BIGEarl
Well-known member
May 4, 2013: Tecumseh & Moosilauke - Double Hit & Run
Trails: Mount Tecumseh Trail, Gorge Brook Trail
Summits: Tecumseh, Moosilauke
Hikers: Solo
Tecumseh Sunrise
The original plan was for a relatively normal start time to get the two hikes done and return to Nashua by ~8:00pm. A few days before I noticed all of the forecasts for the day were generally the same and the NWS hourly predictions indicated completely clear sky. That got me thinking about a summit sunrise. Eventually I decided to go for it, which would mean a crazy wake-up time and start time to be on the summit before the ~5:35 sunrise. The early start also put me in a good position to hike a triple Hit & Run – I haven’t done one of those in a while and decided it would be a good way to spend the day. I was up at 12:30am and on the road north at roughly 1:00am. All that was out at that hour was one moose beside the road approaching Waterville Valley.
I hit the trailhead lot a little earlier than planned, grabbed my things, turned on the headlight, and started for the summit, but not until I first enjoyed the view. The sky was clear, really clear. There was an occasional shooting star passing through. With no city lights to distract from this view, I needed to enjoy it for a couple minutes. Once I started hiking my head would be down. Even on the outskirts of town where I live it’s impossible to get this kind of view. What a sight!
The Mount Tecumseh Trail is relatively clear until the upper crossing of Tecumseh Brook. From there to the summit the trail has snow, ice, and monorail to deal with. Initially there was enough bare ground to work with but when I reached the viewpoint spur that leads to the ski trail I pulled out the MICROSpikes. The trail was mostly ice-covered at that point and the traction was a safety addition as much as anything. I didn’t need to take a fall in the middle of the night on Mount Tecumseh Trail.
From the viewpoint spur to the summit was an easy walk. The trail is solid with very little in the way of posthole damage. The MICROSpikes really did the job. There was one large blowdown that hung across the trail on my most recent visit a few weeks earlier but the section over the trail has now been cut and just needs to me removed from the trail. I assume a come-along will be needed to finish the clearing of this obstacle.
Roughly two-thirds of the way to the height of land on the ridge below the summit I looked back over my shoulder and noticed the sky starting to get lighter on the horizon. This made me push myself pretty hard to get to the summit as quickly as I could. At that point I didn’t have a good sense of how much longer it would take to get to the summit. I just needed to be there ahead of sunrise. The sky was as clear as clear gets and I was too close to miss out on this sunrise.
A great deal of exposed rock is on the trail from the trail split on the west approach. Fortunately, there is enough soft ground and ice to land on with the MICROSpikes to prevent needless wear. Roughly thirty minutes ahead of plan I stepped onto the summit area. I turned off the headlight a short time earlier but I was there in time. The only clock I have is the one on my camera. I checked and found I had roughly a half-hour before sunrise. With the extra time I got a few of the usual pictures. Then, I pulled out a jacket from my pack, selected my viewing position, and waited.
Slowly the show started. The sky continued to get lighter but now with very bright colors. Down below I could see the lights from Waterville Valley and the Ski Area, straight out to the east was the summit sunrise show that I had been looking for. I just sat there quietly, enjoying the show, and taking an occasional picture. Finally, a spark of bright light appeared peaking over the distant ridge. From that point on it was easy to watch the sun move higher on the horizon. The process from a small bright spark of light to the full sun only took a few minutes. As the sun moved completely above the horizon the colors quickly washed out and the show was over. The show was a short one but it was definitely worth a couple hours of lost sleep.
Along with the checkmark, that’s why I was there. It was time to head for my next target for the day. I grabbed my things and started down. Sitting on the rock for roughly a half-hour allows me to cool off and I needed to get some heat generated. Descending generated lots of heat and I was ready for it. Roughly half way to the viewpoint spur I had perspiration everywhere and needed to stop and de-layer. Once again comfortable I settled into a comfortable cruise to the trailhead. The place was just as I left it; my truck was the only vehicle there. Everybody must have decided to sleep in. I tossed my things into the truck, grabbed some drinks and food, and was off for Ravine Lodge Road to hike Moosilauke.
Moosilauke via Gorge Brook Trail
My plan was to hike Moosilauke via Gorge Brook Trail. I arrived at the end of Ravine Lodge Road, grabbed my pack and some extra Gatorade, and set off. After I got away from the area of the lodge I slowly started to hit snow and ice. At the Snapper-Hurricane-Gorge Brook trails junction there are signs indicating Gorge Brook Trail has been partially relocated away from the stream and storm damage. I continued up Snapper Trail and soon reached the new trail junction. From there to the summit was mostly snow and ice covered. Even though the trail had a great amount of snow and ice there were adequate bare spots for secure footing. I managed to bare boot the hike from end to end.
Based on the visible signs, I was the first in hiking Gorge Brook; the day was still pretty early. The trail was solid and supported me with no postholing at all. Gorge Brook Trail is a terrific approach to Moosilauke and much milder than Beaver Brook (my alternate choice for the day). I was able to maintain a good pace all of the way to the summit. When I first saw the summit sign post there were no others there. As I made my way across the open area on the east side of the summit four others arrived from Beaver Brook and Glencliff.
On most prior visits to Moosilauke the conditions have been generally unfriendly. There have been high winds, rain, snow, very low visibility, and all of the combinations you can imagine. Even sunny days were cold and very windy. On this visit the conditions were about as good as they get; sunny, warm, and a very slight breeze – nearly calm. After getting my usual pictures I was able to take off my pack, sit in comfort on the rocks, and enjoy a snack along with some of the nicest views you could ask for.
After a while I realized there was still more in my plan for the day and I started my exit hike. Soon after leaving the summit area I started meeting hikers ascending; and endless line of hikers. The day had really warmed up and the snow had become very unstable. Everybody was bare booting and postholing. The trail was generally destroyed but I’m not sure a few snowshoes would make a difference. With the forecast the remaining snow surely can’t last much longer. I attempted to keep making progress toward Ravine Lodge Road but found myself standing at the side of the trail over and over as lines of ascending hikers passed; each of them wearing a big smile. It was really a terrific day to hike Moosilauke.
Eventually I passed the final traffic a short distance above the McKenney memorial and cruised to the truck. Along the way I started thinking about a few concerning my third target, which was Jackson. First, I was pretty sure the trails in Crawford Notch were probably getting the same treatment as Gorge Brook Trail; lots of postholing tearing the trail up. Second, if I hiked Jackson my return time to Nashua would be late. I did the math and decided it wasn’t worth it. I had an early wake-up time for the next day. By the time I reached the truck I had decided to call it a day after Moosilauke.
I packed my things away and headed for the highway south. It was an early day but not necessarily a short one.
Now I’m thinking about a triple; soon.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Mount Tecumseh Trail, Gorge Brook Trail
Summits: Tecumseh, Moosilauke
Hikers: Solo
Tecumseh Sunrise
The original plan was for a relatively normal start time to get the two hikes done and return to Nashua by ~8:00pm. A few days before I noticed all of the forecasts for the day were generally the same and the NWS hourly predictions indicated completely clear sky. That got me thinking about a summit sunrise. Eventually I decided to go for it, which would mean a crazy wake-up time and start time to be on the summit before the ~5:35 sunrise. The early start also put me in a good position to hike a triple Hit & Run – I haven’t done one of those in a while and decided it would be a good way to spend the day. I was up at 12:30am and on the road north at roughly 1:00am. All that was out at that hour was one moose beside the road approaching Waterville Valley.
I hit the trailhead lot a little earlier than planned, grabbed my things, turned on the headlight, and started for the summit, but not until I first enjoyed the view. The sky was clear, really clear. There was an occasional shooting star passing through. With no city lights to distract from this view, I needed to enjoy it for a couple minutes. Once I started hiking my head would be down. Even on the outskirts of town where I live it’s impossible to get this kind of view. What a sight!
The Mount Tecumseh Trail is relatively clear until the upper crossing of Tecumseh Brook. From there to the summit the trail has snow, ice, and monorail to deal with. Initially there was enough bare ground to work with but when I reached the viewpoint spur that leads to the ski trail I pulled out the MICROSpikes. The trail was mostly ice-covered at that point and the traction was a safety addition as much as anything. I didn’t need to take a fall in the middle of the night on Mount Tecumseh Trail.
From the viewpoint spur to the summit was an easy walk. The trail is solid with very little in the way of posthole damage. The MICROSpikes really did the job. There was one large blowdown that hung across the trail on my most recent visit a few weeks earlier but the section over the trail has now been cut and just needs to me removed from the trail. I assume a come-along will be needed to finish the clearing of this obstacle.
Roughly two-thirds of the way to the height of land on the ridge below the summit I looked back over my shoulder and noticed the sky starting to get lighter on the horizon. This made me push myself pretty hard to get to the summit as quickly as I could. At that point I didn’t have a good sense of how much longer it would take to get to the summit. I just needed to be there ahead of sunrise. The sky was as clear as clear gets and I was too close to miss out on this sunrise.
A great deal of exposed rock is on the trail from the trail split on the west approach. Fortunately, there is enough soft ground and ice to land on with the MICROSpikes to prevent needless wear. Roughly thirty minutes ahead of plan I stepped onto the summit area. I turned off the headlight a short time earlier but I was there in time. The only clock I have is the one on my camera. I checked and found I had roughly a half-hour before sunrise. With the extra time I got a few of the usual pictures. Then, I pulled out a jacket from my pack, selected my viewing position, and waited.
Slowly the show started. The sky continued to get lighter but now with very bright colors. Down below I could see the lights from Waterville Valley and the Ski Area, straight out to the east was the summit sunrise show that I had been looking for. I just sat there quietly, enjoying the show, and taking an occasional picture. Finally, a spark of bright light appeared peaking over the distant ridge. From that point on it was easy to watch the sun move higher on the horizon. The process from a small bright spark of light to the full sun only took a few minutes. As the sun moved completely above the horizon the colors quickly washed out and the show was over. The show was a short one but it was definitely worth a couple hours of lost sleep.
Along with the checkmark, that’s why I was there. It was time to head for my next target for the day. I grabbed my things and started down. Sitting on the rock for roughly a half-hour allows me to cool off and I needed to get some heat generated. Descending generated lots of heat and I was ready for it. Roughly half way to the viewpoint spur I had perspiration everywhere and needed to stop and de-layer. Once again comfortable I settled into a comfortable cruise to the trailhead. The place was just as I left it; my truck was the only vehicle there. Everybody must have decided to sleep in. I tossed my things into the truck, grabbed some drinks and food, and was off for Ravine Lodge Road to hike Moosilauke.
Moosilauke via Gorge Brook Trail
My plan was to hike Moosilauke via Gorge Brook Trail. I arrived at the end of Ravine Lodge Road, grabbed my pack and some extra Gatorade, and set off. After I got away from the area of the lodge I slowly started to hit snow and ice. At the Snapper-Hurricane-Gorge Brook trails junction there are signs indicating Gorge Brook Trail has been partially relocated away from the stream and storm damage. I continued up Snapper Trail and soon reached the new trail junction. From there to the summit was mostly snow and ice covered. Even though the trail had a great amount of snow and ice there were adequate bare spots for secure footing. I managed to bare boot the hike from end to end.
Based on the visible signs, I was the first in hiking Gorge Brook; the day was still pretty early. The trail was solid and supported me with no postholing at all. Gorge Brook Trail is a terrific approach to Moosilauke and much milder than Beaver Brook (my alternate choice for the day). I was able to maintain a good pace all of the way to the summit. When I first saw the summit sign post there were no others there. As I made my way across the open area on the east side of the summit four others arrived from Beaver Brook and Glencliff.
On most prior visits to Moosilauke the conditions have been generally unfriendly. There have been high winds, rain, snow, very low visibility, and all of the combinations you can imagine. Even sunny days were cold and very windy. On this visit the conditions were about as good as they get; sunny, warm, and a very slight breeze – nearly calm. After getting my usual pictures I was able to take off my pack, sit in comfort on the rocks, and enjoy a snack along with some of the nicest views you could ask for.
After a while I realized there was still more in my plan for the day and I started my exit hike. Soon after leaving the summit area I started meeting hikers ascending; and endless line of hikers. The day had really warmed up and the snow had become very unstable. Everybody was bare booting and postholing. The trail was generally destroyed but I’m not sure a few snowshoes would make a difference. With the forecast the remaining snow surely can’t last much longer. I attempted to keep making progress toward Ravine Lodge Road but found myself standing at the side of the trail over and over as lines of ascending hikers passed; each of them wearing a big smile. It was really a terrific day to hike Moosilauke.
Eventually I passed the final traffic a short distance above the McKenney memorial and cruised to the truck. Along the way I started thinking about a few concerning my third target, which was Jackson. First, I was pretty sure the trails in Crawford Notch were probably getting the same treatment as Gorge Brook Trail; lots of postholing tearing the trail up. Second, if I hiked Jackson my return time to Nashua would be late. I did the math and decided it wasn’t worth it. I had an early wake-up time for the next day. By the time I reached the truck I had decided to call it a day after Moosilauke.
I packed my things away and headed for the highway south. It was an early day but not necessarily a short one.
Now I’m thinking about a triple; soon.
Pictures will follow.
