BIGEarl
Well-known member
April 22, 2011: Southern Presidentials
Trails: Crawford Path, Eisenhower Loop Trail, Webster Cliff Trail, Webster-Jackson Trail
Summits: Eisenhower, Pierce, Jackson
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Sue’s approach to her April vacation is a little different this time around. Instead of taking a solid week off she has spread the vacation days across three weeks. Because of other time constraints, this approach gives a couple more hiking days. With great conditions in the forecast we decided to head back to the Southern Presidentials. Our plan was a loop from Crawford Notch. Back in February we completed the same hike and had a very difficult time due to conditions along the way. We were hoping this time through would be better.
We set off from the Highland Center hiking the Crawford Path. The plan was to head straight to Eisenhower first, then hike south over Pierce and on to Jackson. The Crawford Path was covered with a fresh layer of snow from the night before. At the bottom was around an inch but it gradually increased to a couple inches with a few small drifts near the treeline. The trail is still solid and we were able to bare boot the hike from the Highland Center to the treeline. We had a couple small slips along the way but traction was never a problem as we made our way through the initial climb. With the solid trail, postholing was not a problem and we had no need for the snowshoes.
The day was perfect with a few broken clouds and virtually no wind at all. Since this was a relatively small hike, we took a relaxed approach to the day. Our plan was to be back out around sunset. We slowly made our way along the early part of the Crawford Path going through the usual long warm-up that I need with several short stops included. Near the Mizpah Cutoff, we were taking a short break when a young couple passed us. It turned out they were on a similar hike plan for the day. Now, it’s their turn to handle the “trail breaking” chore (fresh tracks in the fresh snow). After Mizpah Cutoff another solo hiker passed on snowshoes and it turned out he was hiking a round trip to Pierce.
We reached the treeline and enjoyed the first views to Eisenhower and on north to Washington and Jefferson. These first views of the Presidentials are always a big boost to the day when hiking in this area, especially if the conditions are great (and ours were great conditions). We started to hit a lot of ice on the crust making for difficult traction on the slight side hill section leading to the junction with Webster Cliff Trail. We pulled out the MicroSpikes and problem solved. We still had a solid trail and didn’t need to go with the snowshoes, not yet. Along with the MicroSpikes the sunglasses also came out. The unlimited sun and still lots of snow made for pretty bright conditions.
We passed the Webster Cliff Trail junction and continued north on Crawford Path to Eisenhower. We were a couple tenths north of the Webster Cliff junction when it happened. With the day’s conditions it had to happen at some point. We had a nice layer of fresh snow and mild conditions. The snow was getting a little sticky. It was time for a snowman. We made a stop and Sue went to work. This one was left in a shady place along the trail. While we were stopped, another couple passed headed to Eisenhower. They asked about the trail’s route as they went through. Working through the scrub between Pierce and Eisenhower can be confusing but the established route was generally apparent, even with the layer of fresh snow.
Snowman done, we were again headed to Eisenhower. The trail breaks out of the scrub roughly half-way between Pierce and Eisenhower. In this area we came to the couple that passed during the snowman distraction. A comment they made as we went through seemed to indicate they were thinking the hike was a little too big for their day. They were only hiking a round-trip to Eisenhower. Perhaps they had a time constraint. We continued to the Eisenhower Loop junction, made the turn, and headed for the summit. From the trail junction we could see the first couple descending from the summit.
Soon after the turn we decided to save some avoidable wear and tear on the footwear and stopped to remove the MicroSpikes. The climb to the summit had more open rocks than ice and it was easily bare booted. In the sections with the new erosion control there is a fair amount of accumulated water and mud. The logs seem to work well. We skirted the wet areas on the trail and were soon standing on the summit getting the usual pictures and enjoying a warm, sunny day. The conditions with a complete lack of wind made for a terrific day.
We made the u-turn and started back to Crawford Path and then on to our second target for the day, Mount Pierce. A short distance off the summit we passed the couple that we last saw a short time after the snowman. Sue helped with a quick photo-assist and we were on our way. Near the bottom of the loop we bumped into Jeremy Clark, also on an Eisenhower hike from Crawford Notch. After a brief visit we said goodbye and continued on our hike plan.
The southbound hike back to the junction with Webster Cliff Trail was with no surprises. We continued from Eisenhower still bare booting the hike and never needed to pull out the MicroSpikes again. We made the turn at the trail junction and continued to the summit of Pierce. There we stopped for our final above the treeline views for the day. From Pierce to Jackson is very sheltered. A short time after leaving Pierce we stopped to change footwear, again. This time it was snowshoes. The young couple ahead of us evidently on the same hike plan continued bare booting their hike. We wanted to avoid the postholes and related trail damage. It was also time to retire the sunglasses.
The short hike from Pierce to Mizpah went quickly and we were soon standing at the hut, in the warm sun, with lots of fresh snow lying around, and it was sticky – time for another snowman. While Sue built a snowman, I enjoyed a package of crackers. This time the snowman ended up standing guard on the roof of Mizpah Spring Hut. Another snowman distraction done and we were headed for Jackson. On our last time through this area we ended up losing the trail and generally bushwhacking our way to Jackson. This time went better. First, we had a small problem. For some reason the turn off Mizpah Cutoff to stay with Webster Cliff Trail is very easy to miss. I’ve done it a couple times before and did it again on this hike. We realized the problem about fifty yards after the missed turn, returned and got back on course.
The fresh tracks being left by the young couple up ahead were still with us. We made it a point to keep track of blazes as we hiked toward Jackson. Past experience has taught us the trail to Jackson is easily lost and can be difficult to find. The tracked route generally stays with the blazed trail most of the way to the area of the bogs. Roughly a half mile short of the bogs, maybe a little less, there is tracked out routes visible under the fresh snow that diverge, generally to the east. There is a high spot between Mizpah and Jackson. The blazed trail contours around the west side of this bump. The diverged tracks all seem to head over the top of the bump. That is the bushwhack route we followed on our previous trip through the area.
This time, we slowed down and made sure we stayed on-trail, we weren’t just following tracks. Along the way through this area the tracks that were ahead made a u-turn and returned in the direction of Mizpah. The place where the u-turn was made was beside a tree with a white blaze – the couple was on-trail. I can’t imagine the reason for the u-turn. If they were running late, they were also much closer to continue over Jackson for an exit back to Crawford Notch, than to backtrack.
Sue and I continued along the trail. We were able to regularly locate blazes and follow the actual trail corridor to the area entering the bogs. From there life became interesting. The blazes seemed to disappear. Trail markings through the bogs are limited but there is no shortage of tracked-out routes through the bogs. We passed through the first bog, located a blaze between it and the larger second bog, and made our way into the larger bog. There, we again lost the trail. After making our way into the center of the bog we could see the new bog bridges up ahead and were back on-trail. There was no track leaving the bridges toward Jackson. Doesn’t anybody follow the trail through this area?
Continued........
Trails: Crawford Path, Eisenhower Loop Trail, Webster Cliff Trail, Webster-Jackson Trail
Summits: Eisenhower, Pierce, Jackson
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Sue’s approach to her April vacation is a little different this time around. Instead of taking a solid week off she has spread the vacation days across three weeks. Because of other time constraints, this approach gives a couple more hiking days. With great conditions in the forecast we decided to head back to the Southern Presidentials. Our plan was a loop from Crawford Notch. Back in February we completed the same hike and had a very difficult time due to conditions along the way. We were hoping this time through would be better.
We set off from the Highland Center hiking the Crawford Path. The plan was to head straight to Eisenhower first, then hike south over Pierce and on to Jackson. The Crawford Path was covered with a fresh layer of snow from the night before. At the bottom was around an inch but it gradually increased to a couple inches with a few small drifts near the treeline. The trail is still solid and we were able to bare boot the hike from the Highland Center to the treeline. We had a couple small slips along the way but traction was never a problem as we made our way through the initial climb. With the solid trail, postholing was not a problem and we had no need for the snowshoes.
The day was perfect with a few broken clouds and virtually no wind at all. Since this was a relatively small hike, we took a relaxed approach to the day. Our plan was to be back out around sunset. We slowly made our way along the early part of the Crawford Path going through the usual long warm-up that I need with several short stops included. Near the Mizpah Cutoff, we were taking a short break when a young couple passed us. It turned out they were on a similar hike plan for the day. Now, it’s their turn to handle the “trail breaking” chore (fresh tracks in the fresh snow). After Mizpah Cutoff another solo hiker passed on snowshoes and it turned out he was hiking a round trip to Pierce.
We reached the treeline and enjoyed the first views to Eisenhower and on north to Washington and Jefferson. These first views of the Presidentials are always a big boost to the day when hiking in this area, especially if the conditions are great (and ours were great conditions). We started to hit a lot of ice on the crust making for difficult traction on the slight side hill section leading to the junction with Webster Cliff Trail. We pulled out the MicroSpikes and problem solved. We still had a solid trail and didn’t need to go with the snowshoes, not yet. Along with the MicroSpikes the sunglasses also came out. The unlimited sun and still lots of snow made for pretty bright conditions.
We passed the Webster Cliff Trail junction and continued north on Crawford Path to Eisenhower. We were a couple tenths north of the Webster Cliff junction when it happened. With the day’s conditions it had to happen at some point. We had a nice layer of fresh snow and mild conditions. The snow was getting a little sticky. It was time for a snowman. We made a stop and Sue went to work. This one was left in a shady place along the trail. While we were stopped, another couple passed headed to Eisenhower. They asked about the trail’s route as they went through. Working through the scrub between Pierce and Eisenhower can be confusing but the established route was generally apparent, even with the layer of fresh snow.
Snowman done, we were again headed to Eisenhower. The trail breaks out of the scrub roughly half-way between Pierce and Eisenhower. In this area we came to the couple that passed during the snowman distraction. A comment they made as we went through seemed to indicate they were thinking the hike was a little too big for their day. They were only hiking a round-trip to Eisenhower. Perhaps they had a time constraint. We continued to the Eisenhower Loop junction, made the turn, and headed for the summit. From the trail junction we could see the first couple descending from the summit.
Soon after the turn we decided to save some avoidable wear and tear on the footwear and stopped to remove the MicroSpikes. The climb to the summit had more open rocks than ice and it was easily bare booted. In the sections with the new erosion control there is a fair amount of accumulated water and mud. The logs seem to work well. We skirted the wet areas on the trail and were soon standing on the summit getting the usual pictures and enjoying a warm, sunny day. The conditions with a complete lack of wind made for a terrific day.
We made the u-turn and started back to Crawford Path and then on to our second target for the day, Mount Pierce. A short distance off the summit we passed the couple that we last saw a short time after the snowman. Sue helped with a quick photo-assist and we were on our way. Near the bottom of the loop we bumped into Jeremy Clark, also on an Eisenhower hike from Crawford Notch. After a brief visit we said goodbye and continued on our hike plan.
The southbound hike back to the junction with Webster Cliff Trail was with no surprises. We continued from Eisenhower still bare booting the hike and never needed to pull out the MicroSpikes again. We made the turn at the trail junction and continued to the summit of Pierce. There we stopped for our final above the treeline views for the day. From Pierce to Jackson is very sheltered. A short time after leaving Pierce we stopped to change footwear, again. This time it was snowshoes. The young couple ahead of us evidently on the same hike plan continued bare booting their hike. We wanted to avoid the postholes and related trail damage. It was also time to retire the sunglasses.
The short hike from Pierce to Mizpah went quickly and we were soon standing at the hut, in the warm sun, with lots of fresh snow lying around, and it was sticky – time for another snowman. While Sue built a snowman, I enjoyed a package of crackers. This time the snowman ended up standing guard on the roof of Mizpah Spring Hut. Another snowman distraction done and we were headed for Jackson. On our last time through this area we ended up losing the trail and generally bushwhacking our way to Jackson. This time went better. First, we had a small problem. For some reason the turn off Mizpah Cutoff to stay with Webster Cliff Trail is very easy to miss. I’ve done it a couple times before and did it again on this hike. We realized the problem about fifty yards after the missed turn, returned and got back on course.
The fresh tracks being left by the young couple up ahead were still with us. We made it a point to keep track of blazes as we hiked toward Jackson. Past experience has taught us the trail to Jackson is easily lost and can be difficult to find. The tracked route generally stays with the blazed trail most of the way to the area of the bogs. Roughly a half mile short of the bogs, maybe a little less, there is tracked out routes visible under the fresh snow that diverge, generally to the east. There is a high spot between Mizpah and Jackson. The blazed trail contours around the west side of this bump. The diverged tracks all seem to head over the top of the bump. That is the bushwhack route we followed on our previous trip through the area.
This time, we slowed down and made sure we stayed on-trail, we weren’t just following tracks. Along the way through this area the tracks that were ahead made a u-turn and returned in the direction of Mizpah. The place where the u-turn was made was beside a tree with a white blaze – the couple was on-trail. I can’t imagine the reason for the u-turn. If they were running late, they were also much closer to continue over Jackson for an exit back to Crawford Notch, than to backtrack.
Sue and I continued along the trail. We were able to regularly locate blazes and follow the actual trail corridor to the area entering the bogs. From there life became interesting. The blazes seemed to disappear. Trail markings through the bogs are limited but there is no shortage of tracked-out routes through the bogs. We passed through the first bog, located a blaze between it and the larger second bog, and made our way into the larger bog. There, we again lost the trail. After making our way into the center of the bog we could see the new bog bridges up ahead and were back on-trail. There was no track leaving the bridges toward Jackson. Doesn’t anybody follow the trail through this area?
Continued........
