BIGEarl
Well-known member
November 18, 2012: Moriah
Trails: Stony Brook Trail, Carter-Moriah Trail
Summits: Moriah
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Hiking on Sunday means we needed a hike that we could finish early. Moriah was the only choice we had to work with. As planned, we headed north from Nashua early to be on-trail by 7:30am. Right on plan we made it to the trailhead for Stony Brook trail, grabbed our things, and started our hike.
The lower part of the hike was generally ice-free. The ground was completely clear of snow and ice but the stream crossings had glazed rocks that could be a problem. There are multiple choices across the lower stream crossing. The one that appeared least difficult had the highest rocks. The lower rocks all had become ice-glazed from splashing and freezing that occurred. The high rocks all appeared dry and ice-free. Sue pulled out her poles for the crossing and we made our way to the other side. We had two pairs of dry boots; nice!
From the lower crossing to the upper crossing we had a generally clear trail. There were a couple minor blow-downs. The sections of mud were fairly solid. Within a half mile of the upper crossing we started to find enough on-trail ice that required attention to foot placement. We also noticed another pair of hikers behind us and traveling at roughly the same speed. Eventually they passed us on the upper climb and we again saw them on the summit, along with one other solo hiker. At the upper crossing we took the lower route and climbed the bank back to the trail.
From the upper crossing to the junction with Carter-Moriah Trail we found varying amounts of on-trail ice but there was never a problem in getting past. From the junction we were hiking Carter-Moriah Trail to the summit. This top 1.3 mile section includes the majority of ice on the climb. There were a couple places that slowed us down in order to work our way past but we never needed to pull out added traction. There were a number of places where we transitioned from sunny conditions to shade. In these places it was important to really pay attention to the tread way; ice was everywhere and in some cases not obvious. We were able to stay on clear ledge as we climbed and experienced no slips or falls.
Near the second viewpoint Sue found a small section of the only snow we saw all day. Of course it was snowman time. Sue climbed down to the snow, made a snowman creation, and returned to the trail. Nice distraction.
We made our way to the ridge below the summit and found the greatest amount of ice for the hike. A couple sections of trail are really iced up and cost us some time in getting past. The traction stayed in our packs and we managed to reach the Kenduskeag junction with no problems. The final climb to the summit was icy but still plenty of choices for good foot placement.
At the summit we stopped for some pictures and to enjoy the views. Many times we have climbed Moriah in difficult conditions and had no views to enjoy; on this hike we hung out at the summit for a while. As usual, Sue had some cookies to share. Eventually it was time to head back to the trailhead. We grabbed our things and hiked back out the way we hiked in.
The exit hike was completely uneventful. Based on the NWS White Mountains Summit Forecast and the NWS Point Forecast for the area from early morning, I expected we would be in sub-freezing temperature all day until late in our exit hike. The experts were right. We had a comfortably cold day on Moriah until returning to the upper crossing. Sue had already de-layered and this is where I retired my jacket and changed to a light cap. Even with the lighter clothing the perspiration never stopped all of the way to the trailhead lot.
At the trailhead lot we made a quick change into traveling footwear and then made one more stop in Gorham to change into dry clothes for the trip south. We started and finished early as planned but with the short days we had a couple hours of darkness before getting back to Nashua and Sue’s car.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Stony Brook Trail, Carter-Moriah Trail
Summits: Moriah
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Hiking on Sunday means we needed a hike that we could finish early. Moriah was the only choice we had to work with. As planned, we headed north from Nashua early to be on-trail by 7:30am. Right on plan we made it to the trailhead for Stony Brook trail, grabbed our things, and started our hike.
The lower part of the hike was generally ice-free. The ground was completely clear of snow and ice but the stream crossings had glazed rocks that could be a problem. There are multiple choices across the lower stream crossing. The one that appeared least difficult had the highest rocks. The lower rocks all had become ice-glazed from splashing and freezing that occurred. The high rocks all appeared dry and ice-free. Sue pulled out her poles for the crossing and we made our way to the other side. We had two pairs of dry boots; nice!
From the lower crossing to the upper crossing we had a generally clear trail. There were a couple minor blow-downs. The sections of mud were fairly solid. Within a half mile of the upper crossing we started to find enough on-trail ice that required attention to foot placement. We also noticed another pair of hikers behind us and traveling at roughly the same speed. Eventually they passed us on the upper climb and we again saw them on the summit, along with one other solo hiker. At the upper crossing we took the lower route and climbed the bank back to the trail.
From the upper crossing to the junction with Carter-Moriah Trail we found varying amounts of on-trail ice but there was never a problem in getting past. From the junction we were hiking Carter-Moriah Trail to the summit. This top 1.3 mile section includes the majority of ice on the climb. There were a couple places that slowed us down in order to work our way past but we never needed to pull out added traction. There were a number of places where we transitioned from sunny conditions to shade. In these places it was important to really pay attention to the tread way; ice was everywhere and in some cases not obvious. We were able to stay on clear ledge as we climbed and experienced no slips or falls.
Near the second viewpoint Sue found a small section of the only snow we saw all day. Of course it was snowman time. Sue climbed down to the snow, made a snowman creation, and returned to the trail. Nice distraction.
We made our way to the ridge below the summit and found the greatest amount of ice for the hike. A couple sections of trail are really iced up and cost us some time in getting past. The traction stayed in our packs and we managed to reach the Kenduskeag junction with no problems. The final climb to the summit was icy but still plenty of choices for good foot placement.
At the summit we stopped for some pictures and to enjoy the views. Many times we have climbed Moriah in difficult conditions and had no views to enjoy; on this hike we hung out at the summit for a while. As usual, Sue had some cookies to share. Eventually it was time to head back to the trailhead. We grabbed our things and hiked back out the way we hiked in.
The exit hike was completely uneventful. Based on the NWS White Mountains Summit Forecast and the NWS Point Forecast for the area from early morning, I expected we would be in sub-freezing temperature all day until late in our exit hike. The experts were right. We had a comfortably cold day on Moriah until returning to the upper crossing. Sue had already de-layered and this is where I retired my jacket and changed to a light cap. Even with the lighter clothing the perspiration never stopped all of the way to the trailhead lot.
At the trailhead lot we made a quick change into traveling footwear and then made one more stop in Gorham to change into dry clothes for the trip south. We started and finished early as planned but with the short days we had a couple hours of darkness before getting back to Nashua and Sue’s car.
Pictures will follow.
