BIGEarl
Well-known member
March 7, 2014: Hale
Trails: North Twin Trail, Fire Warden’s Trail, and a couple herd paths.
Summits: Hale
Hikers: Jessica Davis and me
With plans for a larger hike on Saturday, the Friday choice was intentionally a smaller hike. Mount Hale was a target on both of our lists making it an ideal hike for the day; Friday was an ideal day for the hike.
The day started at the Hannah Dustin Park & Ride where Jessica and I met, piled my things into her car, and took off for Twin Mountain. The day’s weather forecast was terrific. We were both looking forward to hiking the old Fire Warden’s Trail to Mount Hale. We drove to the end of Little River Road and found a couple vehicles already there. We only needed a few minutes to take care of final hike prep and get moving.
Recent reports indicated we would be able to complete the hike on light traction with no trail damage and that was our approach. Light traction did the job. We stayed on the packed trail and had no postholing at all.
What a terrific way to hike Mount Hale! We made our way through the early herd path leading to the trailhead for North Twin Trail at the end of Haystack Road. From there it was North Twin Trail to the first crossing of Little River. This one was going to be a lot like walking on a sidewalk. The trail was smooth, solid, and no ice. A short distance before reaching the second crossing of Little River we came to the junction with Fire Warden’s Trail, made the turn, and headed for the summit.
The lower part of the trail stays in open hardwoods and for a large portion passes through an open birch glade. On our way through the glade there were signs of skier activity but it was old and mostly snowed in. The trail was tracked out, solid, and with almost no postholes at all. Clearly, the others that had recently visited the area were careful to protect the trail from needless damage. Eventually we left the birch glade and made our way into the conifers at the upper elevations.
Even though there are generally no markings, the trail corridor is wide open to the summit and very easy to follow. High on Mount Hale, Fire Warden’s Trail has a couple places where views to Mount Washington can be enjoyed; we got a few pictures on our way through. Soon we were on Final approach to the summit.
With mostly clear sky, lots of sun, and no wind we arrived to the summit clearing. The final entry to the summit clearing was a little different from past visits, but it went to the same place. Soon we were at the large cairn, enjoying the day, and getting summit pictures to record the visit.
After a short break it was time to head back. Our exit hike was simply the reverse of our hike to the summit. We were able to move along without any worries about ice and poor footing. Soon we were back to North Twin Trail and then stepping onto Little River Road. We saw a few people early in the day headed to The Twins. On our way out we met one skier and a solo hiker planning to do the same hike. That was it for the day; pretty quiet considering the outstanding conditions.
Soon we had our things packed into Jessica’s car and were on the highway for the Park & Ride lot.
Thanks Jessica for a terrific day in the mountains. Days like this one are easy to remember and I’ll be enjoying our visit to Mount Hale for a while.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: North Twin Trail, Fire Warden’s Trail, and a couple herd paths.
Summits: Hale
Hikers: Jessica Davis and me
With plans for a larger hike on Saturday, the Friday choice was intentionally a smaller hike. Mount Hale was a target on both of our lists making it an ideal hike for the day; Friday was an ideal day for the hike.
The day started at the Hannah Dustin Park & Ride where Jessica and I met, piled my things into her car, and took off for Twin Mountain. The day’s weather forecast was terrific. We were both looking forward to hiking the old Fire Warden’s Trail to Mount Hale. We drove to the end of Little River Road and found a couple vehicles already there. We only needed a few minutes to take care of final hike prep and get moving.
Recent reports indicated we would be able to complete the hike on light traction with no trail damage and that was our approach. Light traction did the job. We stayed on the packed trail and had no postholing at all.
What a terrific way to hike Mount Hale! We made our way through the early herd path leading to the trailhead for North Twin Trail at the end of Haystack Road. From there it was North Twin Trail to the first crossing of Little River. This one was going to be a lot like walking on a sidewalk. The trail was smooth, solid, and no ice. A short distance before reaching the second crossing of Little River we came to the junction with Fire Warden’s Trail, made the turn, and headed for the summit.
The lower part of the trail stays in open hardwoods and for a large portion passes through an open birch glade. On our way through the glade there were signs of skier activity but it was old and mostly snowed in. The trail was tracked out, solid, and with almost no postholes at all. Clearly, the others that had recently visited the area were careful to protect the trail from needless damage. Eventually we left the birch glade and made our way into the conifers at the upper elevations.
Even though there are generally no markings, the trail corridor is wide open to the summit and very easy to follow. High on Mount Hale, Fire Warden’s Trail has a couple places where views to Mount Washington can be enjoyed; we got a few pictures on our way through. Soon we were on Final approach to the summit.
With mostly clear sky, lots of sun, and no wind we arrived to the summit clearing. The final entry to the summit clearing was a little different from past visits, but it went to the same place. Soon we were at the large cairn, enjoying the day, and getting summit pictures to record the visit.
After a short break it was time to head back. Our exit hike was simply the reverse of our hike to the summit. We were able to move along without any worries about ice and poor footing. Soon we were back to North Twin Trail and then stepping onto Little River Road. We saw a few people early in the day headed to The Twins. On our way out we met one skier and a solo hiker planning to do the same hike. That was it for the day; pretty quiet considering the outstanding conditions.
Soon we had our things packed into Jessica’s car and were on the highway for the Park & Ride lot.
Thanks Jessica for a terrific day in the mountains. Days like this one are easy to remember and I’ll be enjoying our visit to Mount Hale for a while.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
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