P
Paul M
Guest
Hoped to go in the Glen Boulder Trail and out the Rocky Branch on Friday, but the forecast of 15 degrees and 55mph winds on the ridge changed our plans to an in-and-out of Rocky Branch. A 6" deep layer of beech leaves made finding rocks & roots tricky for the first 1/2 mile, but after that it was clear sailing, and the trails were in good condition. No snow anywhere on the way in, but it snowed all day, and by the time we left the upper areas there was 1/2" - 1" of snow. We barebooted all the way, but microspikes might now be helpful with the new layer of snow.
The "stream" portions of the trails had an 1/8" to 1/2" thick layer of ice on the water between the rocks, which was not yet solid enough to walk on, so we had to stick to the rocks, which were generally ice-free. With the snow, it will be hard to tell what's level ground between rocks, and what's thin ice with 3" - 6" of water waiting below. This should take care of itself in a week or so with the colder temps. The river crossings were fine in terms of water level, but most of the rocks had a thin layer of ice on top so spikes will be very helpful there. The summit was bare rock with moderate wind. We had two adults and two kids, and completed the 14.4 mile hike in 8 hours.
We saw no other hikers all day, but as we pulled out of the parking lot at 4pm, we spotted a big moose standing on the east side of route 16. Perhaps he was responsible for some of the moose tracks we saw along the trails, which outnumbered boot prints.
The "stream" portions of the trails had an 1/8" to 1/2" thick layer of ice on the water between the rocks, which was not yet solid enough to walk on, so we had to stick to the rocks, which were generally ice-free. With the snow, it will be hard to tell what's level ground between rocks, and what's thin ice with 3" - 6" of water waiting below. This should take care of itself in a week or so with the colder temps. The river crossings were fine in terms of water level, but most of the rocks had a thin layer of ice on top so spikes will be very helpful there. The summit was bare rock with moderate wind. We had two adults and two kids, and completed the 14.4 mile hike in 8 hours.
We saw no other hikers all day, but as we pulled out of the parking lot at 4pm, we spotted a big moose standing on the east side of route 16. Perhaps he was responsible for some of the moose tracks we saw along the trails, which outnumbered boot prints.
