MikeB
Member
I'm usually jinxed when it comes to Franconia Notch - on many a hike it's been sunny everywhere else but when I get to the notch it's socked in with fog or rain. But Sunday was looking to be spectacular, and like Boston sports teams maybe my curse was finally to be lifted. Boy was it ever! Crystal clear, perfect temperature, and very windy. A quick hike up Mt. Hale the previous day was a black fly munch-a-thon, so the wind really was a blessing.
Parked at The Basin trailhead and saddled up Mia the Hikerdoodle. The quickest way to the Liberty Spring trail is along the bike path. The sign says no pets, but it was very early in the morning and I figured we wouldn't encounter any bikes. I short-leashed Mia just in case and had a quick jog to the trail (and didn't see a soul).
Took the Flume Slide trail up. It starts out as a really mellow forest walk, but I had forgotten just how steep and slippery it gets once you're on the slide. Even though it hadn't rained for two days there was still a fair amount of seepage keeping some of the rock/lichen wet and slick as ice. Mia is pretty good at rock scrambling, but was having some trouble on the slick spots - she'd bound up a rock face, almost make it but loose traction, flail, turn around and jump back down. Funny to watch, but after a few go arounds I tried to point her along better traction routes. That plus a few shove from behind "assists" and all was well.
I had a bit of a scare, though. On a short traverse across a ledge I must have misjudged my footing and suddenly found myself on all fours, trying not to slide off a 6-8 foot drop. To make matters worse Mia heard my exclamation and came back to "help," hit a slick spot and started sliding straight towards me. I had a vision of her crashing into me and us both tumbling off the ledge. Fortunately I managed to secure a good foot purchase, and Mia madly scrabbled to the side onto dry rock, so accident narrowly avoided. After the adrenalin rush subsided I kept thinking about the fellow who fell and broke his leg in Huntington Ravine the week before, and how, yeah, that could've happened to me. The rest of the climb up the slide was much more conservative.
Start of Flume Slide. It gets steep from here!
Looking back down the slide from the top.
Top of Mt. Flume. Liberty on the left, Lincoln and Lafayette to the right.
After reaching the summit of Mt. Flume the rest of the trip was pretty uneventful. Hiked along the Ridge trail to Lafayette. Didn't see many people until Haystack, then suddenly lots of people, either coming up from Greenleaf Hut or doing the Lincoln Lafayette loop.
Top of Mt. Liberty, with Cannon and Cannon Cliffs across Franconia Notch in the background.
Franconia Ridge Trail towards Mt. Lincoln.
Near the summit of Mt. Lincoln.
Mike and Mia at the top of Mt. Lincoln.
There were probably 20 - 30 people on top of Lafayette, huddle in various lees to get out of the wind, and pretty much a continuous conga line of folks hiking along the ridge. Lots of kids out with their dads for Father's Day, which was great to see. Lots of head pats and ear scratches to be had for Mia, and she tried hard not to mooch too much... Met a couple of other friendly mutts (including Emma!), and encountered a "dog jam" at a bend in the trail down to Greenleaf Hut.
Top of Mt. Lafayette. All down hill from here!
Headed down to Greenleaf Hut for a last rest and snack break, then down Old Bridle Path to Lafayette Place. Finally an easy two miles down Pemi Trail to get back to the Basin and the car. Took a little hunting around the Basin to figure out where the underpass was to get to the north-bound parking lot (hint - keep going south down the paved path).
All in all an awesome hike, and #22, 23, 24, and 25 for Mia. If I were to do it again I would probably park at Lafayette Place instead of The Basin - I would have appreciated the stroll along the Pemi more when I was fresh in the morning, instead of just looking forward to getting back to the car... Of course the car broke down on the way home due to squirrel sabotage (not at the trailhead), making for a very long day indeed, but that's another story!
Parked at The Basin trailhead and saddled up Mia the Hikerdoodle. The quickest way to the Liberty Spring trail is along the bike path. The sign says no pets, but it was very early in the morning and I figured we wouldn't encounter any bikes. I short-leashed Mia just in case and had a quick jog to the trail (and didn't see a soul).
Took the Flume Slide trail up. It starts out as a really mellow forest walk, but I had forgotten just how steep and slippery it gets once you're on the slide. Even though it hadn't rained for two days there was still a fair amount of seepage keeping some of the rock/lichen wet and slick as ice. Mia is pretty good at rock scrambling, but was having some trouble on the slick spots - she'd bound up a rock face, almost make it but loose traction, flail, turn around and jump back down. Funny to watch, but after a few go arounds I tried to point her along better traction routes. That plus a few shove from behind "assists" and all was well.
I had a bit of a scare, though. On a short traverse across a ledge I must have misjudged my footing and suddenly found myself on all fours, trying not to slide off a 6-8 foot drop. To make matters worse Mia heard my exclamation and came back to "help," hit a slick spot and started sliding straight towards me. I had a vision of her crashing into me and us both tumbling off the ledge. Fortunately I managed to secure a good foot purchase, and Mia madly scrabbled to the side onto dry rock, so accident narrowly avoided. After the adrenalin rush subsided I kept thinking about the fellow who fell and broke his leg in Huntington Ravine the week before, and how, yeah, that could've happened to me. The rest of the climb up the slide was much more conservative.
Start of Flume Slide. It gets steep from here!
Looking back down the slide from the top.
Top of Mt. Flume. Liberty on the left, Lincoln and Lafayette to the right.
After reaching the summit of Mt. Flume the rest of the trip was pretty uneventful. Hiked along the Ridge trail to Lafayette. Didn't see many people until Haystack, then suddenly lots of people, either coming up from Greenleaf Hut or doing the Lincoln Lafayette loop.
Top of Mt. Liberty, with Cannon and Cannon Cliffs across Franconia Notch in the background.
Franconia Ridge Trail towards Mt. Lincoln.
Near the summit of Mt. Lincoln.
Mike and Mia at the top of Mt. Lincoln.
There were probably 20 - 30 people on top of Lafayette, huddle in various lees to get out of the wind, and pretty much a continuous conga line of folks hiking along the ridge. Lots of kids out with their dads for Father's Day, which was great to see. Lots of head pats and ear scratches to be had for Mia, and she tried hard not to mooch too much... Met a couple of other friendly mutts (including Emma!), and encountered a "dog jam" at a bend in the trail down to Greenleaf Hut.
Top of Mt. Lafayette. All down hill from here!
Headed down to Greenleaf Hut for a last rest and snack break, then down Old Bridle Path to Lafayette Place. Finally an easy two miles down Pemi Trail to get back to the Basin and the car. Took a little hunting around the Basin to figure out where the underpass was to get to the north-bound parking lot (hint - keep going south down the paved path).
All in all an awesome hike, and #22, 23, 24, and 25 for Mia. If I were to do it again I would probably park at Lafayette Place instead of The Basin - I would have appreciated the stroll along the Pemi more when I was fresh in the morning, instead of just looking forward to getting back to the car... Of course the car broke down on the way home due to squirrel sabotage (not at the trailhead), making for a very long day indeed, but that's another story!
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