Pt 2 "Moonscape Backpacking" by Nutnfancy

The snow fields keep on giving as we push up to higher elevation. No other hikers want to make the difficult trek in over the deep summer snow and we are rewarded again with perfect solitude as we reach the lake basin. With night falling, we talk of camp priorities of shelter and firemaking, all of which require commitment of work after a long hike in. I talk about the realities of TCE: time, calories, and energy when it comes to these tasks and those considerations always dictate all my decisions up here. We make the fire primarily with small knives and gathering/breaking branches but it's not easy and saves us no work. Lots of details shown. Camping on what turned out to be ten feet of snow complicates firecraft but I have fashion a sturdy base that works for its purpose. We are awestruck by the moonrise over the ridge that provides me with the namesake of the series.