moose crossing

sunrise:  5:54
Middlebury gap, VT

J. and I rose at 4:15am in New Hampshire to embark on a sunrise trek.  We imagined that the views of dawn would be sublime from some part of the drive over two spines of Vermont's Green Mountains in the drive to Middlebury, Vermont. 

I had thought that the hardest place to catch a great sunrise would be in a big city.  Mountains, in fact, are the most challenging.  In so many areas you are surrounded by peaks that obstruct the view in any given direction.  It might be 10 o'clock in the morning before you actually see the sun itself.

At the high point of the Middlebury gap there is a trailhead entrance to the Long Trail, a reputedly spectacular footpath that runs the length of Vermont - 273 miles.  We decided to try and quickly summit the mountain blocking our eastern view in the 15 minutes remaining before sunrise.  With burning legs and gasping for air, we reached the top, sort of.

Like the proverbial bear who went over the mountain (to see what he could see), all we really saw was the other side of the mountain.  Still, these woods were lovely...

Back on the road a few miles later we got this very unique photo op - rising sun and all.

The moose is an awkward beast, but has a strange nobility, in a mutant kind of way.

Lesson of the day -- go ahead and strive toward goals, but always stay alert for what serendipity might have to offer.