became too rocky near Pulpit Rock.  I also saw a snake on the rocks.  It wasn't a rattlesnake, but I still just decided to turn around that day.  The plan today was to go to Pulpit Rock and then take another trail back.  Then I could take a different trail out again and gain more elevation.

The stone road up to the reservoir was plowed.  It was partially snow covered, so it was okay on my MICROspikes.  I hate this slow, gradual uphill half mile to start.  Like yesterday, my calf was bothering me in the early going. 

I then hit the Appalachian Trail.  The trail is pretty wide as it gradually climbs.  I was very happy to see the condition it was in.  A lot people had hiked there, so there was a packed down path.  It was still slightly challenging to run, but much easier than it would've been, if this wasn't a busy trail.

It wasn't easy, but I basically slowly ran up this whole trail in the summer.  Today, that just wasn't going to happen.  My calves were burning and my breathing was labored.  The snow provided good resistance.  I kept pushing myself though.  I made it around 1.5 miles from the start and had gained over 500 feet of elevation, before hiking.  That was a good start.

I hiked more than I ran on the rest of the way to Pulpit Rock.  It was a mix of both though.  Before long, I was climbing the rock outcrop.  The trail was easy too follow here and not too dangerous.

When I got to Pulpit Rock, I couldn't believe it.  There was a wide view.  I could see a nearby ridge.  More amazing though was seeing all of the white snow covered farmland.  I could see for miles and miles.  It was stunning!  I stopped and took a few photos.

I had been planning on taking a side trail back.  However, this view at Pulpit Rock blew me away.  I decided I had to try to get to The Pinnacle.  I know it is supposed to have an even more amazing view.  I had not brought a map, so I wasn't sure how long it would take to get there.

There were some rocky sections that slowed me down and forced me to hike.  However, most of the Appalachian Trail was smooth and fast, along the ridgeline.  I came across a few snowdrifts, but not too many.  There was still a solid path through the snow.  That helped a lot.

The ridge was cold because of the wind.  It seemed to be taking me some time to get out to The Pinnacle.  I told myself that I can't go out more than 5.5 miles and I'll need to turn back around.  I didn't want to be caught in darkness.  My pace was relatively slow.

Finally, as I was nearing mile 5, it got rocky.  Also, The Pinnacle is a point at the end of the mountain.  I noticed that not far across the woods was also a ridge.  I knew I was getting close.  I did get there soon after that.

The Pinnacle was even more fantastic than I could imagine.  It was a wide view and I could see for miles!  I didn't want to leave, even though it was cold.  I took a lot of photos and a video too.  The winter landscape made it so magical.  It was great to have it all to myself too.  The only time I saw anyone on the whole run was near the finish.

You can loop around from The Pinnacle.  I like taking different routes, so I wanted to do that.  However, as I continued on the AT, there were far fewer footprints.  I didn't want to run through the snow.  I reluctantly headed back the same way that I came.  I also did this because I didn't have a map and didn't want to get lost in the cold.  In summer, I would've definitely explored more.

Now that I was running basically the whole time, the miles clicked by faster than on the way out.  I still was moving slow though.  I had more downhill in this direction too.  There was still uphill here and there.

I was cold, so I just wanted to get below Pulpit Rock.  It had been warmer down there.  I hustled and eventually I was to the rock.  I hiked down the boulders.

Now, it was on to the really fun part.  This was most of the descending on the course.  I knew it would be an enjoyable downhill.  I flew through the snow.  I was having a blast.  I had to avoid a rock here or there, but that wasn't that bad.

There were some slight uphills.  I even turned and ran uphill slightly at one point, to make sure I got over 1500 feet of elevation gain.  I didn't really need it.  I passed a guy walking his dog near the bottom.  Then, there was a hiker coming up near the parking area.

Since I was around 9.5 miles, I ran back uphill for a bit.  I then finished by descending to my car.  My legs were pretty beat.  It was a great run through the snow.  Even though I was hoping for more elevation, I still got plenty.  Working through the snow helped and more importantly, I had amazing views.

I've had fun making my way through the snow all week.  I'm getting a lot of elevation gain, in these conditions.  I want even more tomorrow.  I'm looking to do long climbing repeats.  I hope to go to Wind Gap and run the AT southbound.  I'd like to get at least 2,000 feet of elevation gain.  I'm hoping to run long and hilly on both days this weekend too.

9.5 miles - 2:13:01 (14:00 pace) 1648 feet of elevation gain