alpinista
Active member
AMSTony and I had hoped to be up in Baxter State Park for a four-day stretch of peakbagging to wrap up the NE67. But, alas, a work assignment kept me stuck close to home and within typing-space of a computer. As it was, we checked the weather reports periodically and it looked as though it wasn't prime weather that far north anyway. We took some solace in that.
Still, the hiking itch needed a bit of scratching. So we managed to escape for a day hike to the prezzies. The weather forecast wasn't great this far south, either. But we knew it wouldn't be troublesome to try for Mt. Pierce _ one of my favorite peaks but one for which views have always eluded me. It always has been trapped in fog each of the three other times I'd stood atop its summit.
This time, the weather wasn't great _ but we managed to get views. Go figure!
We hit the trail around 10 a.m., finding a handful of cars and one large van from a Gordon College group. As we crossed the bridge heading toward the main Crawford Path trail, we spotted about a dozen Gordon College kids gathered around the falls and the river, reading their Bibles. I'm not much of a Bible reader _ and I'm guessing Tony isn't either _ but I could see the appeal of hanging out in this spot.
The trip up Crawford is at a relatively easy grade, nice footing. Clearly this is the oldest used trail in the Whites, and a testament to the Crawford boys' efforts of long ago to cut a nice smooth path to these mountains.
The canopy of trees keeps it relatively sheltered. That's nice when it rains _ as it did on this day _ but also means there's little sunlight to dry out the trail.
Probably about 20 minutes before the turnoff for Mizpah hut, it started to rain. We hoped it wouldn't linger, so we resisted putting on our Gore-Tex jackets _ until 10 minutes or so into it, we realized that was just wishful thinking. On come the jackets.
But as we continued past the hut turnoff and continued up the Crawford Path, the rain stayed away as did the predicted 50-70mph winds. We ended up with some wonderful views into the valley and off toward Mt. Eisenhower and Mt. Monroe, though the rest of the prezzies were encased in clouds and mist and fog.
We made it to the summit in decent time, grabbed some summit shots, and then headed back down as we saw the clouds grow darker and the winds started to howl. When we reached the trail sign pointing down Crawford Path and over to Ike, the winds knocked the sign nearly on its side. Only the pile of rocks kept it somewhat stationary.
By the time we were back below tree cover, it was pouring. Then, we heard the thunder. And a couple of times, saw lightning. Boy, this seems familiar _ just like the 9/11 hike a few weeks back!
About halfway down, it tapered off again, and there were times when we both felt this rush of warm air waft past us. It was like one last blast of summer air. Dang, the weather sure is weird in these parts, eh?
Well, the NE67 will have to wait until next year. But at least we managed to get out ...
Here are some pix
Still, the hiking itch needed a bit of scratching. So we managed to escape for a day hike to the prezzies. The weather forecast wasn't great this far south, either. But we knew it wouldn't be troublesome to try for Mt. Pierce _ one of my favorite peaks but one for which views have always eluded me. It always has been trapped in fog each of the three other times I'd stood atop its summit.
This time, the weather wasn't great _ but we managed to get views. Go figure!
We hit the trail around 10 a.m., finding a handful of cars and one large van from a Gordon College group. As we crossed the bridge heading toward the main Crawford Path trail, we spotted about a dozen Gordon College kids gathered around the falls and the river, reading their Bibles. I'm not much of a Bible reader _ and I'm guessing Tony isn't either _ but I could see the appeal of hanging out in this spot.
The trip up Crawford is at a relatively easy grade, nice footing. Clearly this is the oldest used trail in the Whites, and a testament to the Crawford boys' efforts of long ago to cut a nice smooth path to these mountains.
The canopy of trees keeps it relatively sheltered. That's nice when it rains _ as it did on this day _ but also means there's little sunlight to dry out the trail.
Probably about 20 minutes before the turnoff for Mizpah hut, it started to rain. We hoped it wouldn't linger, so we resisted putting on our Gore-Tex jackets _ until 10 minutes or so into it, we realized that was just wishful thinking. On come the jackets.
But as we continued past the hut turnoff and continued up the Crawford Path, the rain stayed away as did the predicted 50-70mph winds. We ended up with some wonderful views into the valley and off toward Mt. Eisenhower and Mt. Monroe, though the rest of the prezzies were encased in clouds and mist and fog.
We made it to the summit in decent time, grabbed some summit shots, and then headed back down as we saw the clouds grow darker and the winds started to howl. When we reached the trail sign pointing down Crawford Path and over to Ike, the winds knocked the sign nearly on its side. Only the pile of rocks kept it somewhat stationary.
By the time we were back below tree cover, it was pouring. Then, we heard the thunder. And a couple of times, saw lightning. Boy, this seems familiar _ just like the 9/11 hike a few weeks back!
About halfway down, it tapered off again, and there were times when we both felt this rush of warm air waft past us. It was like one last blast of summer air. Dang, the weather sure is weird in these parts, eh?
Well, the NE67 will have to wait until next year. But at least we managed to get out ...
Here are some pix
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