TMax
New member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2005
- Messages
- 589
- Reaction score
- 85
OK. So two weeks ago my hiking buddy (David) calls me up and says "did you see that issue of backpacker magazine?" Referring of course to the article entitled "America's Hardest Dayhikes." Number 3 was the Great Range from Rooster Comb to Marcy and out the Phelps trail. Naturally, I jumped right in for the adventure! 
After shuttling a car up to the Loj for the end of the hike, we camped at a tent site down the road from the Rooster Comb trailhead so we could get an early start. Between the excitement of the impending hike and the thunderstorms that rolled through, sleep didn't come easy. 3:00 a.m. we were up and moving. The river we had to cross to get out from the tent site rose during the night which made crossing with headlamps a WET challenge. At the trailhead we made oatmeal for breakfast and PB&J sandwiches for the trail. Packs had been loaded the night before. With one final check we were on the trail by 4:00. The climb up Rooster Comb was interesting with the headlamps. A couple of times I lost the trail, but is was easy enough to get back on. At times there was a mist that diffused the light to the point that it was almost useless. The trail was in pretty good shape though, with a fairly steady up...We took the half-mile loop to the summit and got a brief view of the sunrise. Working a little behind schedule (we started off a half-hour later than intended) we hurried off to Hedgehog. The trail started to get quite wet and muddy but made some interesting twists and turns through dense forest. One false summit, some descent and then up to the viewless top. Keep moving... on to Lower Wolf Jaw. The trail was very eroded which made for some challenging rock scrambles. The sun poked out briefly during this climb which gave some encouragement. A rest at the top with the intake of energy fortifying food and some enjoyment of the view and off again.
The trail makes a steep and steady decline for about 800'. We ran into the first people of the day, a pair heading up who were attempting an abbreviated traverse. The climb up to Upper Wolf Jaw was a lot of fun with slick rocks and some tough scrambles. More beautiful views from the summit and then on to Armstrong. Lots of mud... views, more food and on to Gothics. What an amazing mountain and a wonderful climb. Hit some serious snow as we climbed...Stopped at the top for lunch. The pair we saw earlier caught up to us and joined us in lunch. I could have sat there forever (or at least for a long nap!). But alas, the trail called...
I was beginning to consider the need to bail out. From Gothics, I could have backtracked to the Lake Road trail and out Ausable where I could road walk back to the car. Or I could go forward and out the Ore Bed Brook trail to the Garden. Since I wasn't quite ready to bail out, I went forward. The descent off Gothics is a ton of fun. They've replaced the cables and the new ones have a nice soft covering ...adds tremendously to one's psychological sense of security going down those slabs. On the way down we started running into lots of people heading up. Including one very large group of 17 (aren't there rules about that? ). Down in the col I decided that at the pace we were hiking (not to mention my dwindling leg muscles ) the summit of Marcy (still 3 peaks and a couple of thousand feet in elevation gain away!) would probably not be attained until dark and then there would be at least another 4 hours down to the Loj. Since David has a faster pace than I, and had a strong desire to complete this hike, we decided to part ways. He headed off ahead of me to Saddleback and I followed behind with the plan of coming back down and heading out to the Garden. The hike up Saddleback gave some incredible views of Gothics behind me, and the crowds trying to climb up the cables. On the summit of Saddleback I chatted with a very friendly pair of women who were out enjoying the day. Munching more food, I was able to see David start the climb up Basin. I then headed back down. The Ore Bed Trail is extremely eroded, making the first portion of it tough. I was trying to walk down wet slabs (there was a wide stream running down this entire portion) and not go off to the side adding to the erosion. There is a series of 3 ladders towards the bottom of this difficult area that presented there own challenge with missing steps ... Once down from here, the walk was a pleasant stroll. Crossing the river over to Johns Brook Lodge made for more wet feet but at least washed some of the mud off. Took a small break at the Lodge, replenished my water supply and headed out. The trip down to the Garden was a breeze. As I emerged into the parking lot (about 5:15) I saw the hiker shuttle . Since I was the only rider, the driver was happy to bring me back to the Rooster Comb Trailhead. I gave him a generous tip for this act that was nothing short of miraculous for me!
I drove back to the Loj (showered for a really long time ) and waited for David. He literally fell into the Loj about 9:30. Exhausted and swearing never to try anything like that again (until the next morning when he said he'd try again with me if I waited at least six months for the memory to recede!) he told of the worsening conditions going to Haystack...deeper snow with slipping and postholing. Just the thing for a weary hiker. But hey, he's pretty cool, he made it!
Given the weather report (rain, possibility of more rain, hail, thunder...) the day turned out amazingly well. Cool and windy, very little sun, and only occassional spinkles which all served to keep the black flies at bay! Next time I start at 3:00 a.m....
After shuttling a car up to the Loj for the end of the hike, we camped at a tent site down the road from the Rooster Comb trailhead so we could get an early start. Between the excitement of the impending hike and the thunderstorms that rolled through, sleep didn't come easy. 3:00 a.m. we were up and moving. The river we had to cross to get out from the tent site rose during the night which made crossing with headlamps a WET challenge. At the trailhead we made oatmeal for breakfast and PB&J sandwiches for the trail. Packs had been loaded the night before. With one final check we were on the trail by 4:00. The climb up Rooster Comb was interesting with the headlamps. A couple of times I lost the trail,
but is was easy enough to get back on. At times there was a mist that diffused the light to the point that it was almost useless. The trail was in pretty good shape though, with a fairly steady up...We took the half-mile loop to the summit and got a brief view of the sunrise. Working a little behind schedule (we started off a half-hour later than intended) we hurried off to Hedgehog. The trail started to get quite wet and muddy but made some interesting twists and turns through dense forest. One false summit, some descent and then up to the viewless top. Keep moving... on to Lower Wolf Jaw. The trail was very eroded which made for some challenging rock scrambles. The sun poked out briefly during this climb which gave some encouragement. A rest at the top with the intake of energy fortifying food and some enjoyment of the view and off again. The trail makes a steep and steady decline for about 800'. We ran into the first people of the day, a pair heading up who were attempting an abbreviated traverse. The climb up to Upper Wolf Jaw was a lot of fun with slick rocks and some tough scrambles. More beautiful views from the summit and then on to Armstrong. Lots of mud... views, more food and on to Gothics. What an amazing mountain and a wonderful climb. Hit some serious snow as we climbed...Stopped at the top for lunch. The pair we saw earlier caught up to us and joined us in lunch. I could have sat there forever (or at least for a long nap!). But alas, the trail called...
I was beginning to consider the need to bail out. From Gothics, I could have backtracked to the Lake Road trail and out Ausable where I could road walk back to the car. Or I could go forward and out the Ore Bed Brook trail to the Garden. Since I wasn't quite ready to bail out, I went forward. The descent off Gothics is a ton of fun. They've replaced the cables and the new ones have a nice soft covering
...adds tremendously to one's psychological sense of security going down those slabs. On the way down we started running into lots of people heading up. Including one very large group of 17 (aren't there rules about that? ). Down in the col I decided that at the pace we were hiking (not to mention my dwindling leg muscles ) the summit of Marcy (still 3 peaks and a couple of thousand feet in elevation gain away!) would probably not be attained until dark and then there would be at least another 4 hours down to the Loj. Since David has a faster pace than I, and had a strong desire to complete this hike, we decided to part ways. He headed off ahead of me to Saddleback and I followed behind with the plan of coming back down and heading out to the Garden. The hike up Saddleback gave some incredible views of Gothics behind me, and the crowds trying to climb up the cables. On the summit of Saddleback I chatted with a very friendly pair of women who were out enjoying the day. Munching more food, I was able to see David start the climb up Basin. I then headed back down. The Ore Bed Trail is extremely eroded, making the first portion of it tough. I was trying to walk down wet slabs (there was a wide stream running down this entire portion) and not go off to the side adding to the erosion. There is a series of 3 ladders towards the bottom of this difficult area that presented there own challenge with missing steps ... Once down from here, the walk was a pleasant stroll. Crossing the river over to Johns Brook Lodge made for more wet feet but at least washed some of the mud off. Took a small break at the Lodge, replenished my water supply and headed out. The trip down to the Garden was a breeze. As I emerged into the parking lot (about 5:15) I saw the hiker shuttle . Since I was the only rider, the driver was happy to bring me back to the Rooster Comb Trailhead. I gave him a generous tip for this act that was nothing short of miraculous for me! I drove back to the Loj (showered for a really long time ) and waited for David. He literally fell into the Loj about 9:30. Exhausted and swearing never to try anything like that again (until the next morning when he said he'd try again with me if I waited at least six months for the memory to recede!) he told of the worsening conditions going to Haystack...deeper snow with slipping and postholing. Just the thing for a weary hiker. But hey, he's pretty cool, he made it!
Given the weather report (rain, possibility of more rain, hail, thunder...) the day turned out amazingly well. Cool and windy, very little sun, and only occassional spinkles which all served to keep the black flies at bay! Next time I start at 3:00 a.m....
![Grand Teton Day Hikes and National Park Map [Map Pack Bundle] (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41DB0jvRnbL._SL500_.jpg)
![Yellowstone National Park [Map Pack Bundle] (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51kGuJ72qjL._SL500_.jpg)
![Grand Canyon, North and South Rims [Grand Canyon National Park] (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/419Y-ycyVUL._SL500_.jpg)
