20170107_JMS_PilotMnt_0092Pilot Mountain after the first snow fall of 2017 With the first snowfall of 2017, I was finally able to take some photographs that I had envisioned for some time.  The forecast was for 6-8 inches of snow with clearing skies around 12:00 pm.  By the time I was able to leave the house the clouds had all but disappeared and left behind a brilliant blue winter sky.  While I do love photographing landscapes with clouds most of the time I knew that snow covered landscapes also look wonderful with blue skies.  The park was closed but they noted on their website that you could park outside the gates and hike in.  The entrance is right off of Highway 52, about 20 minutes North of Winston-Salem, so getting there was not a problem even with 8-10 inches of snow.  When I arrived at the gate I saw that the road leading up to the top had been plowed.  This wasn't as great as I thought as I soon found out that 1) It was only plowed to the visitor center and, 2) all it did was remove the snow and leave the ice behind on the road.  It seemed that the hike to the visitor center was more dangerous than the hike to the top of the park.

20170107_JMS_PilotMnt_0004

The total distance to the top was 2.6 miles uphill.  Only about 0.5 miles had been plowed.  Once I got to the section of the road that had not been plowed I found that someone had made the trip before me.  While I really only wanted to be the only one up there, this was a blessing in disguise as it made the hike that much easier by following the footsteps in the snow. (I would later find out that the foot prints belonged to another local photographer who had made the hike and photographed the top before the clouds had cleared - and before anyone else had arrived).

20170107_JMS_PilotMnt_0081 Footsteps in the snow

The top was peaceful and exactly what I had envisioned, a winter wonderland with blue skies.  To my surprise the bathrooms were open with the heat running.  This turned out to be fantastic as it allowed me to warm up in between photographing.  In the end I was happy that I was able to capture the photograph I envisioned.

20170107_JMS_PilotMnt_0063Pilot Mountain after the first snow fall of 2017