An incredible hike with friends for Meenu's 46. Meenu, Jeff, Sheley, Des, Roc, Mike and I headed out at just before 6 am, a little later than planned. We started at a good pace in the dark, wearing our spikes although there was no snow at the bottom - but it was only about 12 degrees so ice was inevitable. We made it to Marcy Dam in a little under an hour and shortly after it was getting light. And when the sun came up, it was a beautiful clear day - we couldn't have gotten luckier. It was a long trip up with various minor disasters, lots of ice and increasing snow, but everyone hung in there. The last little while some of us got a little angry at how far the summit still was "they should plant trees here so you can't see it and how far it is", and all the promises of "just 20 more minutes". We summitted at about 5 hours in, around 11 am. It was an emotional and wonderful moment as Meenu got to her 46th summit. We met some women who took our picture and cheered us on. Everyone refueled with a sandwich and then we took a celebratory shot of either Cafe Patron or Fireball, which warmed us up a bit and gave a little kick for the descent. The way down was faster in some spots (butt sliding) but overall slowed by being tired and a hurt knee and sore back in the group, but we kept going. Some of us finally took our spikes off to great relief. As usual the last miles were hard. I ran out the last 1.76 miles to get my run in, not really intending to run more than 15 minutes but i was afraid if I stopped I wouldn't be able to keep going. I finished at 4:37 pm and waited 15-20 minutes for the group with throbbing feet but a smile on my face. 10 hours 40 minutes and an experience with this group that we'll never forget. The best part was that we drove back to our AirBnB instead of all the way back home. And then there was the hot tub. And drinks. Meenu's #46, Jeff and Sheley working on round 2, Des and Roc #2, Mike #6 and my halfway point #23.