How I almost died on Mt. Le Conte

[dougalcorn]

I finally got around to writing up the (long) story of an overnight trip on Mt. Le Conte back in February. I probably didn't almost die. Maybe I did. Anyway, it's a good story: http://bit.ly/1jgjhcn

[bnkrtstk]

I'm curious to the miralce delivery.

[OutandBack]

Good write up. You know the saying. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger or wizer in your case.
Glad you made it off the mtn safe. Here's to better planning in the future.
Thanks for sharing your adventure.

[Dead Man]

Miracles for sure. I share your assessment. Knowledge earned is not easily forgotten. Heck of a story too.

[MAD777]

That was a great read! Glad you're safe. You enumerated lessons learned very well. I like solo hiking, but when winter gets treacherous, it's nice to have a partner. If nothing else, they can tell you when you're doing something stupid.

[grannypat]

Thanks for sharing the story. Glad you learned from the trip.

[dougalcorn]

Thanks for the comments, gang. I guess that's the scariest part: I never really understood how much trouble I was in until it was way too late. The worst was just having poor judgement from exhaustion. Since then I've been running pretty regularly and lost about 15 pounds. I did several Winter hikes and really enjoy the solitude and beauty. I think next Winter will be even better. I'm more skilled and have better gear :-)

[TallPaul]

I enjoyed your write-up - quite the adventure.

[rbinhood]

Hiking alone in difficult terrain is very risky. The risk is magnified by Winter conditions. If you had slipped and broken an ankle, would you have made it out? Next time, find a partner. You'll be safer, and have some company, too.

[K0m4]

Great story. I'm a sucker for stories that one can learn from, and have a couple of experiences that taught me a thing or two myself. I love hiking alone, so I spend a fair amount of time making sure I have prepared and have redundancies for the things that really matter in a sharp situation: fire-making, navigation, shelter. And skills - at least theoretical. Practical is vastly better, but at least you can think your way out of a situation if you've read something about it before.

I also think you have to touch those limits from time to time to find out what your limitations really are, and where the dangers lie. Risky, I know, but you can minimise it too.