U
Unregistered
Guest
Trails used: Dicey's Mill, Tom Wiggin, Blueberry Ledge, Rollins, Walden Loop (over Passaconaway), Dicey's Mill back to trailhead.
Conditions: Wet! The rain began the moment we opened the car doors. We got up the Wiggin before the rain got serious, though -- good thing, as the steeper sections of the "Fire Escape" would be awful in mud. The ledges just below Whiteface were very wet -- water streaming down the granite -- and, well, exciting in ways you sometimes don't want excitement. Lots of puddles on the Rollins, Walden Loop and Dicey's Mill, but overall trail conditions were pretty good, considering the weather. The greenery on the Wiggins hasn't been cut in a while; the route is narrow toward the top. Dicey's Mill in excellent shape. One new blowdown near the summit of Passaconaway, but there's enough clearance that even a tall man can bend under it.
Special equipment: Yesterday, rain gear. Walking staff or trekking poles useful, especially on the Wiggins and the ledges of the Blueberry. Gaiters very nice to have to keep trail duff out of boots and socks (they won't keep your boots dry in the rain, though).
Comments: Met one other fellow crazy as we were to be hiking in the Sandwiches in such weather as well as young USFS Ranger Dylan (parents from the Sixties, she said). All of us were soaked to the skin but good natured about it -- might as well be. As these things always seem to go, the rain stopped as soon as our car hove into view at the trailhead parking lot. But: Another fine day spent in the company of my nephew Tom. Nos. 16 and 17 for him, 30 and 31 for me.
Steve B
[email protected]
Conditions: Wet! The rain began the moment we opened the car doors. We got up the Wiggin before the rain got serious, though -- good thing, as the steeper sections of the "Fire Escape" would be awful in mud. The ledges just below Whiteface were very wet -- water streaming down the granite -- and, well, exciting in ways you sometimes don't want excitement. Lots of puddles on the Rollins, Walden Loop and Dicey's Mill, but overall trail conditions were pretty good, considering the weather. The greenery on the Wiggins hasn't been cut in a while; the route is narrow toward the top. Dicey's Mill in excellent shape. One new blowdown near the summit of Passaconaway, but there's enough clearance that even a tall man can bend under it.
Special equipment: Yesterday, rain gear. Walking staff or trekking poles useful, especially on the Wiggins and the ledges of the Blueberry. Gaiters very nice to have to keep trail duff out of boots and socks (they won't keep your boots dry in the rain, though).
Comments: Met one other fellow crazy as we were to be hiking in the Sandwiches in such weather as well as young USFS Ranger Dylan (parents from the Sixties, she said). All of us were soaked to the skin but good natured about it -- might as well be. As these things always seem to go, the rain stopped as soon as our car hove into view at the trailhead parking lot. But: Another fine day spent in the company of my nephew Tom. Nos. 16 and 17 for him, 30 and 31 for me.
Steve B
[email protected]
