It's become rather a tradition for us to spend a week at Dolly Copp Campground in the fall and this year it was at the end of September. Every year we hope to get out for a hike or two in hopefully nice weather and this year we decided to go up over Carter Dome. I would have to say that I've probably visited this area of the Whites more than any other and it has become my favorite.

      So we got up early Monday morning and managed to get on the trail by some time around 7:00. I had to get the obligatory shot of Louise at the trail head and then we were on our way. As we headed up 19 Mile Brook Trail it looked like it was going to be a very nice day. These are the trails I love. The ones that follow along a brook and give you constantly changing scenery.

      The 3.8 miles disappeared behind us pretty quickly and we were at the first of the two Carter Lakes. It's such a gorgeous spot with the lake and the Wildcat Ledges towering above it. When we walked between the lakes and got our first glimpse of the lower one we were amazed. It was virtually dry! I have been to the lakes countless times over nearly 30 years and have never seen this. I will say that I've been told by others that it's not quite as rare as I thought but it was still amazing to us. I tried to get pictures to show just where the water level "normally" is and just how little water was left!

      Before we began our real climb I got a shot of Pulpit Rock perched up on the side of Carter Dome. Then we avoided the hut and began our ascent in earnest! If you've never been here you know that it's a pretty steep climb for about half a mile. Toward the end of the steepest section there's a short side path to the right and a great close up view of Pulpit Rock. You also have a spectacular view down into the notch. As you looked at that last picture you should have been able to see that the lower lake appears totally dry! It's also a great look at "The Rampart" and the huts. The view of those boulders in "The Rampart" may not seem that impressive until you compare their size to the size of some of the huts! It's a great place to go to simply climb among the rocks and caves. You can often find snow and ice there well into the Spring.

      As we continued the climb we spotted the sign for the spring and decided to see if it was flowing after all the dry weather and the nonexistence of the lower Carter Lake. It was there but barely. If you took your time and had a small cup or something you could have eventually gotten some water. After checking it out we returned to the trail and continued on the summit. From here we had a great view of Mount Hight and realized that we had climbed right up out of our blue sky day and it was starting to drizzle.

      I didn't bother with any views of the fog and clouds we were now in but I did spy around a bit and got a shot of the mangled remains of the fire tower that once stood on the summit. Then we headed down Carter Moriah Trail and I got a few pictures of some tiny pine cones along the way.

      Due to the weather we decided not to head over Mount Hight this time but to simply head down to Zeta Pass. This spot is absolutely fantastic. I'm not totally sure what it is but I do know that I love the look and feel of the place. Unfortunately even though there are several signs instructing people to not camp in the area it's pretty obvious that many still do.

      We decided to take a little break here and have some lunch and check out the area. Once again I went exploring and was rewarded by finding evidence of the wire that one time linked the summit fire tower with the outside world. Summits are great but there's so much to discover anywhere in the Whites if you take the time to look for it. I also got a shot of the moss covered trees that give areas like this such an other worldly look and feel.

      As we were finishing up lunch and thinking of continuing on down the mountain we had some visitors that changed our mind, gray jays! These little birds have been mooching off of people for ages. The lumber jacks of old called them "camp robbers" and it's pretty obvious why. They seem to have no concern or care about the presence of people which allowed me to get some pretty good pictures of them. They are so daring that it's pretty common for them to eat right out of your hand!