Winter 2008 Recap, and a hike up Dix & Iroquois Peaks

[ALGonquin Bob]

Winter 2008 Recap, and a hike up Dix & Iroquois Peaks
PHOTOS http://tinyurl.com/32xfk7

PART 1

The last weekend of winter. There once was a time, just a few years ago, that I didn’t do much of anything all winter long. The arthritis that I’ve lived with for 2 decades, coupled with my inactivity, often made it difficult to just walk up the stairs to go to bed. I couldn’t wait for Spring to arrive. Then I discovered hiking, followed by hiking in the winter - snowshoeing. “Use it or lose it” is much more than just a slogan - it’s true. Instead of slowly, painfully, walking up the stairs to the bedroom after doing nothing all day, I now can slowly, painfully, walk up the stairs to bed at 4:30 in the morning after 3 straight days of hiking in the Adirondacks, followed by an all-night drive back home. Fun? Wow!

The final weekend of winter; instead of asking “when will it end?”, I’m trying to cram as much into the too-short season as I possibly can; I don’t want it to end. Of course, when Spring arrives, I’ll enjoy it as much as anyone else, but there’s nothing like a long, tough climb in snowshoes up a steep trail, followed by reaching the summit of an Adirondack high peak (with or without a view), and then being rewarded by some of the best butt-sliding I can remember. That’s what I did Sunday.

Back in December, I’d penciled in this weekend as a celebratory hike up Iroquois and Algonquin Peaks to claim my 45th and 46th Winter summits. A funny thing happened on the way to my “W”. Being old, slow, and out of shape usually doesn’t stop me from climbing, but to use an old expression (and the title of Gilda Radner’s book), “It’s always something”.

My winter climbing season started out fine, with a productive solo weekend at the end of December where I reached the top of 3 Lower Range peaks. Next up was an impromptu overnighter in mid-January with “Guinness”, in which we hiked all day in a light rain as we topped out on Big Slide. We stayed in the Keene area that night (I LOVE the Adirondack Ark Motel (Norway room)!). Those hikes helped condition me for an ADK group assault on the Sewards later in January, and that’s where I earned my first ever frostbite - in 9 fingers, to varying degrees, with my thumbs getting the worst of it.. A 14-hour day in icy temps had chilled my hands more than any hike I’d ever been on. There was no black tissue, just a lot of dead gray skin that needed time to heal, causing me to “waste” a 4-day weekend in early February (but it was fun to watch the Giants win the Super Bowl). I’m mostly back to normal now, but one thumb remains very cold sensitive, and I use hand warmers inside my new mitt system.

So the frostbite issue was under control and I headed back up to the Garden for another solo trek in mid-February. After hiking in to the Bushnell Falls lean-to, I made camp there in sub-zero temps, got up not-so-early, and headed up the trail with thoughts of Haystack and Basin dancing in my partially frozen head. Two hikers passed the LT as I was getting ready, so I followed their track to Slant Rock and up the infamous Shorey Shortcut (my first time on that little trail). On the way up there, I was passed by 3 more hikers. As the 6 of us grew excruciatingly close the top of Basin, we all had to turn back because of snow & ice conditions. There was no time for me to do Haystack, so this 800-mile round trip was for naught. Ouch. Oh yeah, and my old backpack broke, irreparably, on that hike.

February 29th came, and I had another 4-day weekend. As I was running errands around town (near Buffalo) before again hitting the highway to the mountains, my driver side power window switch broke…. with the window down. Yet another 4 day winter climbing opportunity was lost. Shazbot.

That brings us to this past weekend; March 14-16. Frostbite healed, several hand warmers on board, new mittens, new backpack, chronic taillight problem and window on car all fixed and good to go. I had to work Thursday night until 8:30, but who needs sleep? I do. I finished packing, slept about 3 hours, and headed east on I-90 at about 2:30 Friday morning. Any thoughts of joining my friends who had earned their Winter 46 this season had long since been dashed. Now, I would be satisfied with just actually getting to the trailhead, and maybe summiting 2 more peaks solo.

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

Part 2

DIX via Round Pond
I arrived at the Round Pond parking area (this is my favorite path to Dix) in time to see a full lot, but 2 hikers who had come out the South/North Bouquet herd path had just been dropped off after hitching a ride back to their truck. After they left, I was able to park my small car in such a way as to make space for one more vehicle.

Once again, I had high hopes, and made an aggressive itinerary for myself. The plan was to carry my full pack (brand new) up over Dix and Hough, camp a night, then get South Dix (Carson) and East Dix (Grace) Peaks, camp another night somewhere, and hike out the herd path to 73 (I already had Macomb). The fact that I’d never been able to complete such a task with full winter pack, and that I’d never before been on that herd path didn’t deter me. The sense of urgency caused by the last weekend of winter, my previous failures, and the good weather forecast conspired to provide me with big cohones for this weekend. The 2 hikers that I met at the trail head gave me a laminated Google Map of the Dix Range, showing 3-D detail from two angles. They said that the snow conditions were good for bushwhacking, but also added that the walk out from Hough was hellish (or something like that).

I began my day’s hike under a bright sunny sky. My only previous hike on this path was on a beautiful day in April ‘06, and this seemed to be the same kind of high-spirited feel-good day. I had to kneel on the snow to reach the trail register; there was just one hiker, Shin, signed in ahead of me on Friday. Reaching Round Pond in short time, I was pleased to see that great view of Hough in the distance. Two years ago in April, I had to use the trail to climb up, over, and back down the high ridge that occupies one end of Round Pond. Because the pond was frozen hard last weekend, that first uphill portion of the hike in was eliminated - replaced by simply walking straight across the pond to the point where the trail intersects (I want to mention here that ice conditions will change dramatically over the next few weeks, with ice-out coming in mid to late April. The condition of frozen ponds can change overnight while you’re camping in there, so be very careful when you risk walking on ice). A recent ice storm resulted in a few downed trees and many tree limbs of all sizes laying across the trail. It’s easy for a backpacker to just walk around these obstacles, but a group of skiers told me that it took them 8 hours to haul their loaded sleds to the Bouquet lean-to! I passed 2 other skiers who were sweating their way out with sleds, one was towing his sled, and the other towed his skies while carrying everything else on his back. It just seems like too much work for the pay-off.

I paused at my favorite spot by the edge of the South Bouquet River to savor and photograph the great view of Dix that you see as you gaze across the stream and past the evergreens. As I walked through a beautiful stand of hemlock trees, chunks of ice fell like rain, as a sometimes painful reminder of the recent ice storm. There was a break in the maze of fallen branches for a while, but then there was more. Overall, it was just a minor obstacle with short detours that won’t stop you from getting in there. I reached the Bouquet lean-to and took a break. The outhouse was easy to enter, because there is no door on it - sure beats trying to dig it out of a 4-foot snow drift! The Bouquet is nicely frozen there and crossing was easy, as were all the other smaller stream crossings along the way.

There is some altitude gain from the TH to the base of the slide, but it’s so gradual over those nearly 6 miles of easy hiking, that I barely noticed the approximately 1500 feet of elevation change. When I finally reached the base of the Dix slide, I saw that a group of skiers had camped there. I also noticed that most of the elevation gain is from that point to the summit, with an additional 1600 feet gain in just over a mile up the trail. That final section is certainly one of the steepest trails in the High Peaks. You could walk up the slide with crampons if you don’t mind a section of ‘shwhacking at the top.

Being fairly late on a weekday, I was the last to ascend Dix. Shin passed me on his way back down, and I topped out on Dix around 7 PM. The views all day had been great, and I still had a clear view of everything, including Elk Lake and the Great Range. I continued over the knife-edge to the Beckhorn and began descending toward Hough. There is plenty of snow up top, and all of the trees there are covered with a thick coating of ice. I followed a set of tracks for a while, but that path seemed to descend down toward Lillian brook instead of following the ridge toward Hough. I descended as much as I could in the growing darkness and made a make-shift camp under the old tent fly I’d carried in my pack. I heard the sound of snow falling overnight; about a inch of fresh powder covered everything when I crawled out in the morning. The view toward Hough that I saw Friday night was totally gone - enveloped in a cloud. As a solo hiker, I am conservative in my risk-taking, so descending into the fog-shrouded void of an unfamiliar path was off the table. I packed up and headed back the way I’d come - the cohones were life-size again. My consolation was knowing that I’d broken my 8-week string of frustration, summited one of the great mountains of the Adirondacks, and had a great time snowshoeing instead of sitting on the couch. I was also alive and able to go back another day (dub theme music and last line of “Gone With the Wind”).

The fresh powder and a slight breeze had mostly covered my tracks, but I was easily able to follow the fresh tracks of a Pine Marten that had visited me overnight, and the marten’s tracks followed my trail from the day before until I was safely off the summit cone and into the woods. On the way back down, I met the couple who I had ridden with on that January ADK Sewards trip, Al and Kim (I remembered their names on my way out). The circle of fate was complete, because the last time I saw them was the last time I had managed to summit a peak, Seymour, back in January. On Saturday, they were part of a group that was going to attempt all 5 of the Dixes, and hike back out to 73 on the herd path. I told them what I had seen and wished them luck.

There were many other hikers and skiers on their way in as I hiked out - a veritable Dix orgy. Apparently, one of those hikers was “Pack Mule”, who I’d been e-mailing about the Dixes for the past couple weeks. He and a friend were able to continue over Dix and achieved his own “W-46” that day on Hough. If I’d hiked in a day later, I’d have been able to follow all those other people’s tracks, but I was too wet and no longer able to spend another night or 2 in the frozen Dix wilderness. Maybe I should give up on Friday hiking! Final Dix notes: I wore snowshoes from trailhead to summit (crampons were just ballast). Sunny day = red sunburned face, pack sunscreen!

I reached my car in mid-afternoon and began to plan for the next day. If I could get a motel room, I would be able to dry out all of my soaking wet gear and maybe get one more peak before winter ended. If I had to camp in a tent or my car, everything would remain quite wet and I might as well head back home. So off I went to Keene and toward the Adirondack Ark Motel. They had a nice room for one, so I stayed there in the “Austria Room” ( I LOVE the Ark!). I hung my wet gear everywhere, got a frozen pizza at Stewart’s, and crashed. What peak should I attempt on Sunday? I still needed Santanoni (too far away), Basin & Haystack (not this time), Hough, South, & East Dix (next year), and Iroquois & Algonquin. Of course, I want Algonquin Peak to be my W-46, but if I did Iroquois ahead of time, it would be so much easier next winter when I just have to climb Algonquin - and I’d probably get more friends to go with me if the day was that much shorter and easier. That was it - I was going to attempt Iroquois. But in order to do just Iroquois, I’d have to ascend and return by the yellow trail from Lake Colden - the steep yellow trail…

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

Part 3

Iroquois - via the steep yellow trail from Lake Colden.

I arrived at the HPIC at about 7:30. THERE IS A NEW HAND DRYER IN THE MEN’S ROOM, AND IT WORKS!!! (Thank you, ADK). Lots of hikers out today. I noticed that Neil was signed in for Marcy (Congrats on your W46.… at last!). Many hikers carried snowshoes and bare-booted on the hard path. On softer snow, such as is found higher up or on less traveled trails, skis and snowshoes improve and compact trails, but bare boots and crampons often puncture and degrade them.

The day was fairly warm, so I started off in just a summer t-shirt and Gore-Tex shell that I would wear all day. I was sweating profusely on the way to Marcy Dam, so I took off my glasses and stowed them in my pocket. I’ve learned that if there is enough light, my extreme near-sightedness doesn’t bother me that much - as long as I can see some definition on the trail at my feet. I’ve saved a lot of time by not stopping frequently to clean my fogged-up glasses (the anti-fog stuff just doesn’t work for me). As it turned out, the next time I put my glasses on was when I was back at my car at the end of the day - the first time I‘ve ever gone that long without my spectacles. The Van Hoevenberg trail is in great shape; wearing snowshoes or skis will help keep it that way until the big melt. I walked over the dam and signed the register there, just behind a group that was headed up to Mt. Colden. All the other hikers seemed to be going a different way than I, so there was nobody to catch and pass me as I continued to Avalanche Camp, up and through Avalanche Pass, and on to Avalanche Lake. As I stepped out into the vivid mountain scene that the north end of Avalanche Lake provides, I saw a group of winter enthusiasts preparing to enjoy a slope at the foot of Mount Colden. I walked up the ice in the center of the lake and headed south. There was not much wind, and there now is a great view up the Colden dike since all the trees at the base were blown out by last Spring’s avalanche. I made good time on the flats, and soon arrived at the junction with what the guide books refer to as “one of the 2 steepest trails in the Adirondacks”.

I was pleased to see that the yellow trail was well broken out and “groovy” all the way up. It’s certainly steep in places, but don’t let it discourage you from using this beautiful and scenic path. There are frozen waterfalls along the way, and all of the many brook crossings are still nicely frozen and easy to traverse. Conditions changed from a nice partly sunny day down low, to hiking in a cloud at the Boundary-Algonquin col. There were no views and very limited visibility up there. On the way up, I met a hiker who had just come from Wright, Algonquin, & Iroquois, and was heading to do Mt. Colden on his speedy way out. Some hikers had used crampons, but changed back into snowshoes above the col after post-holing into spruce traps up there. Snowshoes stayed on top without any problem - crampons not used or needed all day.

Tracks in and above the col that were less than an hour old were mostly obliterated by the wind (even my own tracks were sometimes difficult to follow back out), but I could see slight disturbances in the snow that guided me on until there was a symbiotic meeting, or maybe it was my Guardian Angel again (thanks, Mom). I was up there trying to find my way in poor light with no eyeglasses (they would have iced up right away), when I saw two other hikers above me ascending south toward Boundary. I followed their footprints until I saw them taking shelter from the cold breeze behind a big rock on Boundary Peak. They thought that was Iroquois’ summit, but I knew there was more to go before we reached the peak that remained obscured in a cloud. One of the hikers carried the McMartin map, but wasn’t aware of the distinction between dashed lines (maintained and marked trails) and dot-dash lines (unmaintained herd paths). They abandoned their plan to descend past Iroquois toward Marshall when I described the nature of the path, especially that there are no cairns, only a faint summer herd path if you can find it, and that it leads to a cliff band featuring a 30-foot vertical cliff (only 20 feet high if you’re lucky). They were able to see one or 2 cairns ahead, but could not see either Algonquin or Iroquois from the top of Boundary. With mutually beneficial and indispensable help, we all reached Iroquois’ summit by early afternoon. They needed a “guide” to tell them to continue to Iroquois but no farther, and I needed a “guide dog” to see well enough to find the tracks up there. A truly fortuitous symbiotic relationship in the High Peaks!

We all stayed together until we again found my tracks on the yellow trail that would take us on a fast descent to the base of the mountain. We all enjoyed some super mighty fine seated glissading on the way back down; some of the best I’ve had, and a fitting payoff for the effort of the steep walk up.

That was my final winter hike of 2008, but a happy ending to another difficult, and sometimes very disappointing, winter climbing season. Iroquois was W-39 for me. I can’t wait for ‘09. - ALGonquin Bob

 

[TopOfGothics]

Glad to see you made it to at least a few new peaks. I still need to write up to 'Mr. Topo's Wild Ride', but I can tell you this much. The bushwhack from Macomb to Carson took a group of five two hours. If you didn't have your specs on, are you sure you were on Iroquois and not Colden? Maybe not in the Dacks at all, eh? I look forward to joining you on Father Mountain next year and raising a toast. We can practice that part at the winter dinner in a few weeks. See you soon...........

 

[bubba]

Nice Bob... a bit frustrating, but who said this would all be fun?

I'm impressed that you hit Iroquios without hitting a spruce trap sans spectacles! How'd you do that? (or did you leave something out?)

Also glad to hear that Shin is still out there in the winter... his thoughts are soon turning toward boating, for sure.

So, there's plenty to look forward to... Hough sitting back in there... Santanonis... well, at least you've figured out a better had warming system!!

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

I'm pretty sure that I was on Iroquois. There's a weather station on top, right? The spruce traps were lurking under there for sure - I think the snowshoes offered barely enough support on the icy crust to keep me afloat. The fellow who started out with just crampons demonstrated that when he punched through to his waist. As for next year, I think solo hiking on Fridays is OUT. I'll wait until Saturday and go in with everybody else.

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

The photos are up! http://tinyurl.com/32xfk7

 

[bubba]

As for next year, I think solo hiking on Fridays is OUT. I'll wait until Saturday and go in with everybody else.

How about Mondays?

 

[TMax]

Excellant read Bob! You always do pretty amazing stuff when you're solo. I tend to be much more conservative when I'm by myself. I'm up for those remaining Dixes with you next year!

 

[Guinness]

Bob,

Always a pleasure reading your TRs. Although we got only one hike in this year, it was a good one - albeit a little wet. Next winter I am sure we can find some common summits to head for. If gas costs continue going up, sharing the ride really helps out.

For you it is probably off to do some paddling, and I will hit a few hills and the Northville-Lake Placid trail in July.

The snow was good this year, much better than it has been the past few years. Now that I really liked! Bring it on!

Take Care,
Ed