A month's worth of weekend trips, In reverse order starting with last Monday. Monday evening I arrived in Pinkham Notch. At about 8pm i set out up the Boott Spur trail. It was almost a full moon that night but the clouds obscured it pretty well. Even so I left my headlamp off most of the time and could see the outlines of the trail pretty well. A lot of my hikes start in the dark as i never seem to get off until the middle of the afternoon. i do really enjoy walking the trail at night without a light too.
An hour and a half of hiking like this took me high enough that I was worried that I if I didn't stop soon I would have no apprpriate trees to hang my Hammock. I went off the trail when I saw a more open area of woods taking care to go off the left side of the trail, the right side of the trail Is in the Cutler River Drainage and camping is restricted to Tuckermans. The night was mild and I slept with only my netting over my head no tarp needed. To my surprise I found in the morning that I was quite close to the trail even though I had walked a ways away the previous night. The trail had hooked back after I left it.
About fortyfive minutes after breaking camp the next morning and I was at the overlook above Tuckermans. The clouds broke while I tarried; what a view, absolutely stupendous. Boott Spur I made about 1:30pm, it was a little windy but not as bad as other times i have been on Washington maybe 15-20mph. I cooked some instant soup and a cup of tea since dried fruit and gorp had seen me through the morning.
I am always surprised how long it takes to reach Washington's summit once you are up on the ridgeline, it was 4:30 by the time I reached the top. A quick consultation of the guidebook and one of the workers on top decided me that the Wamsutta trail was the only sensible choice for descending into the Great Gulf which was my goal. It was too late too try any of the trickier trails and too snowy. The snow hadn't been an issue going up but going down into the Gulf the trail gets less sun. In some places the snow was several inches deep. Not too hard to rock hop around but by the time I got off the Nelson Crag trail and onto the Wamsutta it was twilight. It was fully dark when the trail truly started descending. Still it was a challenge and by this time I was below most of the snow so I left my headlamp off sliding and lowering myself from trees and rocks in the dark. Mistake, about halfway down jumped down a four foot pitch and one foot and a trekking pole plunged into a hole in the duff between the rock and a root. I hauled myself out with only a scrape but I had snapped my pole. On went my headlamp. another half an hour saw me to the bottom of the Gulf. A beautiful open area not more than a few minutes from the Peabody was my camp, the temps had to be in the upper 40's and the moon was out and full. Well worth the sweat. The next morning saw a pleasant hike along the Peabody back to Pinkham.
Afterhike reccomendation: EAT at the Moat a North Conway Brew Pub where I had the best after hike meal i have ever had. SHOP at Ragged Mountain I bought a display model Kiva for $115 here.
October 10 6:45pm Dix trailhead at Elk Lake. I had 15 minutes of daylight before it got dark, about 45minutes of hiking in the dark took me to the herd trail turn near the leanto. It seemed pretty crowded several French Canadien hikers set up in a couple of tents with a big fire. Some people in the leanto and someone else down below the leanto. I walked 3 minutes up the herd path and set up my hammock.
The next morning I started climbing the slide, a real interesting climb, all the blowdown I had heard so much about had been pretty much cut through, only a few trees left to climb over. The slide was unique in my experience perhaps because so much of it is raw and new. All the loose sand and gravel was interesting climbing but certainly better than the slippery rocks on alllen from my climb the previous weekend.
It started to snow lightly as I reached the top part of the slide and when I got off the slide and into the trees I started to get very wet. The temp despite the snow was in the forties and the snow melted as it hit the trees and dripped steadily soaking me. The snow and the melt made it pretty miserable so I only paused for a moment when I hit Macombs summit for a handful of gorp. Then onto East and south Dix. I was hoping to do the whole range but by the time I turned around and climbed back over East and south to the junction where Hough turns off I had only seen 3 people and was having doubts about the advisability of continuing over the range. Considering that I had been climbing for several hours my legs still felt strong however I was soaked to the skin with no sign of the sun all day, the trail was unfamiliar and I was alone with no one to support me in any extremity. Discretion ruled and I headed for the slide. As i was heading down the slide I encountered a young family near the top who had stalled with the kids losing traction and starting to get upset. I stopped and hung around while they worked out whether to call it a day. They finally decided that it was better to stop and I kept them company on the hike down. It was pleasant to have companions after hiking alone all day.
I made it back to the trail head about 5pm and then spent almost an hour talking to another VFTW member I think it was one of the Jim's I'm terrible with names.
I drove around detemined that I would get another of my 46 even though I had missed Hough ( I didn't really want to reclimb The Dixes the next day) I parked at the South Meadows and Slept next to my car and then Started up the Truck trail Tuesday morn. Tabletop was my goal. It looked like another messy day with no sun but as I headed up the Herd path to Tabletops summit the clouds start giving teasing glimpses of blue. Of course I still got wet. The fir and spruce is pretty tight and wet. The previous days snow had left a thick rime of ice on the upper branches and as the clouds parted the rime broke free and started comeing down on my head, ice chunks down my neck! Just past the top the trees open up and there was dead log I stretched out on, the sun broke free completely of the clouds and I basked. Nice view of Marcy. As I headed down i passed a group of senior ladies who had already been up Phelps. Wow, I hope I can keep up that kind of pace when I am their age. Absolutely perfect Autumn day from there on. till a lot of color on the trees and a perfectly blue sky without a trace of cloud. I jumped into the brook right before Marcy Dam where there was a nice hole. I also jumped quickly out. It felt great though and I stayed in long enough to scrub off the worst of the mus from the previous two days. I didn't want to hike the truck trail again so i hiked back to the Loj instead then along the road to my car. Way too long, next time I will stay on the truck trail.
The first weekend of October I hiked Allen. From the trailhead i had an hour or so in the daylight and half an hour in the dark. I camped just off the trail as close to Allen brook as I could get before I started to lose the trail in the dark. The next day up before the sun I had to do my climbget back to my car, wash up at the family cabin down the road and make it to work in Burlington by 4pm.It wasn't more than a little past daybreak when I was climbing up the brook. very pretty but all the previous reports are right the rocks are so slippery you could slip on level rock. Stopped at the top briefly, saw some hikers on my way down near the beginning of the slides. From a trip report i saw weeks ago it seems they were forum members, we seem to be everywhere! At my fastest pace I made it out a little afternoon. It started drizzling just as I hit the parking lot.
An hour and a half of hiking like this took me high enough that I was worried that I if I didn't stop soon I would have no apprpriate trees to hang my Hammock. I went off the trail when I saw a more open area of woods taking care to go off the left side of the trail, the right side of the trail Is in the Cutler River Drainage and camping is restricted to Tuckermans. The night was mild and I slept with only my netting over my head no tarp needed. To my surprise I found in the morning that I was quite close to the trail even though I had walked a ways away the previous night. The trail had hooked back after I left it.
About fortyfive minutes after breaking camp the next morning and I was at the overlook above Tuckermans. The clouds broke while I tarried; what a view, absolutely stupendous. Boott Spur I made about 1:30pm, it was a little windy but not as bad as other times i have been on Washington maybe 15-20mph. I cooked some instant soup and a cup of tea since dried fruit and gorp had seen me through the morning.
I am always surprised how long it takes to reach Washington's summit once you are up on the ridgeline, it was 4:30 by the time I reached the top. A quick consultation of the guidebook and one of the workers on top decided me that the Wamsutta trail was the only sensible choice for descending into the Great Gulf which was my goal. It was too late too try any of the trickier trails and too snowy. The snow hadn't been an issue going up but going down into the Gulf the trail gets less sun. In some places the snow was several inches deep. Not too hard to rock hop around but by the time I got off the Nelson Crag trail and onto the Wamsutta it was twilight. It was fully dark when the trail truly started descending. Still it was a challenge and by this time I was below most of the snow so I left my headlamp off sliding and lowering myself from trees and rocks in the dark. Mistake, about halfway down jumped down a four foot pitch and one foot and a trekking pole plunged into a hole in the duff between the rock and a root. I hauled myself out with only a scrape but I had snapped my pole. On went my headlamp. another half an hour saw me to the bottom of the Gulf. A beautiful open area not more than a few minutes from the Peabody was my camp, the temps had to be in the upper 40's and the moon was out and full. Well worth the sweat. The next morning saw a pleasant hike along the Peabody back to Pinkham.
Afterhike reccomendation: EAT at the Moat a North Conway Brew Pub where I had the best after hike meal i have ever had. SHOP at Ragged Mountain I bought a display model Kiva for $115 here.
October 10 6:45pm Dix trailhead at Elk Lake. I had 15 minutes of daylight before it got dark, about 45minutes of hiking in the dark took me to the herd trail turn near the leanto. It seemed pretty crowded several French Canadien hikers set up in a couple of tents with a big fire. Some people in the leanto and someone else down below the leanto. I walked 3 minutes up the herd path and set up my hammock.
The next morning I started climbing the slide, a real interesting climb, all the blowdown I had heard so much about had been pretty much cut through, only a few trees left to climb over. The slide was unique in my experience perhaps because so much of it is raw and new. All the loose sand and gravel was interesting climbing but certainly better than the slippery rocks on alllen from my climb the previous weekend.
It started to snow lightly as I reached the top part of the slide and when I got off the slide and into the trees I started to get very wet. The temp despite the snow was in the forties and the snow melted as it hit the trees and dripped steadily soaking me. The snow and the melt made it pretty miserable so I only paused for a moment when I hit Macombs summit for a handful of gorp. Then onto East and south Dix. I was hoping to do the whole range but by the time I turned around and climbed back over East and south to the junction where Hough turns off I had only seen 3 people and was having doubts about the advisability of continuing over the range. Considering that I had been climbing for several hours my legs still felt strong however I was soaked to the skin with no sign of the sun all day, the trail was unfamiliar and I was alone with no one to support me in any extremity. Discretion ruled and I headed for the slide. As i was heading down the slide I encountered a young family near the top who had stalled with the kids losing traction and starting to get upset. I stopped and hung around while they worked out whether to call it a day. They finally decided that it was better to stop and I kept them company on the hike down. It was pleasant to have companions after hiking alone all day.
I made it back to the trail head about 5pm and then spent almost an hour talking to another VFTW member I think it was one of the Jim's I'm terrible with names.
I drove around detemined that I would get another of my 46 even though I had missed Hough ( I didn't really want to reclimb The Dixes the next day) I parked at the South Meadows and Slept next to my car and then Started up the Truck trail Tuesday morn. Tabletop was my goal. It looked like another messy day with no sun but as I headed up the Herd path to Tabletops summit the clouds start giving teasing glimpses of blue. Of course I still got wet. The fir and spruce is pretty tight and wet. The previous days snow had left a thick rime of ice on the upper branches and as the clouds parted the rime broke free and started comeing down on my head, ice chunks down my neck! Just past the top the trees open up and there was dead log I stretched out on, the sun broke free completely of the clouds and I basked. Nice view of Marcy. As I headed down i passed a group of senior ladies who had already been up Phelps. Wow, I hope I can keep up that kind of pace when I am their age. Absolutely perfect Autumn day from there on. till a lot of color on the trees and a perfectly blue sky without a trace of cloud. I jumped into the brook right before Marcy Dam where there was a nice hole. I also jumped quickly out. It felt great though and I stayed in long enough to scrub off the worst of the mus from the previous two days. I didn't want to hike the truck trail again so i hiked back to the Loj instead then along the road to my car. Way too long, next time I will stay on the truck trail.
The first weekend of October I hiked Allen. From the trailhead i had an hour or so in the daylight and half an hour in the dark. I camped just off the trail as close to Allen brook as I could get before I started to lose the trail in the dark. The next day up before the sun I had to do my climbget back to my car, wash up at the family cabin down the road and make it to work in Burlington by 4pm.It wasn't more than a little past daybreak when I was climbing up the brook. very pretty but all the previous reports are right the rocks are so slippery you could slip on level rock. Stopped at the top briefly, saw some hikers on my way down near the beginning of the slides. From a trip report i saw weeks ago it seems they were forum members, we seem to be everywhere! At my fastest pace I made it out a little afternoon. It started drizzling just as I hit the parking lot.
