BIGEarl
Well-known member
March 31, 2012: Whiteface & Passaconaway
Trails: Blueberry Ledge Trail, Rollins Trail, Dicey’s Mill Trail
Summits: Whiteface and Passaconaway
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
A while back, Sue sent a list of monthly suggestions for finishing peaks to me. Her suggestion for March was Whiteface & Passaconaway. It’s the end of March and we’re hiking Whiteface & Passaconaway. This one will finish our grid month hiking for March.
We arrived to the Ferncroft trailhead to find a small number of vehicles already there. While we were preparing to set off, a few more vehicles with hikers arrived. One fellow that was hiking solo recognized us and stopped for a brief visit. Soon, we were ready and took our place on the Whiteface & Passaconaway loop.
The lower Blueberry Ledge Trail is clear of all snow and very dry. The relocated sections appear to have accomplished what they were intended for; get the trail out of the wet and muddy areas. The new sections have not been blazed yet but I assume that will be done this year and after a little more use the trail will be well established. Another new feature we found since our last time through the area is at the upper junction of Blueberry Ledge Cutoff and Blueberry Ledge Trail. Instead of an A-frame sign on the ledge there is an actual sign post along with a string of cairns leading from it to the place where the cutoff exits the open ledge. To me these are all good changes.
We continued on bare ground until the trail went back into the conifers and then the trail was again snow and ice-covered. A little higher the trail again broke into open hardwoods and was again clear of snow and ice. I’m guessing a couple more weeks of conditions like we’ve been enjoying recently and the trails will be clear, at least on Whiteface and Passaconaway.
A short distance above the Tom Wiggin trail junction we stopped and Sue commented about hearing voices up ahead. We continued up toward the ledge scrambles and just below the first section of ledge we met a group that had set off ahead of us, now on their way down. I’m not sure if they only intended to hike Whiteface or if the icy ledges stopped them. They did not appear very well equipped for the potential icy conditions.
Sue and I continued to the first section of ledge and stopped to enjoy the views of Squam and Winnipesaukee before starting the climb. The first ledge section is usually the most difficult for me. Because of the ice on the ledge we needed to modify our approach slightly. In no time we were on top of the first obstacle heading for the second. Slowly the ice cover on the ledges increased and eventually reached the point where we needed to pull out the MicroSpikes. They did the job. We were able to make our way up through the remaining scrambles without any real problems along the way. The weather conditions improved quite a bit from our start and we were enjoying sunny conditions on the climb and the views were outstanding at each viewpoint.
Soon we were arriving to a completely vacant Whiteface South Summit; we had the place to ourselves. As I approached the opening to step out to the summit area I commented about the sticky snow. It wasn’t long before Sue was making a Whiteface snowman. I decided it was a good opportunity for a little fuel and had a snack.
With the snowman distraction done we continued on Rollins Trail to Whiteface. On the way we started to run into an increased amount of ice on the trail. Nearly all of it was hidden by the recent snow. This created a difficult condition on the trail. We were always on-guard for a slip or fall. We reached Whiteface without incident, got the usual summit pictures, and continued for the hike around The Bowl. Leaving Whiteface there are several steep sections to get through. Descending on ice is much more difficult than ascending. Eventually, Sue paid the price with a hard fall. All at once her feet shot out from underneath her and she was completely airborne before crashing down on her back. Fortunately, Sue’s pack took the majority of the impact. A while later I enjoyed a similar experience; instead of landing on my back it was my left side.
I believe the ice wasn’t exclusively the problem. There was enough loose snow cover that it would compress underneath our boots and keep the points of the MicroSpikes from reaching the hard surface and providing traction. We had little trouble when crossing clear ice. Roughly mid-way along the Rollins Trail we met a very friendly black Lab, and its hiking companions. The fellow, Tim, recognized us and made the introductions. He was hiking with Cynthia (I hope the spelling is correct). They warned us of the ice up ahead, and we did the same to them. A short time after we continued on, Sue and I came to an ice bulge that we didn’t want to try on anything less than full crampons (in fact, I had been thinking about crampons for a while at that point). Anybody hiking Rollins trail in the next couple weeks will know it when they see it. The bypass is on the uphill side and it is rapidly turning into a herd path.
We made it to the junction with Dicey’s Mill Trail, made the left turn, and headed for the summit of Passaconaway. Very soon after starting up Dicey’s Mill Trail we were back on ice, lots of ice. At a small section of ledge there’s a huge ice bulge completely filling the trail. When ascending, bypass to the right; again, a herd path is developing.
There were no more real obstacles to our hike. We made our way to the switchbacks and on to the steep pitch to the summit with no problems at all. When we reached the ledge viewpoint near the summit we found beautiful sunny conditions with terrific views. The conditions were warm and there was no wind. Sue decided it was an ideal time for the summit cookies.
After the cookies we wandered to the summit for pictures and our #48 of 48 checkmark wrapping up grid hiking for March. Our Grid finish continues. Actually, the checkmarks weren’t any good until we walked back to the trailhead. So, we u-turned and walked back to the trailhead.
The hike out had no surprises at all. We descended back through the ice we worked our way through above Rollins Trail. Below the trails junction, hiking conditions slowly improved. Eventually we found more clear trail than any other kind and retired the MicroSpikes. Soon we passed the old mill site, Sue crossed the stream on a large blowdown stretching across the stream while I used a rock-hop approach, and we cruised to the parking area. There was some mud near the site of the old mill but it wasn’t bad and easy to get past.
Thanks Sue for a fun hike to Whiteface & Passaconaway. March is done and our March list is done as well.
Now it’s on to April.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Blueberry Ledge Trail, Rollins Trail, Dicey’s Mill Trail
Summits: Whiteface and Passaconaway
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
A while back, Sue sent a list of monthly suggestions for finishing peaks to me. Her suggestion for March was Whiteface & Passaconaway. It’s the end of March and we’re hiking Whiteface & Passaconaway. This one will finish our grid month hiking for March.
We arrived to the Ferncroft trailhead to find a small number of vehicles already there. While we were preparing to set off, a few more vehicles with hikers arrived. One fellow that was hiking solo recognized us and stopped for a brief visit. Soon, we were ready and took our place on the Whiteface & Passaconaway loop.
The lower Blueberry Ledge Trail is clear of all snow and very dry. The relocated sections appear to have accomplished what they were intended for; get the trail out of the wet and muddy areas. The new sections have not been blazed yet but I assume that will be done this year and after a little more use the trail will be well established. Another new feature we found since our last time through the area is at the upper junction of Blueberry Ledge Cutoff and Blueberry Ledge Trail. Instead of an A-frame sign on the ledge there is an actual sign post along with a string of cairns leading from it to the place where the cutoff exits the open ledge. To me these are all good changes.
We continued on bare ground until the trail went back into the conifers and then the trail was again snow and ice-covered. A little higher the trail again broke into open hardwoods and was again clear of snow and ice. I’m guessing a couple more weeks of conditions like we’ve been enjoying recently and the trails will be clear, at least on Whiteface and Passaconaway.
A short distance above the Tom Wiggin trail junction we stopped and Sue commented about hearing voices up ahead. We continued up toward the ledge scrambles and just below the first section of ledge we met a group that had set off ahead of us, now on their way down. I’m not sure if they only intended to hike Whiteface or if the icy ledges stopped them. They did not appear very well equipped for the potential icy conditions.
Sue and I continued to the first section of ledge and stopped to enjoy the views of Squam and Winnipesaukee before starting the climb. The first ledge section is usually the most difficult for me. Because of the ice on the ledge we needed to modify our approach slightly. In no time we were on top of the first obstacle heading for the second. Slowly the ice cover on the ledges increased and eventually reached the point where we needed to pull out the MicroSpikes. They did the job. We were able to make our way up through the remaining scrambles without any real problems along the way. The weather conditions improved quite a bit from our start and we were enjoying sunny conditions on the climb and the views were outstanding at each viewpoint.
Soon we were arriving to a completely vacant Whiteface South Summit; we had the place to ourselves. As I approached the opening to step out to the summit area I commented about the sticky snow. It wasn’t long before Sue was making a Whiteface snowman. I decided it was a good opportunity for a little fuel and had a snack.
With the snowman distraction done we continued on Rollins Trail to Whiteface. On the way we started to run into an increased amount of ice on the trail. Nearly all of it was hidden by the recent snow. This created a difficult condition on the trail. We were always on-guard for a slip or fall. We reached Whiteface without incident, got the usual summit pictures, and continued for the hike around The Bowl. Leaving Whiteface there are several steep sections to get through. Descending on ice is much more difficult than ascending. Eventually, Sue paid the price with a hard fall. All at once her feet shot out from underneath her and she was completely airborne before crashing down on her back. Fortunately, Sue’s pack took the majority of the impact. A while later I enjoyed a similar experience; instead of landing on my back it was my left side.
I believe the ice wasn’t exclusively the problem. There was enough loose snow cover that it would compress underneath our boots and keep the points of the MicroSpikes from reaching the hard surface and providing traction. We had little trouble when crossing clear ice. Roughly mid-way along the Rollins Trail we met a very friendly black Lab, and its hiking companions. The fellow, Tim, recognized us and made the introductions. He was hiking with Cynthia (I hope the spelling is correct). They warned us of the ice up ahead, and we did the same to them. A short time after we continued on, Sue and I came to an ice bulge that we didn’t want to try on anything less than full crampons (in fact, I had been thinking about crampons for a while at that point). Anybody hiking Rollins trail in the next couple weeks will know it when they see it. The bypass is on the uphill side and it is rapidly turning into a herd path.
We made it to the junction with Dicey’s Mill Trail, made the left turn, and headed for the summit of Passaconaway. Very soon after starting up Dicey’s Mill Trail we were back on ice, lots of ice. At a small section of ledge there’s a huge ice bulge completely filling the trail. When ascending, bypass to the right; again, a herd path is developing.
There were no more real obstacles to our hike. We made our way to the switchbacks and on to the steep pitch to the summit with no problems at all. When we reached the ledge viewpoint near the summit we found beautiful sunny conditions with terrific views. The conditions were warm and there was no wind. Sue decided it was an ideal time for the summit cookies.
After the cookies we wandered to the summit for pictures and our #48 of 48 checkmark wrapping up grid hiking for March. Our Grid finish continues. Actually, the checkmarks weren’t any good until we walked back to the trailhead. So, we u-turned and walked back to the trailhead.
The hike out had no surprises at all. We descended back through the ice we worked our way through above Rollins Trail. Below the trails junction, hiking conditions slowly improved. Eventually we found more clear trail than any other kind and retired the MicroSpikes. Soon we passed the old mill site, Sue crossed the stream on a large blowdown stretching across the stream while I used a rock-hop approach, and we cruised to the parking area. There was some mud near the site of the old mill but it wasn’t bad and easy to get past.
Thanks Sue for a fun hike to Whiteface & Passaconaway. March is done and our March list is done as well.
Now it’s on to April.
Pictures will follow.
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