Cookies and Winter Camping

Well, mother and I got our cookies baked yesterday.  We have done this for a few years now and it is becoming one of those special traditions that we look forward to.  We got an early start and continued through the day with a short break for lunch.  We ended up with seven different cookies and a batch of chocolate dipped pretzels.  We threw in the pretzels because we had dipping chocolate left over from the cherry dipped cookies. Of course, with that many different cookies, we had to keep washing the mixing bowls and cookie sheets.  I think we had as many dishes to wash as we did cookies to make.

Gene, on the other hand, was ending up his winter camping trip to the Smokies.  I picked him up at the designated rendezvous site about 5:30.  He and the guys had a great time, even if it was bitter cold.  Just how cold was it?  I heard stories about frost on the inside of the tents when they woke up in the mornings, sleeping with fuel canisters in the sleeping bag to keep them warm enough to burn, sitting a cup of coffee down and coming back to find it starting to freeze, and ice on the trails.  They didn’t have a thermometer, but guessed the temps were in the high teens and low 20s at night.  In camp, Gene said he wore everything he took for the three-day trip.  They were lucky.  They camped low at Cade’s Cove campground.  They ran into some hikers who had camped high on the mountain at Russell Field.  Those guys were really cold at 15 degrees.  Burrrrrrr.

He’s made lots of progress getting his gear cleaned and put away, but the tent is still spread out in the living room.  It has to be completely dry to avoid mildew. I had forgotten what a mess it makes in the house trying to dry out wet gear.

Mother's violets are blooming.  Sort of a touch of spring.

We had planned to go for a short hike this morning.  I haven’t had a leg stretcher all week.  However, we woke up to rain.  Instead we’re gonna deliver those cookies this morning and try for a hike this afternoon.