We arrived at Great Basin National Park after seven hours of driving, and saw a sign outside the visitor center saying that as there was a full moon tonight there was going to be a ranger led moonlight hike instead of an astronomy program. We signed up for tickets, made a reservation for a cave tour tomorrow (actually today because I’m writing this the day after), found a camp site, set up the tent, gorged on cheese and crackers, packed warm clothing and water and headed up the Wheeler Peak scenic drive.

Oooo, look at the birdie.

The trailhead is over 9,000 feet. Ranger Annie led a group of about thirty hikers (including her parents) through a forest of aspen, pine, and spruce and across alpine meadows to a little lake in a corrie. The last traces of daylight were replaced by moonlight as the full moon rose over the mountains. It was a calm night, and the moon reflected in the lake was lovely. Sorry, this photo doesn’t do it justice.