Backpacking the PeakGuadalupe Peak was beautiful once again. The weather was perfect and made for and great hike. My friend and I got started a little earlier this time. Since we were camping at the top this time we required a lot more gear. My pack weighed in at 53 lbs. I've been training on flat ground with 40 lbs of sand so 53 lbs was more than I wanted but I muscled it up and down no problem. We made it to the camp site in about three hours and shed the extra 50+ lbs. We set up our tents, made lunch, rested a little and then hit the trail again towards the peak. About an hour later we were on the top of Texas! The trip was a lot easer this time, even though I was hefting a lot more weight, because the snow had all melted and the trail was a lot more solid. No more fearing a little slip and a quick slide off a cliff. At first the plan was to wait at the top 'til sunset but It was to far away and hunger was setting in so we backtracked to the camp site and cooked dinner. Afterwards it was some hot chocolate and then off to sleep. I didn't sleep that great because my tent was on a slight slope with my head lower than my body and I was restless and kept getting tangled up in my mummy sleeping bag. The next morning we woke up early, had breakfast, broke camp and packed back down everything that we had brought up. It was a fun trip and I'm proud of myself for making it with all the weight. Now I'm ready for a taller peak but since I've mastered the tallest one in this state I'll have to travel to get something grander.
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Guadalupe Mountains National Park
