The Feathered Hat
Active member
Trails: Ammonoosuc Ravine, Crawford Path, Gulfside, Jewell -- the classic westside loop up and over Washington.
Conditions: Wet, due to the weekend's showers and heavy cloud cover on Monday. The steep climb up the ART after Gem Pool and the ledges below the Lake of the Clouds were slick and required careful stepping. The lower portion of the Jewell also slick due to dampness -- slippery roots lurk beneath new fallen leaves.
There's one small new blowdown near the bottom of the ART, and a larger new blowdown within the bottom quarter of the Jewell, but both are easily negotiated. Creek crossings not a problem, though the crossing on the ART just below the main crossing at the top of the steep section might result in a wet boot -- the showers over the weekend caused the stream to overflow a couple of the usual stepping stones.
Comments: The ledges below the Lake of the Clouds, and the lake itself as well as the summit of Monroe, were all inside a damp cloud -- for the day the better name would have been Lake *in* the Clouds. Monroe was as windy and cold as an August morning on a San Francisco beach. But the summit of Washington rose above the cloud cover like an island in the sky, a rocky outpost shining in sunlight. This late in the season the usual summit crowd on Washington was perhaps a bit diminished, down to a few dozen. The trails, too, were uncrowded -- indeed, from the junction of the Jewell with the Gulfside all the way down I didn't meet another soul.
All in all, a wonderful day off from work to take in Washington this year before the snow begins to fly.
Steve B
The Feathered Hat
[email protected]
Conditions: Wet, due to the weekend's showers and heavy cloud cover on Monday. The steep climb up the ART after Gem Pool and the ledges below the Lake of the Clouds were slick and required careful stepping. The lower portion of the Jewell also slick due to dampness -- slippery roots lurk beneath new fallen leaves.
There's one small new blowdown near the bottom of the ART, and a larger new blowdown within the bottom quarter of the Jewell, but both are easily negotiated. Creek crossings not a problem, though the crossing on the ART just below the main crossing at the top of the steep section might result in a wet boot -- the showers over the weekend caused the stream to overflow a couple of the usual stepping stones.
Comments: The ledges below the Lake of the Clouds, and the lake itself as well as the summit of Monroe, were all inside a damp cloud -- for the day the better name would have been Lake *in* the Clouds. Monroe was as windy and cold as an August morning on a San Francisco beach. But the summit of Washington rose above the cloud cover like an island in the sky, a rocky outpost shining in sunlight. This late in the season the usual summit crowd on Washington was perhaps a bit diminished, down to a few dozen. The trails, too, were uncrowded -- indeed, from the junction of the Jewell with the Gulfside all the way down I didn't meet another soul.
All in all, a wonderful day off from work to take in Washington this year before the snow begins to fly.
Steve B
The Feathered Hat
[email protected]
Last edited:
