BIGEarl
Well-known member
March 24, 2011: Tripyramids
Trails: Pine Bend Brook Trail, Scaur Ridge Trail, Mt. Tripyramid Trail
Summits: North Tripyramid. Middle Tripyramid
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
The forecast for the day wasn’t great so we decided a sheltered hike would be our best option. Hiking the Tripyramids from the Kancamagus Highway is about as sheltered as we had on our March list. We drove to the trailhead for the Pine Bend Brook Trail and found the shoulder on the west-bound side to be a little wider and that’s where we left the truck.
Just like we had the day before, the planned route had no sign of traffic since the storm at the beginning of the week. We started on ~4 inches of fresh powder but that increased to ~10+ inches at the higher elevations. The day was spent on snowshoes from start to finish.
Pine Bend Brook Trail is a pleasant walk, for the first two miles at least. The underlying trail surface is smooth and hard. The snow on top was dry powder and easy hiking. We cruised through this early section with no troubles at all. Some of the many crossings have lost their snow bridges and may require a creative approach. After approximately a mile we were hiking in a pretty strong snow storm that continued for the next few hours.
We cleared the final crossing and started into the steep climb to the ridge. Initially, the climb was easy but it soon became a little more of a challenge. Between the upper crossing and the turn to the ridge is one very steep section that got really the heart pumping. It’s the kind of thing that once you start you should plan on finishing because there’s no good place to stop along the way to rest. We both dug in and managed to reach the top of the pitch and continued to the turn for the climb to the ridge. The trail is blazed well enough to easily follow the preferred route. From the upper turn the blazes become a little spread out and the early part of the climb was a test. Because of all of the new snow there was no sign of the trail route. We worked from memory and started our climb. The steep side-hill climb was tough with poor traction. As long as we took our time with each step and established a foothold before taking our next, everything was fine. When we simply tried to rely on the snowshoe traction and keep the pace up the slipping and sliding started. In reality, crampons might have been a better choice for this steep ascent.
We slowly made our way toward the ridge. Soon we were back into thick cover, but still working on steep terrain. Eventually, the steepness of the trail eased up and we were on final approach to the Scaur Ridge Trail junction. We reached the trail junction, found half of the sign post buried (less snow than last year), and continued toward North Tripyramid. The next .8 miles to the summit has 750 feet in elevation and much of it is packed in .4 miles. In other words, the final climb to North Tripyramid is steep. We had the trail working for us. There was nearly no ice on the climb. We simply raised the televators and climbed. It was like walking up a ramp – a very steep ramp. Soon we were standing on the summit of North Tripyramid with me trying to catch my breath. After the usual summit shots we were on our way to Middle Tripyramid.
Between the peaks we found comfortable sheltered conditions but the snow depth was a little greater, and there were areas of drifting. It’s a relatively short walk and we were soon making our way to the summit of Middle Tripyramid. As we passed the viewpoint below the summit there was nothing to see – the continuing snowfall obscured everything.
We stopped for a couple minutes to get the summit pictures and quick refreshment, made our u-turn and headed back out the way we hiked in. I think we both had the descent from North Tripyramid and then the descent from the ridge on our mind. Each area is very steep and interesting. First, we had a re-climb to North Tripyramid. And now, here comes the fun. We started our first steep descent. Surprisingly, the snowshoes did the job and we had no trouble with coming off North Tripyramid. We hit the Scaur Ridge Trail junction and got ready for “Steeps – round #2”. The snowfall had generally stopped. Descending from the ridge can be difficult. We carefully started into the steep terrain and managed to make it all of the way down with no real problems. By the time we hit the base of this steep climb my thighs were screaming at me and we needed to make a short stop for things to quiet down.
One more steep pitch and it would be clear sailing to the trailhead. We cleared the final test and were really on our way out. We reached the trailhead generally as planned from a timing standpoint, loaded our things into the truck, and took off for the highway south.
We made the run back to Nashua and went home to shower, eat, clean our things, and prepare our packs for the next one. An easy #3 is coming up.
Thanks Sue for another good snowday.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Pine Bend Brook Trail, Scaur Ridge Trail, Mt. Tripyramid Trail
Summits: North Tripyramid. Middle Tripyramid
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
The forecast for the day wasn’t great so we decided a sheltered hike would be our best option. Hiking the Tripyramids from the Kancamagus Highway is about as sheltered as we had on our March list. We drove to the trailhead for the Pine Bend Brook Trail and found the shoulder on the west-bound side to be a little wider and that’s where we left the truck.
Just like we had the day before, the planned route had no sign of traffic since the storm at the beginning of the week. We started on ~4 inches of fresh powder but that increased to ~10+ inches at the higher elevations. The day was spent on snowshoes from start to finish.
Pine Bend Brook Trail is a pleasant walk, for the first two miles at least. The underlying trail surface is smooth and hard. The snow on top was dry powder and easy hiking. We cruised through this early section with no troubles at all. Some of the many crossings have lost their snow bridges and may require a creative approach. After approximately a mile we were hiking in a pretty strong snow storm that continued for the next few hours.
We cleared the final crossing and started into the steep climb to the ridge. Initially, the climb was easy but it soon became a little more of a challenge. Between the upper crossing and the turn to the ridge is one very steep section that got really the heart pumping. It’s the kind of thing that once you start you should plan on finishing because there’s no good place to stop along the way to rest. We both dug in and managed to reach the top of the pitch and continued to the turn for the climb to the ridge. The trail is blazed well enough to easily follow the preferred route. From the upper turn the blazes become a little spread out and the early part of the climb was a test. Because of all of the new snow there was no sign of the trail route. We worked from memory and started our climb. The steep side-hill climb was tough with poor traction. As long as we took our time with each step and established a foothold before taking our next, everything was fine. When we simply tried to rely on the snowshoe traction and keep the pace up the slipping and sliding started. In reality, crampons might have been a better choice for this steep ascent.
We slowly made our way toward the ridge. Soon we were back into thick cover, but still working on steep terrain. Eventually, the steepness of the trail eased up and we were on final approach to the Scaur Ridge Trail junction. We reached the trail junction, found half of the sign post buried (less snow than last year), and continued toward North Tripyramid. The next .8 miles to the summit has 750 feet in elevation and much of it is packed in .4 miles. In other words, the final climb to North Tripyramid is steep. We had the trail working for us. There was nearly no ice on the climb. We simply raised the televators and climbed. It was like walking up a ramp – a very steep ramp. Soon we were standing on the summit of North Tripyramid with me trying to catch my breath. After the usual summit shots we were on our way to Middle Tripyramid.
Between the peaks we found comfortable sheltered conditions but the snow depth was a little greater, and there were areas of drifting. It’s a relatively short walk and we were soon making our way to the summit of Middle Tripyramid. As we passed the viewpoint below the summit there was nothing to see – the continuing snowfall obscured everything.
We stopped for a couple minutes to get the summit pictures and quick refreshment, made our u-turn and headed back out the way we hiked in. I think we both had the descent from North Tripyramid and then the descent from the ridge on our mind. Each area is very steep and interesting. First, we had a re-climb to North Tripyramid. And now, here comes the fun. We started our first steep descent. Surprisingly, the snowshoes did the job and we had no trouble with coming off North Tripyramid. We hit the Scaur Ridge Trail junction and got ready for “Steeps – round #2”. The snowfall had generally stopped. Descending from the ridge can be difficult. We carefully started into the steep terrain and managed to make it all of the way down with no real problems. By the time we hit the base of this steep climb my thighs were screaming at me and we needed to make a short stop for things to quiet down.
One more steep pitch and it would be clear sailing to the trailhead. We cleared the final test and were really on our way out. We reached the trailhead generally as planned from a timing standpoint, loaded our things into the truck, and took off for the highway south.
We made the run back to Nashua and went home to shower, eat, clean our things, and prepare our packs for the next one. An easy #3 is coming up.
Thanks Sue for another good snowday.
Pictures will follow.
