richard
Member
Which trails would be considered the least and most difficult to the top of Mt. Washington? Thanks.
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Easiest ascent is Tuckerman's Ravine. Contrary to it's reputation, it's a gradual hike with stairs taking you most of the way up the headwall. Lions Head is steeper , but still pretty easy. Second, would be the Ammou up and Jewell down. The Ammou is steep and has a lot of wet ledges, but it's not to bad, the Jewell is an easy grade, the only caveat to the Jewell, is it's very exposed to storms and navigation for those not so experienced could be an issue in bad weather.
I'd concur with this, although I still need to check out the Nelson Crag trail. When I did Tuckerman Ravine's trail I was impressed at how much rock work had been done going up the head wall. People coming down it also had no problem, although poles are definitely helpful. The big advantage one has doing when doing Ammo or Jewel is it saves about 400' of elevation, which may be an important consideration.
One thing to factor in on Tucks trail is the crowds. From Hermit Lake to the top of the headwall its pretty much one lane traffic and on a popular weekend its a nearly a constant line of folks hiking up. Therefore you either put up with the slowest group on the trail or try to hop scotch past. Heading down its even worse. On a recent hike on Falling Waters I was against the traffic flow and it easily added 1/2 hour to my descent time. Some folks will make room but many groups decide they deserve the right of way.
Anyone ascending has the right of way, correct? Anyone going down can see where they are going and can pull off at a convenient spot. Anyone ascending sees the trail two feet in front of their face, and not much else. Sometimes on a descent, you run into another hiker who is looking for any excuse to catch their breath
There are differing opinions on who has the right of way and even if there was an agreed upon policy many folks hiking these trails would be clueless.
There are differing opinions on who has the right of way and even if there was an agreed upon policy many folks hiking these trails would be clueless.
I think you will like the nelson Crag trail. It's basically a steady grind straight up. It's most endearing feature, is that it's usually quiet, compared to the conga lines on the other routes. You can also visit the girl.
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