Photo credit   Dave Rockwood and Ed Kobos

Brilliant sunshine with a kick of pre-spring warmth, frigid single-digit temperature, solid ice on Limekiln Lake, and a compact snow surface for easy bushwhacking……who could ask for better conditions to explore the wilderness?

Having missed the trailhead, Ed Kobos, Dave Rockwood, and this writer visited the diminutive White Pond via map/compass, eventually intersecting the yellow-marked trail to the pond.

Traversing the frozen surface gave we hikers a panoramic perspective of the nearby hills, and a visual of the 2,651 ft. summit of Mt Tom.  From the shoreline, we commenced in earnest our bushwhack to the twin peaks of Mt. Tom, the furthest having an elevation of 2,665 ft.  Winter views through the trees were marginal, but the beautiful wintry landscape surrounding us was worth our effort.

Rather than retrace our steps, we boldly dropped off the back side, heading toward Fawn Lake Mt. and the vast meadow drainage that dominates the narrow valley between the two hilly ranges.  One cannot adequately describe the pure delight to saunter through an extensive, frozen beaver meadow where at other times of the year, would be a hikers’ nightmare quagmire.

Hemmed in by either cliffs and steep, ice-rocky ledge, we exited the valley back to Limekiln Lake via a lightly-used snowmobile trail.

This leisurely, serendipitous hike was 8 miles, with 1,200 ft. elevation gain, in 7 plus hours.