Need some suggestions.

[MadRiver]

Dear Knowledgeable ones:

I will be taking off Friday (25th) from work and doing a day hike in the Whites with a few friends. We are in the preliminary stages of choosing a destination, so I thought I would give the board a shout and ask for some suggestions. So far the Wildcats, Carters, Passaconaway and Whiteface have been mentioned. The Osceolas, Handcocks, Pierce, Jackson, Lincoln, and Lafayette are off the table because of prior hikes.

One possibility might be some of the Carters. Which is more doable, going in 19 mile Trail up Carter Dome and out Carter Dome Trail, or in 19 mile Trail to Carter Dome Trail and out North Carter/Imp Trail?

Wildcat(s) were discussed but vetoed because of past trip reports involving injuries and inadequate equipment.

Care to chime in with your thoughts?

 

[sli74]

From that list, I vote for the Carters, that is definitely doable in a day, can be done even when the weather is a bit under expectations and won't require any special worrying You can try for all 3 if you are ambitious or just Carter Dome or just Middle and South Carter. Have a BLAST !!!

sli74

 

[SherpaKroto]

Carter Dome/Mt Hight is steeper and more open, Middle and South Carter are a slightly longer day, but less steep (take the North Trailhead up to Imp Face for a great view). With 2 cars, the latter is a beautiful hike (we did it at the Gathering in about 9 hours at a leisurely pace. I've yet to do Carter Dome in Winter, but it is coming soon I hope

Now I'll let the knowledgeable ones chime in

Click my tag line for shots under Gathering 7.5

 

[Frodo]

In the past few days, the White Mountains have picked up close to an additional foot of snow (on top of the 2+ feet from late last weeks storm), so you might want to consider the more traveled trails if you want to avoid trail breaking, especially since you plan on hiking this Friday.

Carter Dome is your best bet for broken trails...

If you are not concerned about breaking trail, then I would go with the S-M Carter loop.

Have fun!

 

[askus3]

My vote would be for Waumbek. The hike is a bore in summer but with the leaves down and all the snow the hike actually could be fun. Easy to get to and definitely off the beaten path. Also, it is just a slow steady incline. Would not have any problem with ice, so it could be fun at this time of year. If I lived closer it would definitely been a peak I would do in winter - high on my list.

 

[MadRiver]

Thanks for all the suggestions. However, now that I have your attention, has anyone here bushwhacked from the 19 Mile Trailhead to the Imp Trail in winter? If so, any tips that they would care to share? I’m just trying to cover all our options before deciding on a course of action.

 

[John S]

MadRiver, with the deep snow Frodo mentioned, an out and back to Carter Dome via Carter Notch should be the most doable. Nineteen Mile Brook Trail from the hut was well broken out on Tuesday after the last substantial snowfall. A school group heading in that day was supposed to come out yesterday or today, so you can expect at least four miles of broken trail. Even if the Carter Dome Trail is unbroken, it’s only another 1.2 miles to the summit. It took two of us almost three hours to do that short piece in deep snow on Monday but the return was very quick.

I’ve heard of a bushwhack that comes out to Camp Dodge but don’t know the details.

 

[MadRiver]

Thanks John S. I’ve found several posts on the AMC board detailing the bushwhack from the south Imp Trail to both Camp Dodge and the 19 Mile Trail. Unfortunately, they all start from the Imp Trail and not from the 19 Mile Trail. Although I do not believe it would be all that difficult to reverse the standard bushwhack, I will have to confer with the others before carving anything in stone.

Once gain thanks to everyone who has posted with their suggestions and information.