>>2278212The last time, and only time, I was in an alpine zone area hiking (only time I think), it started raining sideways, 45F or so, very windy, early September. We had to stay in our tents, then turned around (we were in a pass along a saddle I think).
It's not that it doesn't suck if it starts raining below the treeline, but it is MUCH less dangerous/bad.
I get it, above the treeline you can see much further, but I like the feeling of being surrounded by dense trees and i don't find dry barren rocks and snow as visually interesting as the interplay of different hardwoods.
There's lots of places with alpine zones, there's not so many places that have a lot of moisture, a temperate climate, and a variety of hardwoods in a mountainous environment. It is more special.
Also, eastern mountains have a lot of sub alpine zones, which is nice, but I think the area just below that, with the densest mix of hardwoods because of the moisture capture due to orographic lift is the prettiest to hike in.
