Edmund's Path and Crawford Path, June 8

forestgnome · Jun 9, 2008

Beautiful day! Edmund's Path needs some attention for many blowdowns. The side paths happened real fast on this busy trail.

Flowers now in bloom along this trail include bluebead lilly, bunchberry, rose twisted stalk and this, which I can't ID...

The closest I can find is kidney-leaf buttercup. The flower looks right, but the leaves and habitat do not.

Also unknown is this...

bluebead lilly...

foam flower and ferns...

This pileated woodpecker was on the ground, pecking into the dirt. He might have been working the roots of the tree.

On the way up I heard winter wrens, blackpole warblers, darkeyed juncos, hermit thrush, wood thrush(I think), Swainson's thrush, whitethroated sparrows. It was a symphony!

Up on the ridge, the wind was strong and welcome as I changed into dry socks, shirt and skivies. Refreshed, I headed north along the ridge. Here's a view of the summit of Mt. Eisenhower...

Lots of lapland rosebay and diapensia is now in bloom...

continued...

forestgnome · Jun 9, 2008

I met Kate, the very nice caretaker at Mizpah Hut. She said she heard Bicknell's Thrush over on Mt. Jackson.

Here's a view south from just below the high plateau, south of Mt. Franklin...

and a view north from the plateau...

a view southeast from the slope of Mt. Franklin...

Uh-oh...I forgot the sunblock and it's starting to tingle. After a nice nap on Mt. Franklin, I hiked over Little Monroe and Mt. Monroe. Beautiful views everywhere.

Some youths were sliding on saucers down a small patch of snow over in an area that is closed to all entry. I wondered how they got over there without trampling on alpine flora because there were no rocks. I wondered how they missed the signs forbidding enrty. I watched as they walked around on the mats of sedges and flowers and I could hear the dry crunch. They were "whoohooing" so loud they got lots of looks. I cringed and considered going down to the LOC hut to report it. I hiked down to the Crawford Path and decided against reporting them at the hut, and just hiked south. I was shooting some nice alpine azaleas when I noticed them walking out toward the path, right toward the "no entry" signs. Then I noticed they weren't carrying snow saucers, they were cooking pots and pans. It was the AMC hut crew. Unbeleivable. I'll report to FS instead. (This is just a TR. Please, no drift to this topic on this thread.)

This azalea was in a safer place, next to the trail...

A welcomed cloudcover eventually overspread the area as I sloooooooooowly made my way back toward Edmund's Path.

Reluctantly, I started down from the ridge, but I was pleasantly surprised to hear two Bicknell's Thrushes at a point where a large cascade crosses the trail, a few hundred yards below the ridge. I heard them call and sing repeatedly for about five minutes, just downslope from the trail. That was exciting! I'm happy to know that I could ID this bird without any doubt. It was a wonderful way to finish the hike.

Driving home over Bear Notch to the Kancamagus, I saw Big Daddy again ( a moose that I've seen over the years). He had a lean winter, but he has already beefed up since I saw him two weeks ago.

Another wonderful day of summer hiking!!!

happy trails

rocket21 · Jun 9, 2008

You take more good photos in a single day than I do in a month! Great trip report!

MattC · Jun 9, 2008

Terrific pics as always. I really want to get back over there to the Whites again one of these days. The second picture is Fringed Polygala.http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=fringed+polygala&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2.

Matt