La Madre Spring

I have to say, I'm really enjoying the fact that a 4 mile hike with 700ft elevation gain up and then down is no longer a good workout for me.  I don't know that I've ever been in this good of shape.  The hike today was SUPPOSED to be longer and harder, but I had my first weather-abort.

I started out knowing that I'd have to keep an eye on the sky, since a cold front was coming through.  There was a brief shower as I drove to the trail, and another shower higher up that left a lovely rainbow.

The sky was blue when I hit the trail, though!  In fact, too much so.  There was absolutely no shade and the sun was intense, even though it was relatively cool out.

The first rainshower was a gentle little drizzle that quickly faded back into blue sky, so I kept going.  The second was harder and accompanied by some rather threatening clouds.  I decided to push on to the spring, which wasn't far away, but I was definitely rethinking my plan to go all the way to the mines and cabin.

I made it to the spring without further precipitation, but it had dropped about ten degrees.  With that and the clouds, plus the wind picking up, I decided that discretion was the better part of valor and headed back.

Apart from the impending storm, the hike back was absolutely lovely.  The weather was perfect for my Alaska-accustomed self and the clouds blocked out the sun.

I probably could have pressed on without trouble, but the storms hit only two hours after I got back to my car, which would have been cutting it a little close, especially with how far lightning can jump.  I'm not sure if I'll go back and finish it up - the trail was a gravel trail which I HATE.  It's really rough on the joints, I don't know why anyone would think it's a good idea!