Dream Lake With No Snowshoes Poem by Spock the Vegan

We took our snowshoes with us,
But we left them in the car.
When we found we needed them,
Going back was way too far.

My buddy went three days before,
And he said the snow was packed.
But new snow had come again,
On the trail the wind had stacked.

For listening to my buddy
I felt just like a dunce.
But I only "post-holed"
Up to my knee just once.

The view of Nymph Lake through the pines
Was really very nice,
But please don't say "Break the trail"
When hiking over its ice!

Of course the ice we couldn't see
Because of the drifted snow.
But rest assured it was down there
About two or three feet below.

Why we three hiked over the lake
Some people may not understand.
One of my buddies knows these trails
Better than the back of his hand.

Then upward to Dream Lake.
We did our numbers tally
For my wife's assurance
Exiting "avalanche alley."

Dream Lake was an icy wasteland,
With fog hiding the mountain peaks.
The wind had swept off all the snow,
And had given us all red cheeks.

So back a ways to a calmer place,
To drink the chocolate while it's hot.
Hurray to one of my buddies
In his thermos he had brought.

So here's an eternal truth
That books of wisdom have told:
You'll never value the warmth
‘till you undergo the cold.