Whites snowshoe status?

[SpencerVT]

Heading up to the Weeks Peaks tomorrow. Wondering how the snowpack is up there? Last week in the Adirondacks nearly all the snow was gone in the Loj area up to 3300 feet. Wasn't sure at what elevation approximately people are tending to need snowshoes right now in the Whites. Thanks!

 

[peakbagger]

Driving through Franconia notch yesterday I could see snowpack under the softwoods at the Lafayette Place exit and well packed snow directly in the center of the trail. I expect its going to be boilerplate in the AM with postholing in the afternoon. Plenty of folks will be barebooting and I expect its monorail season on the popular routes.

Assuming you are coming in from the north (fish hatchery) you will be on the north slope on a very unused trail that is shaded in softwoods so there still will be snowpack. The hike from North to South weeks is in shaded softwoods so expect that could have some depth. I was postholing in open hardwoods at my wood lot off of RT 2 in Randolph at about 1700 feet last Sunday.

Unless you do a real short day and get out of the woods prior to the crust breaking down, I would haul shoes.

 

[Stan]

I notice, now that you own a woodlot, how you describe trails in terms of timber.

 

[TinCanFury]

What's the snow status further south in the Whites? Was thinking the Pemi or Sandwich Range wilderness areas. Going with a friend and would rather avoid to much snow.

thanks!

 

[sierra]

What's the snow status further south in the Whites? Was thinking the Pemi or Sandwich Range wilderness areas. Going with a friend and would rather avoid to much snow.

thanks!

The snowpack in those ranges is still 2 to 3 ft.

 

[peakbagger]

I guess folks have forgotten the standard warning that in typical winter such as this past winter, April is the hardest month of the year for hiking due to highly variable snow conditions. Last year was not a normal winter and a lot of folks got spoiled with early hikes. There are some classic hikes that are generally quite reliable due to sun exposure, like the Welch Dickey Loop, Kearsage North and South Moat that are generally good early season hikes. Rain helps to burn off the snow in the woods but what is really needed is warm overnights at altitude and we aren't there yet.

 

[Snowflea]

>>Last year was not a normal winter and a lot of folks got spoiled with early hikes.<<

Not spoiled exactly... Agree that last year was definitely not normal in terms of snowpack, but the ICE was insane and made for challenging conditions. We did the Kinsmans last week via Mt. Kinsman Trail and both remarked how much easier the conditions are this April compared to last.

To the OP, yes there is still quite a bit of snow. Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway, Belknaps, and Ossipees are usually better bets this time of year. Good luck!

 

[sierra]

This year was much better, especially for my dog. He excels in the snow. Last year he was sliding all over the place, I even had to "belay" him down stuff last year. What a lot of people miss is the night time temps, that is the key to melting the snowpack. If it gets cold enough to lock the snow back up at night, you lose a lot of melting in the 24 hour cycle. I guess, in a week or so the ridgelines will lose a lot, then the early May the valleys will start losing a lot more then now. Unlike some, I do not think it will take till June.

 

[Raven]

For what it's worth, some notes from this past week:

1. Tuckerman Ravine Trail was fully snow covered from Avy sign at start to Ravine on Monday. Spikes were fine.
2. Tuckerman Ravine Trail had stretches of bare ground not visible prior day (Tuesday)
3. Rattle River Trail 50% snow covered in 1.7 to hut. No traction needed.
4. Castle Trail. Can't say much. First crossing was impassable without getting wet. I stayed on low elevation trails mostly.

In my opinion, and as mentioned, it's April. Bring snowshoes, other traction for ice, dry clothes, and a positive attitude. Most trails at elevation will still need snowshoes, especially north facing wooded trails.

 

[TJsName]

I learned in college the even early May can still have a lot of snow. I read a lot of reports, and when I see people write things like "lots of snow still up there. We were post holing past our knees" I assume that it's a rude wake-up call when the lower section of the trail is bare. The RMC weather report from Thursday said that there was ice above 3300', so that's a decent gauge of Northern slopes for a trail that is used all year. What it comes down to is knowing what to expect is a skill to learn, piecing together trip reports and snow stake information, in combination with your experience. Sometimes you get a great trip report that spells everything out for your hike, and sometimes you have to extrapolate for older reports in the same area. The website trailsnh.com gives a nice compiled list of reports. Not all reports are created equal, as many are bragposts/blogposts that aren't written for the benefit of others, but most are very helpful with conditions and are enjoyable to read. You learn who is who after a while.

When it comes to April, the overnight lows are important so you know if the pack froze over. A hiker might be able to bare boot in the AM, but need shoes for the descent. Also, you might have an easy rock hop in the morning and a ford by the afternoon. Gators and shorts is always a good look.

As for a direct suggestion, I bet that Flat Mountain Pond is a good hike right now. The crux would be the stream crossings on the northern end of the loop, and the beaver flooding by the hairpin turn on the southern end of the loop (which can be avoided by a short bushwhack to the west). An out and back from the South would avoid the potentially more dangerous crossing of the Whiteface River. The best benchmark for that crossing is probably the Bearcamp River in Tamworth (https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nh/nwis/uv?site_no=01064801). When I did it a couple years ago after a rain storm the gauge was about 200cfs and the crossing was a rock hop, slightly downstream from the main crossing. Right now, the gauge is just under 500, so I'd expect that crossing to be difficult. Hope that helps!

 

[Early Bird]

Monadnock is snow free in essence. Little patches in shady places off trail up high.

 

[SpencerVT]

Thanks for the responses. I feel silly that I even posted this, - since I went up to the Weeks / Terrace area yesterday and there was still an insane amount of snow. The only reason I even inquired is that the previous week there was a staggering lack of snow in the Adirondacks (in the Loj area), so based on that, I wasn't sure if the Whites had mostly melted. Evidently not! I think the Whites got hammered by winter storm Stella more than the ADKs, and it's still going to take a long time to melt off.
Almost immediately on the ascent from the York Pond trail head we encountered full coverage. Needed snowshoes 20 mins into the hike. Once on the ridge trail,
it was 2-3+ feet in most places, and post holing despite having snowshoes occurred often due to the snow being so soft. It was slow going. We climbed Terrace Mountain and that was it. Took 5 hours just for that one peak in those conditions. I think I'll come back in June - maybe it will be gone by then!

 

[peakbagger]

Well at least you didn't drive to the trailhead and decide to leave them in the trunk .

One similar year we did Bemis and Nancy, We barebooted Bemis and then over to Nancy. We then got down to the ponds and it was quite warm. We started postholing so put on snowshoes and made it to the base of the steep section. I started postholing with snowshoes and the lighter weight friends along for the trip started doing it soon after. It took us a couple of hours to go the last mile. The snow will be gone by June just in time to keep the black flies healthy.

 

[skiguy]

The snow will be gone by June just in time to keep the black flies healthy.

The old addage is that they come in on snowshoes and they leave on snowshoes. Best to stick to South facing trails at this point for sure.

 

[B the Hiker]

At 2:17 on Friday the 28th, it's 78 in North Conway at the moment!

I am hoping to do Isolation early next (weather permitting), via Glen Bolder Trail. I can't find any beta on the trail conditions. Don't know where the snow will start, don't have any idea when the snowshoes will go on, but I'm assuming they will at some point. I'm assuming there have been tons of people using the trail and what snow there is will be monorail, but alas, that's mostly faith-based as I can't find any beta.

Any feedback would be appreciated.


Brian

 

[TJsName]

At 2:17 on Friday the 28th, it's 78 in North Conway at the moment!

I am hoping to do Isolation early next (weather permitting), via Glen Bolder Trail. I can't find any beta on the trail conditions. Don't know where the snow will start, don't have any idea when the snowshoes will go on, but I'm assuming they will at some point. I'm assuming there have been tons of people using the trail and what snow there is will be monorail, but alas, that's mostly faith-based as I can't find any beta.

Any feedback would be appreciated.


Brian

This might help: http://newenglandtrailconditions.com/nh/viewreport.php?entryid=30632

 

[B the Hiker]

This might help: http://newenglandtrailconditions.com/nh/viewreport.php?entryid=30632

It is!

I thought http://trailsnh.com/ was supposed to be a compiler, but this trip report did not show up on it. Thank you for forwarding!

 

[TJsName]

It is!

I thought http://trailsnh.com/ was supposed to be a compiler, but this trip report did not show up on it. Thank you for forwarding!

You're welcome! It is a compiler, but the reporter included 'Slide Peak' in the report title, so the dot is probably a couple miles north of Isolation. I remembered seeing it on the list when I was zoomed out, so it stuck in my head.

Also I know you check out the AMC snowstakes - Tucks has lost about a foot since that report was posted, so you can extrapolate that the trails in the woods may have lost a similar or smaller amount since then.