DebW
2003-02-10, 22:34
It was March 2001, camping on the ridge below Sandwich Dome in the Whites. Finding clean snow to melt into water was a particular problem on this trip as it probably hadn't snowed in 2 weeks and the old crusty snow on the ground was full of the usual junk - twigs, pine needles, etc. So we did the best we could. Until I noticed something very suspicious in the snowmelt pot. What followed was a conversation like this, between myself and a friend on only her second winter backpack trip:
Me: "I hope this isn't what I think it might be." -while scooping out the suspicious substance.
Her: "What do you think it is?"
Me: --no answer
Her: "Deb, you're making me nervous"
Me: "Let's boil this batch."
I had found a sample of fisher scat earlier in the day, so this was the first thing that came to mind when a suspicious substance was discovered in the pot. However, I believe the most likely substance was rotten pine cone. But we'll never know for sure...
Me: "I hope this isn't what I think it might be." -while scooping out the suspicious substance.
Her: "What do you think it is?"
Me: --no answer
Her: "Deb, you're making me nervous"
Me: "Let's boil this batch."
I had found a sample of fisher scat earlier in the day, so this was the first thing that came to mind when a suspicious substance was discovered in the pot. However, I believe the most likely substance was rotten pine cone. But we'll never know for sure...