BIGEarl
Well-known member
March 22, 2014: Garfield
Trails: Gale River Road, Mt. Garfield Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail
Summits: Garfield
Hikers: Jessica Davis, Larry Donoghue, Keith Malone, David Chase, and me
The calendar indicates March 20 was the start of spring, but it’s a slow start. Since she was not heading back south after the hike, Jessica followed me to the trailhead. We arrived to the entrance road, I pulled the truck in and we both decided it was no place for a low-clearance vehicle. We took Jessica’s car to the plowed area at the end of Trudeau Road - Five Corners. The trailhead lot and entry road had not been plowed after the storm a few days earlier and it was not a place for a car. Keith was already there going through his final hike prep, Dave and Larry weren’t far behind.
A few minutes after the planned start we were hiking. The first 1.2 miles were a road walk on Gale River Loop Road to the summer trailhead for Mt. Garfield Trail. The snow was packed and solid; we were able to bare boot it to the trailhead. This short warm-up didn’t take long and in twenty minutes we were starting up Mt. Garfield Trail. Keith took the lead and set a good pace for the hike. We made our way through the early part of the hike past the three crossings and well into the low climb through the open hardwoods. Eventually it was time for a quick break. We were enjoying pretty nice conditions with very little wind. Based on the forecast for the day that wasn’t going to last.
We finished making our way through the hardwoods and into the switchbacks in the conifers at the upper Mt. Garfield Trail. We reached a point where there was a concern about the softness of the trail and we pulled out the snowshoes before causing damage. By then I was in front trying to find a pace that was comfortable. We kept making stops as needed and making our way up the trail. First, the noise started. The wind noise was significant at times. It was close overhead and loud. Eventually, we climbed into the wind and found blowing snow. We met three others that had gone out ahead of us that morning now on their descent. After a brief visit we all continued on our hikes. The wind and drifting it caused were impressive. As we hiked along there were places where fresh tracks from the other three were not obvious. And, there were places where the trail was completely drifted in not long after three hikers had passed through. Some of the drifts had already become big. Sometimes, the unexpected happens fast; I guess that’s the way life is – the good and bad. We continued and met one more hiker on his descent.
We generally just hiked to the junction with Garfield Ridge Trail making stops as needed. Eventually the trees loaded up with snow, the wind and blowing snow and ice increased, and we pulled out added layers for the conditions. At the trail junction we made one last stop before the final climb to the summit.
To this point we enjoyed terrific trail conditions. From the junction to the summit was more of the same with no ice. Snowshoes did the job for the steep climb. The wind was swirling as we climbed the final .2 to the summit. As we approached the open summit the wind became a steady and strong southerly wind with lots of blowing ice. The conditions managed to limit our stay on the summit. We stepped onto the open area, climbed to the summit, and got the usual pictures. Soon we were on our way back down.
Soon after leaving the summit we met another pair on their final approach. The trip down to the Mt. Garfield – Garfield Ridge trails junction was steep and fast. Again out of the severe conditions we made one more stop for refreshment and were soon on our exit hike to the trailhead.
The trip out went quickly. We had a trail that was firm, offered great traction for the snowshoes, and allowed us to move as fast as we wanted. There were only a few stops on the way down. As we descended the temperature seemed to come up a little and the snow became sticky. Again I experienced snow loading on my MSR’s. A short distance past the third crossing, along with Larry and Dave, I retired the snowshoes for the day. The trail was solid and snowshoes weren’t needed. From there we had an easy cruise back to the summer trailhead. The closer we got the louder they got. The “they” was passing snowmobiles; a short section of the road is also a snowmobile trail. There were only a few and the operators were all very respectful of the foot traffic.
Before the final 1.2 to the vehicles Jessica retired her snowshoes as well and we were on our way. Soon we were stepping into the winter trailhead parking area. Packing didn’t take long. We all said our goodbyes, retrieved Jessica’s car from Five Corners, and took off for our evening destinations.
Thanks to everybody for a good day on Garfield. I really enjoyed everything about the hike, especially the good company of Jessica, Larry, Keith, and Dave. Hopefully we are all able to get together for another one very soon.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: Gale River Road, Mt. Garfield Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail
Summits: Garfield
Hikers: Jessica Davis, Larry Donoghue, Keith Malone, David Chase, and me
The calendar indicates March 20 was the start of spring, but it’s a slow start. Since she was not heading back south after the hike, Jessica followed me to the trailhead. We arrived to the entrance road, I pulled the truck in and we both decided it was no place for a low-clearance vehicle. We took Jessica’s car to the plowed area at the end of Trudeau Road - Five Corners. The trailhead lot and entry road had not been plowed after the storm a few days earlier and it was not a place for a car. Keith was already there going through his final hike prep, Dave and Larry weren’t far behind.
A few minutes after the planned start we were hiking. The first 1.2 miles were a road walk on Gale River Loop Road to the summer trailhead for Mt. Garfield Trail. The snow was packed and solid; we were able to bare boot it to the trailhead. This short warm-up didn’t take long and in twenty minutes we were starting up Mt. Garfield Trail. Keith took the lead and set a good pace for the hike. We made our way through the early part of the hike past the three crossings and well into the low climb through the open hardwoods. Eventually it was time for a quick break. We were enjoying pretty nice conditions with very little wind. Based on the forecast for the day that wasn’t going to last.
We finished making our way through the hardwoods and into the switchbacks in the conifers at the upper Mt. Garfield Trail. We reached a point where there was a concern about the softness of the trail and we pulled out the snowshoes before causing damage. By then I was in front trying to find a pace that was comfortable. We kept making stops as needed and making our way up the trail. First, the noise started. The wind noise was significant at times. It was close overhead and loud. Eventually, we climbed into the wind and found blowing snow. We met three others that had gone out ahead of us that morning now on their descent. After a brief visit we all continued on our hikes. The wind and drifting it caused were impressive. As we hiked along there were places where fresh tracks from the other three were not obvious. And, there were places where the trail was completely drifted in not long after three hikers had passed through. Some of the drifts had already become big. Sometimes, the unexpected happens fast; I guess that’s the way life is – the good and bad. We continued and met one more hiker on his descent.
We generally just hiked to the junction with Garfield Ridge Trail making stops as needed. Eventually the trees loaded up with snow, the wind and blowing snow and ice increased, and we pulled out added layers for the conditions. At the trail junction we made one last stop before the final climb to the summit.
To this point we enjoyed terrific trail conditions. From the junction to the summit was more of the same with no ice. Snowshoes did the job for the steep climb. The wind was swirling as we climbed the final .2 to the summit. As we approached the open summit the wind became a steady and strong southerly wind with lots of blowing ice. The conditions managed to limit our stay on the summit. We stepped onto the open area, climbed to the summit, and got the usual pictures. Soon we were on our way back down.
Soon after leaving the summit we met another pair on their final approach. The trip down to the Mt. Garfield – Garfield Ridge trails junction was steep and fast. Again out of the severe conditions we made one more stop for refreshment and were soon on our exit hike to the trailhead.
The trip out went quickly. We had a trail that was firm, offered great traction for the snowshoes, and allowed us to move as fast as we wanted. There were only a few stops on the way down. As we descended the temperature seemed to come up a little and the snow became sticky. Again I experienced snow loading on my MSR’s. A short distance past the third crossing, along with Larry and Dave, I retired the snowshoes for the day. The trail was solid and snowshoes weren’t needed. From there we had an easy cruise back to the summer trailhead. The closer we got the louder they got. The “they” was passing snowmobiles; a short section of the road is also a snowmobile trail. There were only a few and the operators were all very respectful of the foot traffic.
Before the final 1.2 to the vehicles Jessica retired her snowshoes as well and we were on our way. Soon we were stepping into the winter trailhead parking area. Packing didn’t take long. We all said our goodbyes, retrieved Jessica’s car from Five Corners, and took off for our evening destinations.
Thanks to everybody for a good day on Garfield. I really enjoyed everything about the hike, especially the good company of Jessica, Larry, Keith, and Dave. Hopefully we are all able to get together for another one very soon.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
