Hiking in Maine

Just trying to get an idea if there will be appreciable amounts of snow on top of the following peaks in Mid May in Maine: Spaulding, Avery, Saddleback, Sugarloaf, Reddington. I just don't want to deal with snowshoes, crampons and all that.

Thanks for the help as I am planning a big trip up there.

Depends on how much snow we get this Winter. Last year, not much if any snow, but ice was hanging around until almost memorial day. Year before, I was post holing in three to four feet of snow on Old Speck. You should expect rotten snow in the high peaks in the middle of May.

Reddington and Spaulding to be the worse since they are tree covered right to the top. The others should offer some bare spots up top since there will be no shade above treeline.

Sunny areas will be bare, I agree, but expect snow in shady areas. The Crockers will probably be snow covered, too. The Bigelows will probably be OK, Saddleback is Sunny once you get above tree line.

Look for routes on south facing slopes. Conditions are highly variable from year to year. I used to head up there every other year for Sugarloaf marathon weekend and hiked the Bigelows. 1 year there was allot of snow, another year there was none. Another year I could not cross the brook near the start of the fire warden trail so I drove to Waumbek in NH for its southern facing route (no snow or brook crossing that year). BTW, I lived in Vt at the time so Waumbek was on my way home, so that was another reason for that choice. To get a reliable & accurate answer you will need to ask within about 72 hours of your actual hike. As already mentioned the snow is generally the worst in the woods right below tree line, and on north facing ravines & slopes.

hiker13901 said:

... I just don't want to deal with snowshoes, crampons and all that.

Click to expand...

I think most of us prefer barebooting but winter hiking in most of the mountains in the US entails the expectation of snow, especially at higher elevations. While it is possible to bareboot relatively short distances (distance and preference varies with each of us), at other times it can be discomfitting if not dangerous so it is best to be prepared and equipped for conditions that can change rapidly and probably will between the time you make plans and the time you hit the trail. Keep in mind, too, that these Maine mountains are significantly further north in latitude than most of the White Mountains and more impacted by the Labrador weather patterns so winter comes earlier and often harsher.

P.S. My mind is in winter mode but, for mid-May, I think you'll do fine on most of those hikes without snowshoes but stay tuned to this year's snowfall, especially late in the season, as to how much and how problematic the remains might be.

Mid May is hard to predict. Several years ago I hiked a couple of Carabasset peaks in the first days of June. The ground was bare except for some shallow "puddles" of snow in the shadiest spots high on the ridge. Two weeks earlier, you're probably wanting boots and microspikes, but the snow may not be deep enough for snowshoes. If it is, it'll likely be so rotten that snowshoes won't help.

When I first moved into the area, we had few years where I needed snowshoes until mid may. I drove up for a interview before I moved up and decided to take Evans Notch Road one week before Memorial day. I drove to just about the high spot in the Notch and ran into a snowbank. Given the past few years I expect mid May isn't an issue except for north facing shaded areas.

Another problem in May is monorail. If a trail had much use during the winter, the hard pack of the trail will be the last to melt - hence a monorail ridge forms as the surrounding snow melts. This might be less of an issue in Maine since there are more winter hikers in NH vs Maine. But it can be a miserable factor as the snow rots. And remember if you start thinking about delaying until June - the black flies are nasty in June in Maine.

'Main' concerns for anyone hitting Maine mountain too early: high water and you're out before maintainers. No telling this far ahead what 2017 conditions will be, but he Hunt Trail up Katahdin didn't open til 5/27/16, and sobos who skipped Baxter to head into the 100 reported postholing over Whitecap.