Autumn trails in New England

[carole]

While we wait for the snow to fall the season has its own difficulties and joys.

Difficult:
Hidden trail under foot with leaf cover
Slippery leaves
Ice patches hidden by leaves.
Acorn bombs and ball-bearings
Icy rocks in water crossings
Chilling winds
Glass ice that is often too thin for crampons
Waiting for the good snow cover

Joyous:
Less people
Pretty trail cover
More open views through trees
Crisp temps
No bugs
Distant views are not haze
Road closures haven’t happened yet
Enjoying a summit as the sun warms your face

 

[Grumpy]

bravo!

G.

 

[jrbren]

What is "the sun"

 

[jjo]

The plusses far outweigh the minuses IMHO. Interesting thought tho...

 

[carole]

Maybe we should just skip this and go to "Snow covered trails in Autumn"

Nah, I'm still thinking I'll get some more hikes in in shorts.

 

[forestgnome]

Excellent thread!

Joyous:
the smells of autumn
the pleasure of off-trail hiking after the fall of the leaves, before the snow
the glow inside the forest

 

[gaiagirl]

Maybe we should just skip this and go to "Snow covered trails in Autumn"

Nah, I'm still thinking I'll get some more hikes in in shorts.

From your lips to the weather gods' ears Carole!!!! Snow is great, but a few more days in shorts on the trail would be heavenly

 

[ken]

the smells of autumn the pleasure of off-trail hiking after the fall of the leaves, before the snow

Maybe we should just skip this and go to "Snow covered trails in Autumn"

start from the bottom (still plenty of fall colors in the valleys) for the best of fall - then get to the top of mt. washington and it is winter - the stuff is so deep it covers the the cog railway tracks (the cog was still running but not to the top, so we mooned the smelly, smokey thing) - clay & jefferson are also nicely covered in snow - once you get up there it is nice - frozen crust keeps you on top of everything (none of the usual pre-winter presidential rock hopping) - - if you go now you can have the best of both worlds...

 

[JohnL]

Three years ago we hiked up the Garfield Trail on the first weekend of November. It was a beautiful fall day and there was a couple inches of new snow on the ground. We made the first set of footprints in the new snow. On our return , we noticed that our footprints had been filled in and obliterated. Not by new snow but by falling leaves! The leaves had erased all traces of our passing. I've had my footprints wiped out by snow but this was the first time that leaves had done it.

Just another reason why hiking in the transition season can bring new wonders.

JohnL