The snow that had been falling for several days in the mountains of southwest Virginia was forecast to end on March 1st so I decided to drive to Whitetop Mountain and Grayson Highlands that morning.
I exited Route 81 and from sixteen miles away I could see Whitetop Mountain was snow-covered. When I arrived at the base of the mountain it was 35 degrees with only patches of snow but as I drove above 3000 feet the snow became quite deep.
I parked my car at the access area for the Appalachian and Virginia Highlands Horse Trails. Here it was foggy, 24 degrees, with high winds and a wind-chill close to zero.
I crossed the road, climbed over a fence, and ventured onto the bald at Elk Gardens. It was surreal. The howling wind and frozen fog were bone chilling. Every shrub and tree was encrusted with snow. At times I could barely see through the fog. I wanted to get closer to an unusual looking tree and walked down the side of the bald and didn't realize I was walking on ice covered snow drifts until I broke through the crust and sunk up to my thighs.
Though the conditions were not ideal, the beauty of the snow-encrusted trees appearing out of the fog was incredible.
I hiked back to the car, turned on the heater, and drove on to Grayson Highlands. Though at the same elevation and only about 10 miles away, the winds were calm and it felt balmy at 32 degrees.
I parked at Massey Gap and followed the snow-covered Rhododendron Gap Trail. I soon came upon some of the wild ponies for which the area is noted. I took several photographs and then moved on.
As I hiked I could hear two ponies following me up the trail. But every time I turned around they were standing still and staring at me. I'd continue hiking, could hear them following, would quickly turn around and they were standing still again. I wanted to take their picture but I couldn't get far enough in front of them to do so.
