George Steffanos
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George Steffanos
@gsteffanos.bsky.social
1.2K followers 1.1K following 8.3K posts
Author of Then the Hail Came, a book about my 1983 Appalachian Trail thru-hike, available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle.

https://www.georgesteffanos.com
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The Reservoir in Bloom Sunset. New Britain Reservoir, Southington, Connecticut. September 28, 2020, 6:18 PM. Not sure what this white flowering plant was that proliferated on both shores, but there was a lot of it.

#sunset #hiking #lake #wildflowers
The shore of a lake at sunset. Dramatic dark clouds stream past, some tinged gold and orange. This is reflected on the rippled waters of the lake. A large outcrop of cracked gray rock is right foreground. Several more are scattered along the far shore. The rest of the ground on both far and near shores of the lake is covered with leafy grass-like plants and a few low leafy shrubs. Hundreds of white blossoms speckle this green ground cover. A low wooded ridge rises above the far shore.
December 6, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Little Painted Desert near Winslow, Arizona. April 1984. A colorful labyrinth of eroded rock formations and box canyons.

#hiking #Southwest #desert
Beneath a deep blue desert sky with streaky white clouds we are standing atop a cracked and fractured pinkish violet rock looking down several hundred feet into a landscape of narrow shallow canyons and rock formations below. There are striations of color throughout: chalky white, blue gray, pinkish violet, brown. A scattering of olive green shrubs are the only signs of life in an otherwise barren scene.
December 6, 2025 at 5:23 PM
🧵8/9
A final surprise awaited when I broke out onto the flattish summit area at 7:00. It was a howling madhouse up there. The wind doubled.
An alpine plateau beneath a light blue late afternoon sky. Three nearby peaks rise above the plateau on our right, left and center (nearest to farthest). Most of the plateau and small portions of the peaks have a ground cover of golden grass-like plants with patches of green, leafy ground-hugging plants. Everything else is bare gray granite boulders and rock outcrops. Beyond the three peaks, the top of a much higher peak is hidden by a long dark cloud, which casts a dark shadow on the rest of the peak and a spur ridge of that mountain.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵7/9
I ascended through a dark, desolate landscape of black rock and dark gray cloud as a hellish wind screamed around me. It was beautiful, in a strange way, but it was a perilous beauty. I might have been on another planet.
A hazy soft blue evening sky with a few clouds. We are standing atop a ridge crest looking down a mountainside over the tops of stunted scrub spruce. Virtually all of the scene below is covered with forest. Two spur ridges enclose a vast mountain valley sloping down towards another valley hundreds of feet below. Beyond, a sea of mountains cascade to the horizon.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵6/9
The view of distant mountains faded gradually into the golden mist, and then was gone. I was entering another realm that most definitely was not heaven. As I climbed, the fog thickened, and the golden light faded until most of it was blotted out.
A hazy soft blue evening sky with a few clouds. We are standing atop a ridge crest looking down a mountainside. The slope is rocky, with a ground cover of golden grass-like plants with patches of green, leafy ground-hugging plants. Farther down the slopes scrub spruce and fir appears, gradually increasing in size and giving way to full-sized forests. Rugged green hills and mountains cascade towards the misty horizons.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵5/9
Slowly, I approached the sharply-defined bottom border of the vast cloud as the sun, sinking low in the sky beyond distant Franconia Ridge, tinted it with gold and orange. It was like ascending into heaven. I reached the fringe of the cloud and stepped inside.
An alpine ridge crest beneath a light blue late afternoon sky with a few clouds. Most of the plateau and small portions of the peaks have a ground cover of golden grass-like plants with patches of green, leafy ground-hugging plants. Everything else is bare gray granite boulders and rock outcrops. Several rugged mountains with wooded flanks and bare rock crests rise above the crest ahead.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵4/9
I began the final assault on Mount Washington. The mountain’s summit resembles a huge, barren pile of loose rocks, and those rocks make the steep climb somewhat tricky and time-consuming.
We are standing high on an alpine ridge crest. The ground in front of us is covered with a golden brown plant that resembles grass and a scattering of light gray rocks. We are looking across a deep ravine running down the mountainside to a massive ridge running up the mountain on the other side. There are a few rocky patches, but mostly the ridge is covered with green: full-sized trees at the bottom of our view to the left becoming progressively smaller until they are stunted shrubs near the top of our view to our right. The top of the ridge is out of frame top right. Beyond that ridge, we can see a succession of 4 other lofty mountains running off into the distance, each sending a massive spur ridge down towards the valley floor offscreen bottom left. It is very late in the day. The sky is a very pale blue. A dark cloud is hovering over the two mountains directly after the green ridge. Everything else is in sunshine.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵3/9
It was getting rather late, so I stayed on the Appalachian Trail as it bypassed Mount Monroe, which I have previously climbed, and did not stop at Lakes of the Clouds Hut, located in the col between Monroe and Washington.
We are standing on the summit of a lofty mountain, looking down an alpine ridge crest beneath a light blue late afternoon sky. The lower flanks of the mountain range are wooded with spruce and fir, but they diminish into stunted dwarves as they near the crest and peter out. Some of the ridge crest ahead has a ground cover of golden grass-like plants with patches of green, leafy ground-hugging plants. Everything else is bare gray granite boulders and rock outcrops. The ridge crest descends into a deep sag in front of us before climbing over a series of peaks towards a much higher peak. That peak is hidden by a dark cloud, which casts a dark shadow on the rest of the peak, some nearby peaks and a long spur ridge of that mountain to our right. The remainder of the mountains ahead of us are in sunshine.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵2/9
I got some great shots of Mounts Monroe, Washington, and Clay (how did he get in there?) along the trail ahead. The few clouds remaining in the sky had lifted well off the mountaintops, save one — the cloud that blanketed the top of Washington, covering just the very tip of its summit cone.
We are high atop a ridge crest, looking over a sun-drenched slope of rocks and very low alpine ground cover of green and gold. Ahead, most of the ridge crest and its several peaks are in the clear, but partly in the shadows of passing clouds. The highest and most distant peak visible has its top several hundred feet completely inside a large cloud, although the rest of the peak and a massive ridge of that mountain projecting to our left are mostly in sunshine. In addition to the alpine vegetation, many of the lofty peaks and ridges ahead have extensive areas of naked rock. Where there are no clouds the sky is a deep light blue.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
🧵1/9
September 8, 1983: After Eisenhower, the trail descended into a col before another stiff climb up Mount Franklin, the first 5000-footer of the day. The sky had cleared very nicely by the time I reached this peak.

#backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail
An alpine plateau in gold-tinged slanting evening sunlight beneath a soft blue sky. Much of the plateau and small portions of the peaks have a ground cover of golden grass-like plants with patches of green, leafy ground-hugging plants. Everything else is bare gray granite boulders and rock outcrops. Three nearby peaks rise above the plateau on our right. Beyond the three peaks, the top of a much higher peak is hidden by a long dark cloud, which casts a dark shadow on the rest of the peak and a spur ridge of that mountain.
December 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Some of the best fall colors I ever saw in Connecticut came on a very rainy evening in late October 2019. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. October 29, 2019, 5:25 PM.

#hiking #autumn #forest #rain
A gray and rainy evening, walking a gravel and dirt path. A wooden footbridge crosses a stream and the surrounding marsh. The marsh is filled with tall water grasses now golden brown and leafy shrubs decked out in bright yellows and yellow greens with touches of gold and orange. The same vibrant colors are repeated on the trees on either side of the marsh, although some taller trees on the far side bordering a wide grassy area have lost most or all of their leaves.
December 5, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Mountain laurel catches the evening sunlight. Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. June 1, 2023, 7:29 PM.

#hiking #spring #forest #wildflowers
It is early evening beneath a very pale blue sky. The westering sun shines through the leaves of a lush green late springtime forest, touching the clustered white and pink blossoms of a mountain laurel thicket in full bloom with a soft backlight.
December 5, 2025 at 4:41 PM
🧵1/7
August 7, 1983: I left the Brien Shelter at 6:00. It had taken me an hour to regroup — psychologically more than physically. All day, I had been driving this out-of-shape body towards a single goal: that shelter.

#backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail
We are in a field of waist-high weeds atop an otherwise open ridge crest. At the edge of the field ahead, the forest begins. Several of the trees at the edge of the field and beginning of the forest are dead. Several taller larger wooded hills rises above us ahead. The sky is very light blue, almost white. The angle of shadows and the golden hue of the light tell us the sun is close to setting, offscreen to our left. A series of other ridges cascade into the distance, gradually dissolving into the thick haze.
December 5, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Smudges of gold and rippling waters sunset, version 2. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. June 20, 2020, 8:38 PM.

#sunset #hiking #lake
Laying beside a large lake looking out from ground level through nearby shallows filled with partially submerged rocks and water grasses. A leafy shrub frames the scene on top and to our left. A fresh summer breeze is rippling the waters. The pale blue evening sky is filled with long hazy gray clouds. The clouds are smeared with bright gold and orange from the recent sunset. Many of the ripples on the lake below are catching those colors.
December 5, 2025 at 12:42 AM
October sunset at the reservoir. New Britain Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. October 12, 2019, 6:00 PM.

#sunset #hiking #lake
A blue gray evening sky with a few clouds tinted gold by the sunset. We are standing beside the feeder stream for a lake. The stream is surrounded by a grassy marsh with large gray boulders scattered around, a cluster of small white flowers and a few short leafy shrubs. On our left, the marsh ends at the edge of a forest with a number of maples already turning bright reds and oranges. The water level of the reservoir is low, much of the lake bed is exposed around the edges, covered with a green leafy ground cover that resembles grass from a distance.
December 4, 2025 at 4:45 PM
🧵1/8
June 29, 1983: After a seven-mile morning, I followed the half-mile side trail from the AT to Wiggins Spring Shelter.

#backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail
A rainy evening in the forest. In the deep gloom, a small stream engorged by the heavy rains is cascading down a steep slope.
December 4, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Deep blue twilight sunset. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. August 27, 2019, 8:00 PM. My favorite sunsets linger on into the twilight.

#sunset #hiking #lake
Walking a footpath beside a lake in the twilight. A tree overhangs the path to our right. The far shore is wooded. The sky is a deep blue, with darker navy blue clouds. Many of the clouds are streaked with pink from the recent sunset. The horizon is a pale orange. The sky is mirrored on the gently rippled lake below.
December 4, 2025 at 12:49 AM
Cotton candy sunset. New Britain Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. September 8, 2020, 7:19 PM.

#sunset #hiking #lake
An overgrown field at the edge of the forest, filled with very tall grasses and leafy shrubs sprinkled with dozens of yellow and white wildflowers. It is a bit past sunset, the forest is dark and mysterious in the evening light. The pale blue sky is filled with a dramatic mass of cotton candy clouds painted bright pink by that setting sun.
December 3, 2025 at 4:32 PM
🧵1/7
Pictured: the Potomac River when I crossed it leaving town July 12.

July 11, 1983: After a mile of descent, the trail crossed the Shenandoah River on a highway bridge.

#backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail
Standing on the rocky bank of a wide, shallow river filled with large beige rocks and rocky islets. The opposite riverbank is also rocky, with wooded ridges and cliffs rising steeply just behind the bank. The rushing waters of the river appear a blue green shade of gray mirroring the hazy gray white summer sky.
December 3, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Misty orange sunset. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. July 8, 2020, 8:21 PM.

#sunset #hiking #lake
We are walking a dirt and gravel footpath. A wide swath of grass to the left of the path runs steeply downhill 15 feet or so and then levels off for a similar distance before meeting the edge of a forest. Another patch of forest is just to the right of the path. Straight ahead the path arcs gracefully to our left as it comes up beside the shore of a large lake. A thin mist rising from the lake is obscuring the wooded far lakeshore a bit. The sky is a pale blue gray with clouds tinted bright orange shades by the setting sun.
December 3, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Autumn leaves floating down the Mill River. Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. November 4, 2022, 2:18 PM.

#hiking #autumn #forest #river
We are standing next to a large tree trunk on the bank of a river. The ground is relatively flat here, the slow current creates gentle ripples making interesting patterns in the reflections of trees along the riverbanks. The forest on both sides is past peak autumn colors, lots of golden brown and burnt orange. Many fallen leaves are covering the forest floor and floating down the river. The bright sun and blue sky are not visible other than what is mirrored on the river's surface.
December 2, 2025 at 4:36 PM
🧵2/3
We did not linger long in Stekoah Gap. The sun had disappeared again, and a cold steel wind began lashing stinging splinters of mist across the meadow. The weather had turned schizophrenic, the warmest night of this adventure had been followed by the coldest and most blustery day.
A very hazy day with a bright overcast. Standing in a meadow along the ridge crest looking out above trees sprouting bright spring leaves. Above the foothills and valleys another mountain range running across the horizon is visible through the haze. Everything is heavily wooded and intensely green.
December 2, 2025 at 2:46 PM
🧵1/3
May 15, 1983: Eventually the AT descended to a road crossing at Stekoah Gap, where I caught up to Dave. We relaxed for a while in a roadside meadow also surrounded by mountains and acres of national forest.

#backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail
A very hazy day with a bright overcast. A meadow along a ridge crest. The forest begins across the meadow to our left, to our right is an open view of rugged mountains beneath thickening clouds. Everything beyond the meadow is heavily wooded and intensely green. A hiker is sitting near the front edge of the field with his back to us. He is wearing shorts, a white and red long-sleeve T-shirt and a blue bandana tied around his head.
December 2, 2025 at 2:46 PM
A tropical Beach with a small pandanus tree. Aitutaki, Cook Islands, South Pacific. May 1990.

#hiking #SouthPacific #tropicalisland
Beneath a deep blue sky with streaky white clouds. A pale sand beach on an aqua ocean. Some small green sprouts are growing beside a small tropical tree with long, pointed leaves.
December 2, 2025 at 12:47 AM
Fossilized coral seacliff, late afternoon, Atiu coastline, Cook Islands, South Pacific. May 1990. Atiu's coral reef grows directly from the shoreline and encircles the island. Eruptions from an undersea volcano have raised the inner portion of the reef to form these cliffs.

#hiking #tropicalisland
It is very late in the afternoon. The partly cloudy sky has patches of light blue, with low clouds and fog along the horizon. To the right is the blue green ocean, graying in the fading light. A low point of land is just visible through that low cloud. To the left are rugged naked brown fossilized coral sea cliffs, almost vertical, dozens of feet (20-30 meters) high. A rock of the same material is just offshore. Although the cliff faces are barren, there is lush green ground cover growing right up to the edge at the top, with green shrubs and trees growing from it starting a few feet (1-2 meters) in. The tall, slender trees are swaying gracefully in an onshore breeze.
December 1, 2025 at 4:49 PM