My first 4K of the season!
I hate the spring snow/ice, and in previous years retreated to Mass in mud season, hiking in the Blue Hills. This year I stayed in NH, and looked for small mountains with no snow. On Monday I had hiked the Osseo Trail to a bit above the downlook, where I found snow and turned round.
Today I decided to see how bad that snow was. The bad news is that there is some snow left, the good news is that it is in patches that are really not a problem.
First big patch is just at the base of one of the ladders below the downlook. No real problem, but use care as the lower few steps have some slippery ice.
Above the downlook there are many patches of snow, some bigger than others. A mix, some soft snow and some hard, slippery ice, even on a hot day like today. But the patches are quite short, and they are really not a problem (even for a spring snow-hater like me!!).
The Flume Slide Trail had lots of snow at its upper end, and while Franconia Ridge Trail going towards Liberty was clear close to the summit (where the trees are very short) deep snow soon appears on it.
There were a lot of blowdowns at first, but between Monday and today I think that I tidied almost all of them to the point were they are quite easy to pass over or under (the smaller ones have been removed). Higher up I found that someone had started work on them earlier.
No black flies on this hot day!! I obviously brought the DEET with me, but it stayed in my pack.
Quite hazy, but still enjoyed the views from the summit and from the downlook.
I hate the spring snow/ice, and in previous years retreated to Mass in mud season, hiking in the Blue Hills. This year I stayed in NH, and looked for small mountains with no snow. On Monday I had hiked the Osseo Trail to a bit above the downlook, where I found snow and turned round.
Today I decided to see how bad that snow was. The bad news is that there is some snow left, the good news is that it is in patches that are really not a problem.
First big patch is just at the base of one of the ladders below the downlook. No real problem, but use care as the lower few steps have some slippery ice.
Above the downlook there are many patches of snow, some bigger than others. A mix, some soft snow and some hard, slippery ice, even on a hot day like today. But the patches are quite short, and they are really not a problem (even for a spring snow-hater like me!!).
The Flume Slide Trail had lots of snow at its upper end, and while Franconia Ridge Trail going towards Liberty was clear close to the summit (where the trees are very short) deep snow soon appears on it.
There were a lot of blowdowns at first, but between Monday and today I think that I tidied almost all of them to the point were they are quite easy to pass over or under (the smaller ones have been removed). Higher up I found that someone had started work on them earlier.
No black flies on this hot day!! I obviously brought the DEET with me, but it stayed in my pack.
Quite hazy, but still enjoyed the views from the summit and from the downlook.
