BIGEarl
Well-known member
February 17, 2012: The Wildcats, R/T from NMB
Trails: Nineteen Mile Brook Trail, Wildcat Ridge Trail
Summits: Wildcat “A”, Wildcat “D”
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Before we left for the drive to the mountains, the National Weather Service posted their White Mountains Summit Forecast for the day:
“NORTHWEST 50 TO 60 MPH AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 5000 FEET. CHANCE OF SNOW 40 PERCENT. WIND CHILL VALUES AS LOW AS 29 BELOW.”
There goes Plan A, which was Monroe, Washington, and Jefferson from Marshfield Station. I printed this forecast along with a couple others and tossed them into the truck. As we drove north we needed to make a decision on where we were heading. The previous few days were more work than usual because I needed to dig into the details on our primary hikes as well as the alternates. We knew there was a pretty good chance conditions in The Presidentials would be very unfriendly for the day requiring a late decision. We decided on The Wildcats.
Sue and I have hiked the Wildcats quite a few times together. Except for one hike, all have been from Pinkham Notch. On several visits they were the warm-up section on a Wildcats-Carters-Moriah traverse. The one exception was via Polecat due to expected high water conditions on Lost Pond Trail last spring. On that hike we confirmed our suspicions; we really don’t enjoy hiking on ski trails. We have never hiked an out-and-back from Nineteen Mile Brook Trailhead and decided now was a good time for some variety.
When we arrived to the trailhead the only other vehicle there belonged to the caretaker at Carter Notch Hut; we had the place to ourselves. We grabbed our things and started out. The trail was solid with a light dusting of fresh snow providing great traction and allowing us to bare-boot the hike on Nineteen Mile Brook Trail. There was very little ice along the way, all of it that we found was easy to get past. Roughly half-way to Carter Notch we met the caretaker riding a sled on his way out. Based on the tracks we saw on the hike to Carter Notch, he spent very little time on his feet. Even many of the relatively flat areas had enough grade to keep him going and the sides of the trail were high enough to keep him on-trail and out of the trees. It was probably a fun, and fast trip. Once I knew the car at the trailhead was his I asked how many spare tires he had. Funny reaction – it always is. After we finished visiting with the caretaker we continued our walk to Carter Notch and the junction with Wildcat Ridge Trail.
Before starting onto Wildcat Ridge Trail we pulled out the snowshoes. The trail was less tracked out and the climb to Wildcat “A” peak is steep nearly all of the way up; the Televators provided a nice assist on the climb. We settled into a slow but steady pace and just climbed. The trail was a little blown-in at a few places but we had no real difficulties along the way up. Eventually we made our way through the final really steep sections near the top and headed to the summit in the trees. We got the usual summit pictures and visited the viewpoint for a couple distance shots.
We set off across the ridge to Wildcat “D” peak. The trail was really rough from bare booters. Fortunately, the snow was still generally soft and we were able to smooth things out on our out-and-back. The warm day also meant there would be a snowman at some point. Traveling from Wildcat “A” to “D” there are several long steep pitches leading down to Wildcat Col but the climb up to Wildcat “D” Peak is mainly a single pitch; it’s still a tough trail in either direction. As we got closer to Wildcat D the trail seemed to be in better shape, except for the final climb. We made the turn leading to the summit and saw it; a u-turn that looked a lot like an observation deck. We climbed onto the deck, got our usual summit pictures, and made the u-turn.
We’re now on our exit hike, which means we need to re-climb Wildcat “A” peak. We left Wildcat D, descended to Wildcat Col, and started the series of steep pitches that get us over Wildcat C and B peaks. The snow conditions were good with very little ice along the way. At each steep pitch we lifted the Televators and walked up. Those things are terrific. I don’t know about Sue but by the time we reached Wildcat “A” I was feeling it. As I said earlier, Wildcat Ridge Trail is tough in either direction; we’re doing it in both directions. The best part about hitting Wildcat “A” was knowing we were on a 4+ mile descent to the truck; and from Carter Notch to the trailhead was little more than a cool-down lap.
We made our way down from Wildcat A to Carter Notch. There, the snowshoes came off and returned to their places on our packs. Sue pulled out her MicroSpikes and I decided to bare boot the remaining ~3.6 miles. A short distance before reaching the Carter Dome Trail junction Sue also retired her MicroSpikes. We met four others on their hike to the hut for the night. They were interested in the conditions we found on Wildcat Ridge; evidently they were heading there.
After providing the update our hike to the trailhead was a peaceful walk in the woods along Nineteen Mile Brook. When we started the day I was pretty sure headlights would be involved before we finished. In fact, we were out with lots of daylight to spare. I was a little concerned Sue would want to climb something else.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Nineteen Mile Brook Trail, Wildcat Ridge Trail
Summits: Wildcat “A”, Wildcat “D”
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
Before we left for the drive to the mountains, the National Weather Service posted their White Mountains Summit Forecast for the day:
“NORTHWEST 50 TO 60 MPH AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 5000 FEET. CHANCE OF SNOW 40 PERCENT. WIND CHILL VALUES AS LOW AS 29 BELOW.”
There goes Plan A, which was Monroe, Washington, and Jefferson from Marshfield Station. I printed this forecast along with a couple others and tossed them into the truck. As we drove north we needed to make a decision on where we were heading. The previous few days were more work than usual because I needed to dig into the details on our primary hikes as well as the alternates. We knew there was a pretty good chance conditions in The Presidentials would be very unfriendly for the day requiring a late decision. We decided on The Wildcats.
Sue and I have hiked the Wildcats quite a few times together. Except for one hike, all have been from Pinkham Notch. On several visits they were the warm-up section on a Wildcats-Carters-Moriah traverse. The one exception was via Polecat due to expected high water conditions on Lost Pond Trail last spring. On that hike we confirmed our suspicions; we really don’t enjoy hiking on ski trails. We have never hiked an out-and-back from Nineteen Mile Brook Trailhead and decided now was a good time for some variety.
When we arrived to the trailhead the only other vehicle there belonged to the caretaker at Carter Notch Hut; we had the place to ourselves. We grabbed our things and started out. The trail was solid with a light dusting of fresh snow providing great traction and allowing us to bare-boot the hike on Nineteen Mile Brook Trail. There was very little ice along the way, all of it that we found was easy to get past. Roughly half-way to Carter Notch we met the caretaker riding a sled on his way out. Based on the tracks we saw on the hike to Carter Notch, he spent very little time on his feet. Even many of the relatively flat areas had enough grade to keep him going and the sides of the trail were high enough to keep him on-trail and out of the trees. It was probably a fun, and fast trip. Once I knew the car at the trailhead was his I asked how many spare tires he had. Funny reaction – it always is. After we finished visiting with the caretaker we continued our walk to Carter Notch and the junction with Wildcat Ridge Trail.
Before starting onto Wildcat Ridge Trail we pulled out the snowshoes. The trail was less tracked out and the climb to Wildcat “A” peak is steep nearly all of the way up; the Televators provided a nice assist on the climb. We settled into a slow but steady pace and just climbed. The trail was a little blown-in at a few places but we had no real difficulties along the way up. Eventually we made our way through the final really steep sections near the top and headed to the summit in the trees. We got the usual summit pictures and visited the viewpoint for a couple distance shots.
We set off across the ridge to Wildcat “D” peak. The trail was really rough from bare booters. Fortunately, the snow was still generally soft and we were able to smooth things out on our out-and-back. The warm day also meant there would be a snowman at some point. Traveling from Wildcat “A” to “D” there are several long steep pitches leading down to Wildcat Col but the climb up to Wildcat “D” Peak is mainly a single pitch; it’s still a tough trail in either direction. As we got closer to Wildcat D the trail seemed to be in better shape, except for the final climb. We made the turn leading to the summit and saw it; a u-turn that looked a lot like an observation deck. We climbed onto the deck, got our usual summit pictures, and made the u-turn.
We’re now on our exit hike, which means we need to re-climb Wildcat “A” peak. We left Wildcat D, descended to Wildcat Col, and started the series of steep pitches that get us over Wildcat C and B peaks. The snow conditions were good with very little ice along the way. At each steep pitch we lifted the Televators and walked up. Those things are terrific. I don’t know about Sue but by the time we reached Wildcat “A” I was feeling it. As I said earlier, Wildcat Ridge Trail is tough in either direction; we’re doing it in both directions. The best part about hitting Wildcat “A” was knowing we were on a 4+ mile descent to the truck; and from Carter Notch to the trailhead was little more than a cool-down lap.
We made our way down from Wildcat A to Carter Notch. There, the snowshoes came off and returned to their places on our packs. Sue pulled out her MicroSpikes and I decided to bare boot the remaining ~3.6 miles. A short distance before reaching the Carter Dome Trail junction Sue also retired her MicroSpikes. We met four others on their hike to the hut for the night. They were interested in the conditions we found on Wildcat Ridge; evidently they were heading there.
After providing the update our hike to the trailhead was a peaceful walk in the woods along Nineteen Mile Brook. When we started the day I was pretty sure headlights would be involved before we finished. In fact, we were out with lots of daylight to spare. I was a little concerned Sue would want to climb something else.
Pictures will follow.
