Snow-Storm Camp-Out

During my winter break from school, I decided that it might be relaxing to take an overnight camping trip to the Catskills in upstate New York. I have been camping in the Catskills many times before, but have not yet been there during the winter months, and I had a new pair of snowshoes that I wanted to try out. 

I checked the weather before I went, like I always do, and saw that there was a chance of snow. I didn’t think much of this as I knew that it snowed quite a bit there during the winter months, so I set out on my adventure nonetheless. 

As I begin my drive and start to get further and further north, I begin to notice road signs warning of a winter weather advisory. The clouds above thickened. The wind whistled as it hit the side of my car. I began to worry a little bit, but continued on my way, thinking of how this could affect my trip. I finally arrived at the trailhead to begin my journey when I saw a sign by the road: “Road closed November-May, no winter maintenance.” I began to worry about being stranded on the trail if a lot of snow falls. The sky was becoming gray, and the cold wind felt like small needles hitting my face as it whistled through the trees. It was still early in the day, and I knew the snow was not expected to start until after 4 pm. I decided to shorten my hike and set a turnaround time of 1 pm to make sure I get back to my car before the storm. Unfortunately, I had to cancel the camping portion of this trip. 

The hike was beautiful, and I made great time, getting back to my car just before 4 pm. As I began to drive away from the trailhead, the snow began to fall, falling heavier and heavier as time went on. I knew I was not going to make it home before the storm got too bad to drive in. I needed to figure out what to do. The snow began piling up on the roads and crunching under my tires. I could barely see the road anymore through the thick white flakes. I made the difficult decision to park in a parking lot for the night and wait out the storm. After a long night in the car, I awoke to more than a foot of snow outside. Armed with my snow shovel, I began excavating my car to begin the ride home.