una_dogger
Well-known member
Its four am and my alarm is ringing. I'm going hiking today!
I grabbed my pack and my trusty four legged buddy and we hopped in the Suby. The sun was rising as we crested Sherburne Pass, and coasted down the hill to pick up Drewski at the Country Store.
We hit the road at 5:45 and after a couple pit stops, arrived ~165 miles later at the Appalachia Trailhead. We booted up and started up the Valley Way at 8:35 am.
Shortly after crossing the Randolph Path it was time to put on snowshoes. We encountered three or four blowdowns along the way, one Drewski lifted and dragged to the side of the trail, the others we cut with Drewski's saw.
The trail between the Watson Path Crossing and Madison Hut had about five feet of hardpack snow on it. As we climbed closer to treeline, the trail narrowed and the snow was cambered toward the pitch of the ravine and the going was slow. Drew and I took turns leading, but eventually he passed me in the spruce. The sun was strong and I began to bonk a bit. A USFS forester who we passed near the tentsite cut off soon over took me as well.
I broke out of the trees and saw them at Madison Hut. Woo hoo! We had planned on making it to the hut at 11:30 am, and we were on target. We took a quick snack & water break and headed up the snowfields to Madison. We summitted at high noon. Madison is my NH4K No. 19/NE 67 No. 34.
The snow had a nice hard crust on it and we walked up to the rockpile just below the summit easily with our grippy MSRs. The summit was sunny with a light wind. It was grand. As we prepared for our descent, I put my MSRs back on and worked my way down the slope in a side by side fashion. Drewski got halfway down and opted to buttslide the rest of the way to the hut. Little Terra Firma trotted behind the butt-sliding-Drew and I'm sure I saw her give him a kiss when he finally slid to a stop.
Drew said "ya still wanna go to Adams?" and I said, "Sure". After checking in with Mountain Command, we headed off across the snowfields. For some reason, I thought the big rock outcrop dead in front of the hut was Adams. Seemed tall enough. Nope. Not Adams.
We chose to cross the snowfields where we could make out a fine line made by a solo climber. The snowfields were crisp hardpack but a bit slippery. I barebooted for a bit but felt I needed more traction as I gazed down into King Ravine. I put the MSRs back on and they stayed on until the top. I began to bonk somewhere on the way up Adams. I looked up and saw Drew climbing steadily, with Terra keeping watch on us both, staying in the middle of our track to the summit. Drew neared the summit and leaned on the rocks as I continued my slow, steady climb. Terra ran back and whimpered and walked at my side, keeping me company.
We reached the rocks below the summit at 1:38 and I ditched my MSRs. Just as Drew reached the true summit, a hiker appeared on top, coming from the opposite direction. He'd been watching her climb, and was surprised she hadn't noticed us. She was the caretaker of Crag Camp, and she happily recalled Seema and Brian's engagement earlier in the week. Drew and she exchanged some trail stories while Terra and I took in the view, happy to have achieved No 19-20 today, on such an amazing sun-kissed day, with two great climbing partners.
We got word that Air Line was a tangle of blowdowns, so decided to head back down the Valley Way. At 2pm we began our climb back down the snowfields. The view into King Ravine was spectacular. The view across to Jefferson glimmered as the sun reflected off its icy surface. Madison Hut looked like a tumbledown shack dwarfed by Madison's snowy flanks. The wind remained calm, and the sun continued to shine.
We reached the Airline and stepped right into a sloppy mess. The five foot hardpack path we had taken up had deteriorated into a rotten, mushy mess of slippery snow. The steeper sections of the trail along the rim of the ravine required care to negotiate. Beyond the tent site, the path widened, but the footing continued to deteriorate. Our snowshoes sank, buckled, slipped to one side or the other, yet we were far safer on them and they lessened our impact on the trail greatly. I can't imagine anyone postholing in those conditions.
Somewhere down the line, I tripped on an imaginary tree root, flew through the air, and executed a perfect 10-10-10 face plant, my hands punching deep into the snow and my poles sticking out behind them. It was *pretty darn* funny. I had a good laugh at my own expense.
Normally I fly down hill in snow but today was different. The more momentum I gained, the less coordinated I became. For the first time on the hike, Terra began to pick up snowballs in her paw pads. I was relieved to see the Watson Path. The snow had melted significantly throughout the day, and the going got easier. By Randolph Crossing, we were able to take our snowshoes off. At four pm we were on our last mile. The sun shone through the hemlock branches and danced off the brook. The sounds of the water rushing over the rocks was balanced by the happy trill of songbirds. It was a *picture perfect* day. I only wish I had brought my camera.
We reached the car at 4:30pm. Packed it up, and hotfooted it down the road in my trusty Suby; grabbing a quick slice of pizza and a hot cup o'Joe for the ride home. A few hours later I dropped Drewski off at the Country Store. We transferred gear from my car to his, and said our goodbyes.
Happily Terra and I drove off and began the climb over Sherburne Pass, with the sun setting on the horizon.
Miles: think about ten.
Elevation gain: lots. Probably 5k.
Una_dogger's personal rating: As close to perfect as a hike can get.
I grabbed my pack and my trusty four legged buddy and we hopped in the Suby. The sun was rising as we crested Sherburne Pass, and coasted down the hill to pick up Drewski at the Country Store.
We hit the road at 5:45 and after a couple pit stops, arrived ~165 miles later at the Appalachia Trailhead. We booted up and started up the Valley Way at 8:35 am.
Shortly after crossing the Randolph Path it was time to put on snowshoes. We encountered three or four blowdowns along the way, one Drewski lifted and dragged to the side of the trail, the others we cut with Drewski's saw.
The trail between the Watson Path Crossing and Madison Hut had about five feet of hardpack snow on it. As we climbed closer to treeline, the trail narrowed and the snow was cambered toward the pitch of the ravine and the going was slow. Drew and I took turns leading, but eventually he passed me in the spruce. The sun was strong and I began to bonk a bit. A USFS forester who we passed near the tentsite cut off soon over took me as well.
I broke out of the trees and saw them at Madison Hut. Woo hoo! We had planned on making it to the hut at 11:30 am, and we were on target. We took a quick snack & water break and headed up the snowfields to Madison. We summitted at high noon. Madison is my NH4K No. 19/NE 67 No. 34.
The snow had a nice hard crust on it and we walked up to the rockpile just below the summit easily with our grippy MSRs. The summit was sunny with a light wind. It was grand. As we prepared for our descent, I put my MSRs back on and worked my way down the slope in a side by side fashion. Drewski got halfway down and opted to buttslide the rest of the way to the hut. Little Terra Firma trotted behind the butt-sliding-Drew and I'm sure I saw her give him a kiss when he finally slid to a stop.
Drew said "ya still wanna go to Adams?" and I said, "Sure". After checking in with Mountain Command, we headed off across the snowfields. For some reason, I thought the big rock outcrop dead in front of the hut was Adams. Seemed tall enough. Nope. Not Adams.
We chose to cross the snowfields where we could make out a fine line made by a solo climber. The snowfields were crisp hardpack but a bit slippery. I barebooted for a bit but felt I needed more traction as I gazed down into King Ravine. I put the MSRs back on and they stayed on until the top. I began to bonk somewhere on the way up Adams. I looked up and saw Drew climbing steadily, with Terra keeping watch on us both, staying in the middle of our track to the summit. Drew neared the summit and leaned on the rocks as I continued my slow, steady climb. Terra ran back and whimpered and walked at my side, keeping me company.
We reached the rocks below the summit at 1:38 and I ditched my MSRs. Just as Drew reached the true summit, a hiker appeared on top, coming from the opposite direction. He'd been watching her climb, and was surprised she hadn't noticed us. She was the caretaker of Crag Camp, and she happily recalled Seema and Brian's engagement earlier in the week.
Drew and she exchanged some trail stories while Terra and I took in the view, happy to have achieved No 19-20 today, on such an amazing sun-kissed day, with two great climbing partners. We got word that Air Line was a tangle of blowdowns, so decided to head back down the Valley Way. At 2pm we began our climb back down the snowfields. The view into King Ravine was spectacular. The view across to Jefferson glimmered as the sun reflected off its icy surface. Madison Hut looked like a tumbledown shack dwarfed by Madison's snowy flanks. The wind remained calm, and the sun continued to shine.
We reached the Airline and stepped right into a sloppy mess. The five foot hardpack path we had taken up had deteriorated into a rotten, mushy mess of slippery snow. The steeper sections of the trail along the rim of the ravine required care to negotiate. Beyond the tent site, the path widened, but the footing continued to deteriorate. Our snowshoes sank, buckled, slipped to one side or the other, yet we were far safer on them and they lessened our impact on the trail greatly. I can't imagine anyone postholing in those conditions.
Somewhere down the line, I tripped on an imaginary tree root, flew through the air, and executed a perfect 10-10-10 face plant, my hands punching deep into the snow and my poles sticking out behind them. It was *pretty darn* funny. I had a good laugh at my own expense.
Normally I fly down hill in snow but today was different. The more momentum I gained, the less coordinated I became. For the first time on the hike, Terra began to pick up snowballs in her paw pads. I was relieved to see the Watson Path. The snow had melted significantly throughout the day, and the going got easier. By Randolph Crossing, we were able to take our snowshoes off. At four pm we were on our last mile. The sun shone through the hemlock branches and danced off the brook. The sounds of the water rushing over the rocks was balanced by the happy trill of songbirds. It was a *picture perfect* day. I only wish I had brought my camera.
We reached the car at 4:30pm. Packed it up, and hotfooted it down the road in my trusty Suby; grabbing a quick slice of pizza and a hot cup o'Joe for the ride home. A few hours later I dropped Drewski off at the Country Store. We transferred gear from my car to his, and said our goodbyes.
Happily Terra and I drove off and began the climb over Sherburne Pass, with the sun setting on the horizon.
Miles: think about ten.
Elevation gain: lots. Probably 5k.
Una_dogger's personal rating: As close to perfect as a hike can get.
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