MrAmeche
New member
I had seen on the weather forecast that the upcoming weekend would be beautiful in comparison to the recent heat wave that had been smothering New England, so I planned for a hike on Sunday. I had set the alarm clock for 5:00 AM, but didn’t wake up until 6:45 (the AM/PM thing, of course). Before I left the house at 7:30 I randomly chose Whiteface and Passaconaway, mostly because I knew they wouldn’t be as crowded as some of the other peaks. The night before I had the brilliant idea of placing the hydration bladder of my Camelback in the freezer, assuming that it would melt on the drive up and I would have cold ice water for the trail (more on this later).
I arrived at the Ferncroft Road parking lot at 9:45 and started getting my pack together; there were about a dozen other cars there. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, around 70 degrees, sunny and a crystal clear sky. I stretched, applied sunscreen, and started heading out of the lot and up the road toward the trailhead at 10:00. I was dismayed to find that the bladder in my Camelback had barely melted, so I brought along a bottle of Gatorade just in case. I still hoped that it would melt enough on the first part of the trail so that my ice water idea would work.
My plan was to ascend via the Blueberry Ledge Trail over Whiteface, take the Rollins Trail to Passaconaway, then descend via the Dicey’s Mill Trail. I left the road, crossed over Squirrel Bridge, and entered the woods. The trail started off flat then slowly began ascending to the ledges below Whiteface, and I passed a few other hikers on the way. Sure enough, about a mile into the hike my heels began burning from my boots. Incredibly annoyed, I stopped at a rock and wrapped them in bandages and tape. This seemed to do the trick, and after this ten-minute rest I continued on up the trail, reaching an outlook that provided a beautiful view south to Squam Lake and the Ossipee Range. Eventually I began scaling the steep ridge of Whiteface’s south summit, requiring some minor scrambling. I noticed that any steps on the rocks had been removed, and I would not have wanted to climb this in the rain. It was still a blast, though.
Up to this point I had been feverishly sucking on my Camelback, trying to get any water I could out of it. I would take a few sips, wait a few minutes for the ice to melt a little more, then take a few more sips. I wasn’t getting much out of it besides a heavier pack, and I decided that I would let it sit out in the sun when reached Passaconaway and had my lunch. After taking a few pictures from the ledges I continued on, met the Rollins Trail, and reached the viewless summit of Whiteface at 12:10 PM, marked only by a small cairn on the side of the trail. The path then descended steeply from Whiteface into the col between the two peaks. Along the way I met another hiker who jokingly offered matches for the block of ice I was lugging around in my pack. I didn’t feel dehydrated to the point of sickness; I was probably getting just enough from my Camelback to keep me going. Needless to say, I was quite thirsty, and after some hesitation I downed my bottle of Gatorade at a lookout off the side of the trail.
After following the somewhat rough trail along the ridge, I met the Dicey’s Mill Trail, turned left, and followed it up to the Passaconaway summit. For some reason this short climb absolutely taxed me, and by the time I reached the viewless summit at 1:40, I felt like I had no energy left at all. I sat down on a small open ledge with the only view from near the top, and had my lunch. The sun wasn’t melting the ice in the pouch much, but it was enough for a few large gulps. I took a few pictures of the great view into the Pemi and beyond, then left the summit at 2:10.
I plowed down the Dicey’s Mill Trail, which was a great route for descending, as there were very few steep and rough sections. Along the way I nearly stepped on a black snake coiled up on a rock; it shot away into the woods before I could get a picture. I was cursing my Camelback as I furiously gnawed on the mouthpiece, trying to get any water out of it that I could. The trail crossed a small stream, then flattened out considerably as I descended the ridge. This part seemed to go on forever, and I kept double-checking my map to make sure I hadn’t taken a wrong turn somewhere. It was such a nice day that I didn’t mind, and eventually I exited the woods into a large clearing. I walked around the gate and continued on the road, where I reached my car at 3:45. I had hiked a total of 11 miles for about 3800’ of elevation gain. Next time, I think the fridge will be sufficient enough to cool down the water in my pack! A great day nonetheless.
I arrived at the Ferncroft Road parking lot at 9:45 and started getting my pack together; there were about a dozen other cars there. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, around 70 degrees, sunny and a crystal clear sky. I stretched, applied sunscreen, and started heading out of the lot and up the road toward the trailhead at 10:00. I was dismayed to find that the bladder in my Camelback had barely melted, so I brought along a bottle of Gatorade just in case. I still hoped that it would melt enough on the first part of the trail so that my ice water idea would work.
My plan was to ascend via the Blueberry Ledge Trail over Whiteface, take the Rollins Trail to Passaconaway, then descend via the Dicey’s Mill Trail. I left the road, crossed over Squirrel Bridge, and entered the woods. The trail started off flat then slowly began ascending to the ledges below Whiteface, and I passed a few other hikers on the way. Sure enough, about a mile into the hike my heels began burning from my boots. Incredibly annoyed, I stopped at a rock and wrapped them in bandages and tape. This seemed to do the trick, and after this ten-minute rest I continued on up the trail, reaching an outlook that provided a beautiful view south to Squam Lake and the Ossipee Range. Eventually I began scaling the steep ridge of Whiteface’s south summit, requiring some minor scrambling. I noticed that any steps on the rocks had been removed, and I would not have wanted to climb this in the rain. It was still a blast, though.
Up to this point I had been feverishly sucking on my Camelback, trying to get any water I could out of it. I would take a few sips, wait a few minutes for the ice to melt a little more, then take a few more sips. I wasn’t getting much out of it besides a heavier pack, and I decided that I would let it sit out in the sun when reached Passaconaway and had my lunch. After taking a few pictures from the ledges I continued on, met the Rollins Trail, and reached the viewless summit of Whiteface at 12:10 PM, marked only by a small cairn on the side of the trail. The path then descended steeply from Whiteface into the col between the two peaks. Along the way I met another hiker who jokingly offered matches for the block of ice I was lugging around in my pack. I didn’t feel dehydrated to the point of sickness; I was probably getting just enough from my Camelback to keep me going. Needless to say, I was quite thirsty, and after some hesitation I downed my bottle of Gatorade at a lookout off the side of the trail.
After following the somewhat rough trail along the ridge, I met the Dicey’s Mill Trail, turned left, and followed it up to the Passaconaway summit. For some reason this short climb absolutely taxed me, and by the time I reached the viewless summit at 1:40, I felt like I had no energy left at all. I sat down on a small open ledge with the only view from near the top, and had my lunch. The sun wasn’t melting the ice in the pouch much, but it was enough for a few large gulps. I took a few pictures of the great view into the Pemi and beyond, then left the summit at 2:10.
I plowed down the Dicey’s Mill Trail, which was a great route for descending, as there were very few steep and rough sections. Along the way I nearly stepped on a black snake coiled up on a rock; it shot away into the woods before I could get a picture. I was cursing my Camelback as I furiously gnawed on the mouthpiece, trying to get any water out of it that I could. The trail crossed a small stream, then flattened out considerably as I descended the ridge. This part seemed to go on forever, and I kept double-checking my map to make sure I hadn’t taken a wrong turn somewhere. It was such a nice day that I didn’t mind, and eventually I exited the woods into a large clearing. I walked around the gate and continued on the road, where I reached my car at 3:45. I had hiked a total of 11 miles for about 3800’ of elevation gain. Next time, I think the fridge will be sufficient enough to cool down the water in my pack! A great day nonetheless.
It was nice meeting you!
