Wonalancet, a leap behind

[LenDawg]

With the extra hour of sleep and a gloomy day on the horizon, Chinooktrail and I decided to venture up Mt. Wonalancet, via Ferncroft Road. We started up the Wonalancet Range Trail at quarter of ten (eastern STANDARD time) with overcast skies, on and off light precipitation, and a temperature of 40 degrees. The trail was a little wet from the previous day's monsoon. There were several blow-downs along the ascent, ranging from small branches to large trees. Some were crossing the trail. One old pine tree fell down, roots and all, sticking from the ground. Soon after we started, we encountered a light snow shower. It was the fine, small and dry, icy snow. The trail was blazed well and relatively easy to follow, despite the heavy leaves and blowdowns. We also heard a large "whoosh" sound from the distance which we later found to be the wind racing from the other side of the mountain.

We hiked at a good pace until we got to the rocky slides which were slippery. It was about at this elevation that we noticed that the trees were starting to accumulate with snow. As we headed to the top, we were in a good snow shower and windy conditions. It wasn't dangerous, just very "wintery", a happy reminder of the upcoming season.

After hitting the top, we bundled up a bit more, with gloves, hats, and fleece, and headed down. After getting out of the wind and past the bare rocks, we stopped for some cheese, crackers and grapes. The descent was quite slippery, thanks to the wet and icy leaves and mossy rocks.

We made it down to the car just after 1230. It was a very enjoyable "quick hike" and a great "warm-up" for winter!