CrazySage
New member
Trail Conditions: The Ammo Trail had some fresh snow on it ranging from a few inches in the trees to foot high drifts in more open areas. Up to the Gem Pool the snow had drifted over the trail, but it was still easy to see where people had gone before, and the fresh snow was easy to snowshoe over/through. The ascent up had similar conditions. We had one minor mishap with routefinding but soon sorted ourselves out. From the last brook crossing it was ice and firm snow up to the hut. We switched over to crampons at the hut. The Crawford Path is a mix of ice, firm snowpack and small patches of blown snow that were a few inches deep. The cairns are easily spotted.
Special Equipment: Snow shoes necessary up to the hut. Once past the hut the hard ice made crampons necessary and an ice ax recommended. Tinted googles very useful due to the strong glare off the ice and snow.
Comments: A friend looked up the MWO Conditions at the time we summited - Temperature -8.2°F, Wind 55.8 mph, Direction 320° (NW), Gust 66.7 mph, Wind Chill -44.1°F. Despite those stats it was a beautiful day with crystal clear blue skies. With every last inch of skin covered the cold and wind bothered us very little (ok, my nose stung a little), and the only concern was keeping our balance as we got our summit pictures. Thanks to Billy and Anne for a fabulous day, and a special shout-out to Anne for her tasty summit brownies.
Jen
jenglish1 at worcester.edu
Special Equipment: Snow shoes necessary up to the hut. Once past the hut the hard ice made crampons necessary and an ice ax recommended. Tinted googles very useful due to the strong glare off the ice and snow.
Comments: A friend looked up the MWO Conditions at the time we summited - Temperature -8.2°F, Wind 55.8 mph, Direction 320° (NW), Gust 66.7 mph, Wind Chill -44.1°F. Despite those stats it was a beautiful day with crystal clear blue skies. With every last inch of skin covered the cold and wind bothered us very little (ok, my nose stung a little), and the only concern was keeping our balance as we got our summit pictures. Thanks to Billy and Anne for a fabulous day, and a special shout-out to Anne for her tasty summit brownies.
Jen
jenglish1 at worcester.edu
