BIGEarl
Well-known member
October 27, 2012: Washington to Eisenhower Loop
Trails: Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, Crawford Path, Mt. Eisenhower Loop, Edmands Path
Summits: Washington (Oct. #47), Monroe, Franklin, and Eisenhower (Oct. #48)
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
We only had one hike day remaining in October, but we only needed one to finish our Grid hikes for the month. The forecast looked good for a day above the treeline in the Presidentials. Since we had some time pressure to finish early, we started early. Starting early isn’t unusual for us.
At the trailhead lot there were only a couple other vehicles already in the lot and one other hiker was finishing his prep for the day. Sue and I set off first but soon the solo hiker blew by headed in the same general direction. It’s nice when the cobwebs have been cleared from the early-morning trail and our solo friend did a great job of clearing things out for us.
We enjoyed an easy walk to Gem Pool. The trail was clear but there was some mud along the way. Just like the previous weekend, there is a lot of water and mud everywhere. We paused at Gem Pool for a couple pictures of that pretty spot but generally kept chugging along. Gem Pool marked the start of the real climb. From Gem Pool to Lakes of the Clouds Hut is ~1 mile and ~1550 feet in elevation. It’s a good workout – at least for me. We made our way up the steepest portion reaching the top of the cascades above Gem Pool and stopped for a few more pictures. I wandered upstream to get a couple shots of the upper falls and on my return found the open slabs were really dangerously slick. They were wet with almost no traction. The open slabs leading to the top of the cascades had me thinking our exit was going to be interesting. Now, I was thinking we need to take another exit route. I mentioned this to Sue and we kept climbing.
The upper slabs between the falls and the hut were more of the same. I think it was near the hut when I asked Sue if Edmands Path would be an acceptable exit. The thought of descending the slabs didn’t make me feel very good.
We reached the hut with a lot more wind than predicted. Checking the weather history showed we were experiencing over twice the predicted wind level for the day. It wasn’t a huge amount of wind, we’ve been in much worse, but we hadn’t planned for it and needed to add a layer, or two. First, we made a quick stop in the dungeon for a snack, and then we adjusted our layers and headed for Washington.
The summit of Washington was in a fog bank. There would be no views from Washington on this day, but we were after the checkmark, not the view. We were also making our third viewless visit to the summit of Washington this year. Once we climbed into the fog bank visibility dropped to under two cairns at times. It was pretty thick. We could always see the next cairn and were never in danger of losing the trail. We climbed with an eye out for the next cairn. Eventually we reached a point where we noticed a couple summit structures roughly thirty yards away. We wandered over to the south side of the summit and the entry from Crawford Path.
We didn’t hang around for very long at all. We got a couple summit-in-fog pictures and started south. We knew once climbing back out of the summit fog bank we would have generally clear conditions to enjoy for the remainder of the hike. Roughly half-way down to the area of LOC Hut and Monroe Loop we were in the clear.
Our next target for the day was Monroe. We cruised past the LOC Hut for a second time and kept going south to Monroe Loop. Soon after making the turn and starting the climb we were on final approach to the summit area of Monroe. As we gained elevation we also gained wind speed. By the time we reached the summit we were again getting hit hard from the southeast. Another short stop and we were headed south for Eisenhower.
Along the way we came to a herd path that goes straight to Crawford Path instead of passing over little Monroe. Since we weren’t really interested in Little Monroe we took the herd path. We were headed south on Crawford Path when we reached the area of Franklin. At the spur to Franklin I asked Sue if she was interested and Sue said it didn’t matter either way. I made a wise remark and was immediately headed to Franklin. It’s my own fault. We made the small climb to Franklin, got a couple pictures at the summit cairn, and continued south back to Crawford Path. It’s a small side trip and we had the time.
Back to the reason we were there in the first place, we were again on Crawford Path and this time headed for October #48. There were others wandering the ridge, some headed north and others headed south (like us). We made our way to the junction with Edmands Path and then started the climb to Eisenhower’s summit from the north. This is my favorite approach to Eisenhower. The Eisenhower Loop Trail has terrific switchbacks on the north side. Before you know it you are well over half way to the summit and cruising mild terrain to the BIG cairn. Soon we were at the cairn getting pictures of our final October Grid Peak. All that was left for it to count was to walk back to the trailhead.
After some summit cookies that Sue brought for the celebration, we u-turned and headed down to Edmands Path and then down to the trailhead. Edmands Path has a lot of wet, muddy areas but we managed to get through all of it and stay upright. I’m not sure hiking down Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail would have ended the same way. A short distance from the trailhead we ran into Jeremy Clark cleaning out some water bars. Thanks Jeremy – you and the other volunteers do a great service to the hiking community. Your efforts make a positive difference and are really appreciated.
Soon we reached the trailhead for Edmands Path and set off on the final road walk back to the trailhead for Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail. It’s roughly 1.6 miles but we enjoyed a lift for the last half mile. A fellow hiker from Connecticut offered the assist – thanks Rick. At the trailhead we met Ed’n Lauky. We visited with Ed for a while and Lauky was stretched out on the front seat of their car. They hiked the Jewell to Ammonoosuc Ravine Loop. Descending Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail Ed found some slippery conditions on the slabs. Fortunately, there was no damage done in his fall. I’m glad we descended Edmands Path.
It was another really good day in the mountains. Thanks Sue.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, Crawford Path, Mt. Eisenhower Loop, Edmands Path
Summits: Washington (Oct. #47), Monroe, Franklin, and Eisenhower (Oct. #48)
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
We only had one hike day remaining in October, but we only needed one to finish our Grid hikes for the month. The forecast looked good for a day above the treeline in the Presidentials. Since we had some time pressure to finish early, we started early. Starting early isn’t unusual for us.
At the trailhead lot there were only a couple other vehicles already in the lot and one other hiker was finishing his prep for the day. Sue and I set off first but soon the solo hiker blew by headed in the same general direction. It’s nice when the cobwebs have been cleared from the early-morning trail and our solo friend did a great job of clearing things out for us.
We enjoyed an easy walk to Gem Pool. The trail was clear but there was some mud along the way. Just like the previous weekend, there is a lot of water and mud everywhere. We paused at Gem Pool for a couple pictures of that pretty spot but generally kept chugging along. Gem Pool marked the start of the real climb. From Gem Pool to Lakes of the Clouds Hut is ~1 mile and ~1550 feet in elevation. It’s a good workout – at least for me. We made our way up the steepest portion reaching the top of the cascades above Gem Pool and stopped for a few more pictures. I wandered upstream to get a couple shots of the upper falls and on my return found the open slabs were really dangerously slick. They were wet with almost no traction. The open slabs leading to the top of the cascades had me thinking our exit was going to be interesting. Now, I was thinking we need to take another exit route. I mentioned this to Sue and we kept climbing.
The upper slabs between the falls and the hut were more of the same. I think it was near the hut when I asked Sue if Edmands Path would be an acceptable exit. The thought of descending the slabs didn’t make me feel very good.
We reached the hut with a lot more wind than predicted. Checking the weather history showed we were experiencing over twice the predicted wind level for the day. It wasn’t a huge amount of wind, we’ve been in much worse, but we hadn’t planned for it and needed to add a layer, or two. First, we made a quick stop in the dungeon for a snack, and then we adjusted our layers and headed for Washington.
The summit of Washington was in a fog bank. There would be no views from Washington on this day, but we were after the checkmark, not the view. We were also making our third viewless visit to the summit of Washington this year. Once we climbed into the fog bank visibility dropped to under two cairns at times. It was pretty thick. We could always see the next cairn and were never in danger of losing the trail. We climbed with an eye out for the next cairn. Eventually we reached a point where we noticed a couple summit structures roughly thirty yards away. We wandered over to the south side of the summit and the entry from Crawford Path.
We didn’t hang around for very long at all. We got a couple summit-in-fog pictures and started south. We knew once climbing back out of the summit fog bank we would have generally clear conditions to enjoy for the remainder of the hike. Roughly half-way down to the area of LOC Hut and Monroe Loop we were in the clear.
Our next target for the day was Monroe. We cruised past the LOC Hut for a second time and kept going south to Monroe Loop. Soon after making the turn and starting the climb we were on final approach to the summit area of Monroe. As we gained elevation we also gained wind speed. By the time we reached the summit we were again getting hit hard from the southeast. Another short stop and we were headed south for Eisenhower.
Along the way we came to a herd path that goes straight to Crawford Path instead of passing over little Monroe. Since we weren’t really interested in Little Monroe we took the herd path. We were headed south on Crawford Path when we reached the area of Franklin. At the spur to Franklin I asked Sue if she was interested and Sue said it didn’t matter either way. I made a wise remark and was immediately headed to Franklin. It’s my own fault. We made the small climb to Franklin, got a couple pictures at the summit cairn, and continued south back to Crawford Path. It’s a small side trip and we had the time.
Back to the reason we were there in the first place, we were again on Crawford Path and this time headed for October #48. There were others wandering the ridge, some headed north and others headed south (like us). We made our way to the junction with Edmands Path and then started the climb to Eisenhower’s summit from the north. This is my favorite approach to Eisenhower. The Eisenhower Loop Trail has terrific switchbacks on the north side. Before you know it you are well over half way to the summit and cruising mild terrain to the BIG cairn. Soon we were at the cairn getting pictures of our final October Grid Peak. All that was left for it to count was to walk back to the trailhead.
After some summit cookies that Sue brought for the celebration, we u-turned and headed down to Edmands Path and then down to the trailhead. Edmands Path has a lot of wet, muddy areas but we managed to get through all of it and stay upright. I’m not sure hiking down Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail would have ended the same way. A short distance from the trailhead we ran into Jeremy Clark cleaning out some water bars. Thanks Jeremy – you and the other volunteers do a great service to the hiking community. Your efforts make a positive difference and are really appreciated.
Soon we reached the trailhead for Edmands Path and set off on the final road walk back to the trailhead for Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail. It’s roughly 1.6 miles but we enjoyed a lift for the last half mile. A fellow hiker from Connecticut offered the assist – thanks Rick. At the trailhead we met Ed’n Lauky. We visited with Ed for a while and Lauky was stretched out on the front seat of their car. They hiked the Jewell to Ammonoosuc Ravine Loop. Descending Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail Ed found some slippery conditions on the slabs. Fortunately, there was no damage done in his fall. I’m glad we descended Edmands Path.
It was another really good day in the mountains. Thanks Sue.
Pictures will follow.
