BIGEarl
Well-known member
March 1, 2014: Lincoln, Lafayette
Trails: Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path
Summits: Lincoln, Lafayette (plus Little Haystack and Truman)
Hikers: Jessica Davis, Summerset Banks, Kathleen “Katie” Kirby, Jeff Tyler, and me
This one got a lot of extra prep time with the various weather sites. The main concerns were temperature, snow, and wind. As we got closer to mid-week it seemed obvious a couple weather sources were probably really missing the mark on the weather system that was moving through the area and I focused on the various NOAA-NWS sources. The first concern was our starting temperature and how quickly a warm-up would occur. The overnight low came in well below zero. At hike time, the National Weather Service (NWS) history shows the street level temperature to have been -9 degrees (our starting temperature). The NWS Hourly Weather Graph predicted a warm-up to zero by ~9:30am at street level and ~10:30 at roughly 4000 feet. The snow showers that had been in the forecast for the afternoon moved to the following day. The wind level dropped to 15 – 25 mph at the upper elevations of our hike. Everything looked acceptable.
We all arrived at the trailhead nearly together even though we were split between two vehicles. Katie pulled in right behind us having traveled from Vermont. We quickly went through the introductions, took care of final prep, and started out. Each of us used light traction for the full hike. It was cold and I think we all had extra layers on from the start. Somehow I landed in an unfamiliar place, the front of the line. That’s generally where I stayed all day.
Due to the forecast concerning wind conditions we decided to hike the loop counterclockwise; ascending to the ridge via Falling Waters Trail (FWT), then north on Franconia Ridge Trail (FRT), and finally our exit hike on Greenleaf Trail and Old Bridle Path (OBP).
We generally settled into a steady pace from the start and made our way to the FWT-OBP trails split. We went right and headed for the ridge. Along the way we made our way past the three main falls. Somewhere between Stairs Falls and Swiftwater Falls we made a stop to de-layer. I think we were all really overheating. The change was temporary; layers would come back out for the ridge. Finally we came to Cloudland Falls. There was a fairly steep pitch to climb along the north side of the falls and above the falls was the only real ice test for the day. We made it through this area with no problems and were soon hiking the switchbacks to Shining Rock Spur. Stopping as needed we slowly made our way to the spur. From there to the ridge is a short but steep .4 miles. We could hear wind noise at the spur junction but were still enjoying relatively calm conditions. We had quick refreshment and were soon climbing the final section to FRT.
Along this final stretch another couple came up from behind and we let them pass. Soon the trees got short, and very soon after that they were gone. Up ahead was the sign post for Franconia Ridge Trail on the summit of Little Haystack. By now the wind was hitting pretty hard and we found shelter amongst the rocks to layer up. I’m not sure what the others did but I pulled out the layer retired near Swiftwater Falls and added a shell to it. With that combination I was good for the cold and wind.
The National Weather Service had predicted by late morning for the wind to be shifted to southwest and an intensity of roughly 25 mph. That’s not quite what we were enjoying. The wind was still out of the west. Based on weather history from the day, it appears the wind speed we experienced was actually 35 to 40 miles per hour. The wind was steady with very little gusting. The forecast predicted a non-gusty wind (they got that part right). We all had appropriate gear for the conditions and were actually able to stand around for short periods of time without a problem. As we hiked north on FRT there are a number of places along the way where we could hide from the wind.
A little over half-way to Lincoln we came into an area called The Gargoyles. Here we were able to find calm conditions amongst the rocks and relax for a couple minutes. All of these breaks were probably more for my benefit but everyone seemed to enjoy some occasional relief from the persistent wind. We made the final climb to Lincoln and managed to organize a couple summit pictures and view shots before continuing north.
Soon we were on our way to Lafayette. There is a speed bump to clear known as Truman, which is also a location for a good approach picture to Lafayette. Most of the traffic was heading straight off the north side of Truman but there was quite a bit of ice and I thought exiting to the east, a common route in summer might be better. I led to the right, we all made our way down, and were soon heading on final approach to Lafayette.
As we climbed to the summit, the wind increased. By the time we hit the summit of Lafayette we were experiencing the maximum wind for the day. It was strong but steady and easy to work with. We found another gentleman there that helped with a group picture. After a few minutes we had the summit picture and view pictures out of the way; it was time to descend out of the wind.
There is one place a short distance below the summit that I was concerned about. It is usually a difficult area of ice that the trail crosses. Last winter on a couple ascents I completely avoided the ice with a more direct approach from the west instead of the usual northwest. This time we stayed with the route of the trail. In the area of concern there was little ice and mostly crusty snow. I worked the edges at first but the others were heading straight across. Eventually, I joined the party and we all cut straight across the icy section and had no problems along the way. Soon we were around to the west side of the summit cone and headed for the hut. We still had to be cautious in the small areas of ice. Eventually we were off the very steep terrain and on a milder slope. Then we were back in the scrub. Finally we were at the hut taking a break, having a snack, and enjoying the scenery in milder conditions. We still had wind but it was way down in its intensity.
Break done we headed down OBP and Agony Ridge. The trail has several very steep sections as we descended the ridge but I believe we all stayed upright for the full descent. Low on Agony Ridge there are a couple very nice viewpoints that offer views back to Lafayette and Lincoln over Walker Ravine. We stopped to enjoy the views, rest, and get some pictures. Soon we were back on our exit hike. The trail was smooth and fast with nearly no ice at all. We were able to hike along at any pace. We enjoyed a fast cruise back to the FWT-OBP trails split and then the short walk to the trailhead.
Roughly an hour and a half earlier than planned we were back to the trailhead. The day was full of terrific accomplishments.
Lincoln & Lafayette were the first winter NH4K summits for Jeff. These were also the first winter NH4K summits for Katie. What a great way for both Jeff and Katie to start their winter NH4K lists! Congratulations to both of you.
Lincoln and Lafayette represent #28 and #29 for Jessica’s winter NH4K completion.
Summerset took out two tough ones for her March Grid.
I got a couple more off my March list, in a couple places.
Everybody is a winner! Nobody leaves empty-handed.
Seriously, congratulations to everybody. I’m pretty sure we all are walking away with some very nice memories to enjoy. Personally, I can’t wait to go again.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path
Summits: Lincoln, Lafayette (plus Little Haystack and Truman)
Hikers: Jessica Davis, Summerset Banks, Kathleen “Katie” Kirby, Jeff Tyler, and me
This one got a lot of extra prep time with the various weather sites. The main concerns were temperature, snow, and wind. As we got closer to mid-week it seemed obvious a couple weather sources were probably really missing the mark on the weather system that was moving through the area and I focused on the various NOAA-NWS sources. The first concern was our starting temperature and how quickly a warm-up would occur. The overnight low came in well below zero. At hike time, the National Weather Service (NWS) history shows the street level temperature to have been -9 degrees (our starting temperature). The NWS Hourly Weather Graph predicted a warm-up to zero by ~9:30am at street level and ~10:30 at roughly 4000 feet. The snow showers that had been in the forecast for the afternoon moved to the following day. The wind level dropped to 15 – 25 mph at the upper elevations of our hike. Everything looked acceptable.
We all arrived at the trailhead nearly together even though we were split between two vehicles. Katie pulled in right behind us having traveled from Vermont. We quickly went through the introductions, took care of final prep, and started out. Each of us used light traction for the full hike. It was cold and I think we all had extra layers on from the start. Somehow I landed in an unfamiliar place, the front of the line. That’s generally where I stayed all day.
Due to the forecast concerning wind conditions we decided to hike the loop counterclockwise; ascending to the ridge via Falling Waters Trail (FWT), then north on Franconia Ridge Trail (FRT), and finally our exit hike on Greenleaf Trail and Old Bridle Path (OBP).
We generally settled into a steady pace from the start and made our way to the FWT-OBP trails split. We went right and headed for the ridge. Along the way we made our way past the three main falls. Somewhere between Stairs Falls and Swiftwater Falls we made a stop to de-layer. I think we were all really overheating. The change was temporary; layers would come back out for the ridge. Finally we came to Cloudland Falls. There was a fairly steep pitch to climb along the north side of the falls and above the falls was the only real ice test for the day. We made it through this area with no problems and were soon hiking the switchbacks to Shining Rock Spur. Stopping as needed we slowly made our way to the spur. From there to the ridge is a short but steep .4 miles. We could hear wind noise at the spur junction but were still enjoying relatively calm conditions. We had quick refreshment and were soon climbing the final section to FRT.
Along this final stretch another couple came up from behind and we let them pass. Soon the trees got short, and very soon after that they were gone. Up ahead was the sign post for Franconia Ridge Trail on the summit of Little Haystack. By now the wind was hitting pretty hard and we found shelter amongst the rocks to layer up. I’m not sure what the others did but I pulled out the layer retired near Swiftwater Falls and added a shell to it. With that combination I was good for the cold and wind.
The National Weather Service had predicted by late morning for the wind to be shifted to southwest and an intensity of roughly 25 mph. That’s not quite what we were enjoying. The wind was still out of the west. Based on weather history from the day, it appears the wind speed we experienced was actually 35 to 40 miles per hour. The wind was steady with very little gusting. The forecast predicted a non-gusty wind (they got that part right). We all had appropriate gear for the conditions and were actually able to stand around for short periods of time without a problem. As we hiked north on FRT there are a number of places along the way where we could hide from the wind.
A little over half-way to Lincoln we came into an area called The Gargoyles. Here we were able to find calm conditions amongst the rocks and relax for a couple minutes. All of these breaks were probably more for my benefit but everyone seemed to enjoy some occasional relief from the persistent wind. We made the final climb to Lincoln and managed to organize a couple summit pictures and view shots before continuing north.
Soon we were on our way to Lafayette. There is a speed bump to clear known as Truman, which is also a location for a good approach picture to Lafayette. Most of the traffic was heading straight off the north side of Truman but there was quite a bit of ice and I thought exiting to the east, a common route in summer might be better. I led to the right, we all made our way down, and were soon heading on final approach to Lafayette.
As we climbed to the summit, the wind increased. By the time we hit the summit of Lafayette we were experiencing the maximum wind for the day. It was strong but steady and easy to work with. We found another gentleman there that helped with a group picture. After a few minutes we had the summit picture and view pictures out of the way; it was time to descend out of the wind.
There is one place a short distance below the summit that I was concerned about. It is usually a difficult area of ice that the trail crosses. Last winter on a couple ascents I completely avoided the ice with a more direct approach from the west instead of the usual northwest. This time we stayed with the route of the trail. In the area of concern there was little ice and mostly crusty snow. I worked the edges at first but the others were heading straight across. Eventually, I joined the party and we all cut straight across the icy section and had no problems along the way. Soon we were around to the west side of the summit cone and headed for the hut. We still had to be cautious in the small areas of ice. Eventually we were off the very steep terrain and on a milder slope. Then we were back in the scrub. Finally we were at the hut taking a break, having a snack, and enjoying the scenery in milder conditions. We still had wind but it was way down in its intensity.
Break done we headed down OBP and Agony Ridge. The trail has several very steep sections as we descended the ridge but I believe we all stayed upright for the full descent. Low on Agony Ridge there are a couple very nice viewpoints that offer views back to Lafayette and Lincoln over Walker Ravine. We stopped to enjoy the views, rest, and get some pictures. Soon we were back on our exit hike. The trail was smooth and fast with nearly no ice at all. We were able to hike along at any pace. We enjoyed a fast cruise back to the FWT-OBP trails split and then the short walk to the trailhead.
Roughly an hour and a half earlier than planned we were back to the trailhead. The day was full of terrific accomplishments.
Lincoln & Lafayette were the first winter NH4K summits for Jeff. These were also the first winter NH4K summits for Katie. What a great way for both Jeff and Katie to start their winter NH4K lists! Congratulations to both of you.
Lincoln and Lafayette represent #28 and #29 for Jessica’s winter NH4K completion.
Summerset took out two tough ones for her March Grid.
I got a couple more off my March list, in a couple places.
Everybody is a winner! Nobody leaves empty-handed.
Seriously, congratulations to everybody. I’m pretty sure we all are walking away with some very nice memories to enjoy. Personally, I can’t wait to go again.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
