Jazzbo
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2005
- Messages
- 1,199
- Reaction score
- 171
This hike was 7.5 miles RT, but felt more like 11 miles. We spotted some cars at foot of Webster Cliffs Trail Head and drove up to Webster-Jackson TH. Our group of 10 was underway by 9:00 and returned to the cars by 5:45. This was a NH Chapter trip and my second of three mentored hikes to become qualified to lead hikes with the NH Chapter of the AMC.
Frankly I'm not happy with the way this hike went. We all returned safe and sound, but I made one big mistake. Big mistake was the hike along Webster Cliffs was not as easy as I recalled it to be when I wrote it up for publication. We ended up spending almost 9 hours on trail. The trail going up is steep & rough and Webster Cliff Trail in general is a rough trail. It began to rain later in afternoon. Luckily we were over the worst parts of the Webster Cliffs by the time it started raining later in the afternoon. If I'd remembered the hike terrain correctly it would been billed as more of an "advanced hikers" trip. Majority of our group of 10 was heavily weighted towards beginning hikers and "Over 55". We had 7 first time summiters of Jackson to give you a picture. I'm glad Al Dwyer joined us. His easy going and cheerfull confidence and experience helped maintain moral. Rita Minnon is an excellent leader, but I think it helped a lot having a 3rd leader in middle of the group as some in the group were uncomfortable with the exposure on Webster Cliffs Trail. Moral might have tipped badly to the negative had there been only two of us on this particular hike. I promise to work hard not to repeat this mistake in the future.
On the other hand, while it was not what they expected, these less experienced hikers did get to SAFELY experience some challanging terrain and conditions and now know from experience what the guide book means when it talks about scrambling and exposure. Most of the folks I had screened expressed interest in bagging all 48 4K's. That's one reason I picked them. While on Webster Cliffs I spoke to most of them about these guidebook terms and definitions. Not every trail is a walk in the park.
I must say it was pretty gratifying to be responsible in some way with helping 7 folks with their first summit of Mt Jackson. In spite of the overcast, Jackson didn't disappoint. The views from Jackson are always impressive. We must have done something right, because two in the group are signed up for my third and final mentored trip to Eisenhower & Pierce on 7/21.
Frankly I'm not happy with the way this hike went. We all returned safe and sound, but I made one big mistake. Big mistake was the hike along Webster Cliffs was not as easy as I recalled it to be when I wrote it up for publication. We ended up spending almost 9 hours on trail. The trail going up is steep & rough and Webster Cliff Trail in general is a rough trail. It began to rain later in afternoon. Luckily we were over the worst parts of the Webster Cliffs by the time it started raining later in the afternoon. If I'd remembered the hike terrain correctly it would been billed as more of an "advanced hikers" trip. Majority of our group of 10 was heavily weighted towards beginning hikers and "Over 55". We had 7 first time summiters of Jackson to give you a picture. I'm glad Al Dwyer joined us. His easy going and cheerfull confidence and experience helped maintain moral. Rita Minnon is an excellent leader, but I think it helped a lot having a 3rd leader in middle of the group as some in the group were uncomfortable with the exposure on Webster Cliffs Trail. Moral might have tipped badly to the negative had there been only two of us on this particular hike. I promise to work hard not to repeat this mistake in the future.
On the other hand, while it was not what they expected, these less experienced hikers did get to SAFELY experience some challanging terrain and conditions and now know from experience what the guide book means when it talks about scrambling and exposure. Most of the folks I had screened expressed interest in bagging all 48 4K's. That's one reason I picked them. While on Webster Cliffs I spoke to most of them about these guidebook terms and definitions. Not every trail is a walk in the park.
I must say it was pretty gratifying to be responsible in some way with helping 7 folks with their first summit of Mt Jackson. In spite of the overcast, Jackson didn't disappoint. The views from Jackson are always impressive. We must have done something right, because two in the group are signed up for my third and final mentored trip to Eisenhower & Pierce on 7/21.
Last edited:
