I took this photo of  The Old Lodge yesterday afternoon.  I wanted to share a couple shots today that really reflect what 46 inches of snow is like.  I only got a half inch of new snow overnight bringing us to a total of 46 inches of snow on the ground.  It's snowing now and we should see some accumulation today.  But at this point a few more inches of snow won't make much of a difference.  It's currently 23 degrees.  the high was 28 with a low of 23.

    Many of you that have been to the Lodge have a picture standing here on the steps in front of the Dining Room.  I thought it would be fun for you to compare what it looked like when you were here to what it looks like now.  I've become so accustomed to the snow i really think I will miss it!

    We had another inch of snow bringing the total up to 3 feet of snow on the mountain.  There are cold temperatures and high winds over LeConte today.  The high was 9 with a low of 0 degrees.  It's currently 6 degrees with high wind.  As the sun rose this morning the clouds settled down into the valley.  This is one of my favorite views.  With the clouds below and the morning sun above it gives one the feeling of  real isolation and serenity.

    The roads to the trail heads are closed and the snow is deep.  With the high wind on Mt. LeConte it is difficult to measure the snow depth.  In some spots the wind will only leave a foot of snow and pile up 5 feet in another.  The bluffs on the Alum cave trail have so much snow piled up on them that the trail has become impassable.  The snow is still over the top of the cables that you grab hold of to keep from falling off the mountain.

    The beauty of Mt. LeConte painted with snow really overshadows anything I thought could have been bothering me!  I hope that you will find a little spot of beauty in your life today.  It only takes a little bit of beauty to overshadow the rough spots in our day.