Ed'n Lauky
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2007
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We did the loop clockwise today. The trails were hard packed except for some drifting on the side of Lafayette.
The streams were all bridged. There were no blowdowns.
I used microspikes all day without once postholing. The ridge had very little snow but it was not bare. There was either hardpacked snow or ice along the entire ridge.
The trail could be barebooted, but I found the microspikes perfect. There was enough cover for crampons. Today snowshoes would have been of little use except for traction.
The Falling Waters trail was slick in the steep parts from butt sliding. The best solution in those sections when going down was to 'join the crowd'.
I was very disappointed in the weather the entire morning. It was snowing lightly when I arrived at the trailhead and it snowed all the way up. It was so dark, windy, cold and snowy at the Greenleaf Hut that I briefly considered bailing. However, there seemed to be just enough visibility to give it a try. The snow and wind were strong enough on the side of Lafayette to require goggles and a warm coat. I was concerned about continuing along the ridge, but just below the summit we broke through the clouds and came into the sun. It was like passing from purgatory to paradise. The air was filled with pixie like crystals and the sun was shining brightly. Mt. Washington poked it's head up above the clouds off in the distance like a Himalayan peak. There was almost no wind at all up on the ridge.
As we made our way down off Little Haystack the under cast broke up and we had a beautiful day all the way back to the car.
Lafayette and Lincoln were numbers 46 and 47 for Lauky.
[email protected]
The streams were all bridged. There were no blowdowns.
I used microspikes all day without once postholing. The ridge had very little snow but it was not bare. There was either hardpacked snow or ice along the entire ridge.
The trail could be barebooted, but I found the microspikes perfect. There was enough cover for crampons. Today snowshoes would have been of little use except for traction.
The Falling Waters trail was slick in the steep parts from butt sliding. The best solution in those sections when going down was to 'join the crowd'.
I was very disappointed in the weather the entire morning. It was snowing lightly when I arrived at the trailhead and it snowed all the way up. It was so dark, windy, cold and snowy at the Greenleaf Hut that I briefly considered bailing. However, there seemed to be just enough visibility to give it a try. The snow and wind were strong enough on the side of Lafayette to require goggles and a warm coat. I was concerned about continuing along the ridge, but just below the summit we broke through the clouds and came into the sun. It was like passing from purgatory to paradise. The air was filled with pixie like crystals and the sun was shining brightly. Mt. Washington poked it's head up above the clouds off in the distance like a Himalayan peak. There was almost no wind at all up on the ridge.
As we made our way down off Little Haystack the under cast broke up and we had a beautiful day all the way back to the car.
Lafayette and Lincoln were numbers 46 and 47 for Lauky.
[email protected]
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