breaking trail

[proszach]

okay quick question: I've never had to break trail before, and it's looking like there will be a good chance that I will have to do just that this weekend. How much slower should I expect to go? How many more hours would I probably be adding onto, say, a 10 mile day hike?? Is 10 miles trail breaking even possible? Lemme know, my wise friends. Thanks!

 

[MadRiver]

Be afraid, be very afraid!

 

[vegematic]

It depends on how much snow you're breaking through (and how fit you are, if you are solo, how much you enjoy pain...) If you are planning to be breaking trail up in the Whites or Maine this weekend we are supposed to be getting a good dump of snow on top of the good dumping we got Tuesday. You may be breaking through a few feet of fresh stuff. Personally I would not be doing a 10-mile solo through that...maybe 2-4 miles, depending on terrain.

Find a group to hike with if you are set on a 10-miler. Have fun and be safe whatever you decide!
-vegematic

 

[TMax]

Of course we are all different, but when I'm breaking trail and traveling solo, even in moderate conditions, I can count on another 30% of time from what it usually takes me. I move slower and stop for rests/water/snacks more often. I drink LOTS more water cuz I'm really putting out a great deal more effort. I'm a fairly strong hiker and on a recent trail-breaking trip that was about 7 miles round trip (3000' elevation gain) it took me 6 hours. Have fun and be careful! And be prepared for the unexpected. There's nothing like getting caught in a spruce trap or finding a patch of ice under the snow or all-of-a-sudden dropping several feet into a drift !

 

[Peakbagr]

Snow depth, moisture content, slope gradient, floatation of your snoeshoes and your laden weight are all factors.
In demanding conditions, with 3 or 4 hikers, we change trailbreakers sometimes every 2-3 min, with the lead person stepping aside and filling in behind the train as it passes. This is for deep and heavy stuff on the steeps.
Fluffy snow or less of it, more often. If someone wants to break more 'cause they're feeling good, individuals can go longer. Its easy to burn out a frisky trailbreaker if left to do all the work, which can jeopardize the objective.

Mt Colvin from the Lake road in the summer is a couple of hours up at a moderate pace. 3 of in great shape took over 6 hours under deep heavy snow, sinking in 24" or more inches with stride.
This was a long way around the barn to say.....it depends.

 

[JohnL]

A few weeks ago I broke trail in about 16 inches or so of new fluffy snow. The first two miles took me two hours. Luckily, I was joined by two others at that point and the next mile took three of us two hours. The snow was a lot deeper on the steeper sections of trail. Drifting, and there will be drifting especially up high, will add even more depth. Make sure you bring lots of fluids/food and extra batteries for your headlamp. It'll be a long day.

JohnL

 

[spider solo]

In deep snow I've certainly been slowed to 1/2 mile per hr.
Many a time 1 mile per hr on average.
In excellent conditions 2 miles per hr but that is usually a short section on a perfect day.
I love breaking trail and love setting down first tracks...not that I actually make my destination... often I'll try to pick a trail with various outlooks or side trips that can be destinations unto themselves.
If the snow is better than my intend route I'll opt for the good snow and see where it takes me.

yup I'm one of those..."it's the journey not the destination types"...you can spot them a mile away...tracks that go nowhere....

On the other hand, I will make multiple trips to break out a route that I've set my mind to...like the Baldfaces last year.

.oh ,one thing that I might bring after a heavy snowfall...a shovel... it can come in mighty handy if your flailing away and not making any progress.

 

[LittleBear]

Max and I broke trail back in February on our Tom - Field - Willey hike. Someone had gotten an early start up Tom, so that part of our hike was easy. The stretch between Tom and Field was unbroken and Max did the trail breaking duties - took us about an hour - but he was pretty burned out by the time we got to the summit. I took over for the stretch between Field and Willey. The snow was much deeper on this stretch and it was more like wading/swimming than walking. Certainly the word of the day was "patience." We had gone about 1/2 mile when another person came up behind us. Now we had 3 people to break trail and it made a huge difference. Still, it took us more than 2 hours to travel the 1.4 miles between the 2 peaks.

My first winter peak was several years ago and two of us hiked up Pine Bend Brook trail to North Tripyramid. 4 miles of unbroken trail and it took 6.5 hours to get to the summit! Return to the car only took 2.5 hours.

 

[Frodo]

LittleBear, I wonder who you were with that day? Actually that was a day I will remember for a long time... Personally, I feel the more difficuilt the hike, the more memorable it is...

As for trailbreaking, I agree with all of the comments. Heavilly drifted snow is by far the worst. Sometimes you have to just throw yourself right into them with your shoulder and struggle (with almost swimming like motion) to get thru...

It's also much easier to break trail going down hill