BIGEarl
Well-known member
April 11, 2009: Whiteface & Passaconaway
Trails: Blueberry Ledge Trail, Rollins Trail, Dicey’s Mill Trail (clockwise)
Summits: Whiteface, Passaconaway
Hikers: Sue and me.
It was a toss-up between 5:00am and 5:30am. We should have taken the 5:00am meet time. One of our objectives for the day was to make it back to Nashua by 8:00pm. We came close but the earlier start would have done it. With the 5:30am meet time I expected to be on-trail by 7:30am. Actual arrival at Ferncroft was ~8:00am and our on-trail time was closer to 8:15am. A little later than we wanted but we had plenty of day for the planed hike.
The forecast for the day was a good one; starting with clouds but improving throughout the day, mild temperature, and a light north wind which we should be sheltered from all day. The forecast was completely on-target for the day – we had terrific conditions.
Our first target for the day was Mount Whiteface. We set off on the Blueberry Ledge Trail and soon after leaving the road Sue pulled out her Microspikes. In the low spruce the trail was snow and ice covered with occasional open spots. We made our way past the lower junction with the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff and saw little change in trail conditions. Eventually, we cleared the low spruce and moved into the open hardwoods below the early ledges. The trail cleared and Sue retired the MicroSpikes – for a while. Soon after hitting the open woods the clouds started to break, the sun was out, and the temperature climbed. We both de-layered to more comfortably handle the heat and continued with the climb. The ledges around the upper junction with the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff are generally clear and we had no trouble making it through this area and onto the climb past the trails junction.
On this hike I decided to do a small test. I have previously used PowerGel on many hikes but the place where I purchased them (Sam’s Club) no longer sells them. Too bad, they had a terrific price. I started looking for a suitable alternate product and found the Monster Hitman energy shots. Again, Sam’s Club has them at a terrific price. I have never tried a product like this before but was interested in seeing how they helped – if at all. A short distance above the trail junction I pulled out a Hitman and enjoyed the Strawberry sweet-tart flavor. It went down nice, very good flavor, no after-taste, and no need to flush it with a load of water. The Hitman Energy Shot seemed like a good choice based on the advertised duration of several hours versus ~45 minutes with a gel pack. It was worth a shot (pardon the pun).
We were well into the next steep pitch after the upper junction when we made a brief stop. Within a couple minutes a large Golden Retriever was standing below us on the trail barking, his hair was up, and his tail was wagging. Evidently he was a little confused. Both Sue and I crouched down and invited him to join us. He was a very friendly dog and soon the hair on his back relaxed. The name on the tag was Kody. A few more minutes and a hiker came up the trail. With the pair reunited Sue and I set off on our climb. On the next stop Kody once again came to visit and this time the owner and his hiking partner were close behind. It was Peak576 (Dave Langley) and with him was HIKERNED (Ned Bergman). We visited for a few minutes and decided it was time for some traction. Out came the MicroSpikes and Stabilicers. Sue and I stayed with these all of the way until we were back on clear ground.
Dave and Ned set off ahead of us and we hiked our usual pace toward the Whiteface Ledges. The upper ledges were half clear and half loaded with snow and ice. We managed to make our way up the various ledge sections without any problems and soon were on the outlook enjoying the sunny conditions and great views. It was a little hazy but not bad.
Soon we were on the Rollins Trail headed for the summit of Whiteface and then our hike around the rim of The Bowl. The trail disappears near the summit of Whiteface and becomes a bushwhack. Hopefully things will open up once the snow melts. There is still a significant snow cover in the area. The monorail is solid for the full distance across to the junction with the Dicey’s Mill Trail. If you’re careful the Rollins Trail can be bare booted without any problem. Drift a little left or right and you’ll be in a very deep posthole. We carefully made our way around The Bowl with a brief stop a short distance before the Dicey’s Mill Trail for some lunch – and another Hitman.
In the vicinity of the Whiteface summit Sue picked up a fleece jacket that was evidently dropped by Dave or Ned. Before reaching the Dicey’s Mill Trail we came upon a dropped water bottle. One of the two was hiking on MSR’s across the Rollins Trail. At the trail junction we could see fresh MSR tracks heading toward Passaconaway but not returning. It made sense to leave the jacket and bottle here. Either they would pass through the area and pick them up or we would on our return and carry them out.
Near the site of Camp Rich we again met Kody and his friends. We explained where their lost items were left and were soon on our final climb to Mount Passaconaway. We were still on light traction and it was adequate for the climb. By the time we reached the outlook near the summit the high clouds had moved back in. We still enjoyed great views of the surrounding area. We made the quick visit to the summit area, got some pictures, and set off for hike out on the long Dicey’s Mill ramp.
The hike down was uneventful. At 2300 feet we were on a trail with more clear ground than ice and we stopped to remove the traction. Soon, we hit the major crossing and had no trouble at all getting from one side to the other – poles are helpful. The remainder was an easy cruise to the trailhead. I’ve hike this loop a number of times in both directions. One surprise on this hike was the way I was feeling at the end. The final section of trail leading to the fields is usually a time when I notice significant fatigue setting in. Not this time. I felt better than on any prior hike. Clearly, I had quite a bit of hike left in me. The only change I made to the usual routine was the Monster Hitman. It seems the stuff really works. I’ll complete a similar test next time out to see if it is more than coincidence.
Roughly fifteen minutes later than planned we reached the trailhead, packed our things, and headed south. Hiking with Sue is always a treat. Thanks Sue, I really enjoyed the day and hope you did too.
Pictures will follow.
I’ve posted some pictures from the hike.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: Blueberry Ledge Trail, Rollins Trail, Dicey’s Mill Trail (clockwise)
Summits: Whiteface, Passaconaway
Hikers: Sue and me.
It was a toss-up between 5:00am and 5:30am. We should have taken the 5:00am meet time. One of our objectives for the day was to make it back to Nashua by 8:00pm. We came close but the earlier start would have done it. With the 5:30am meet time I expected to be on-trail by 7:30am. Actual arrival at Ferncroft was ~8:00am and our on-trail time was closer to 8:15am. A little later than we wanted but we had plenty of day for the planed hike.
The forecast for the day was a good one; starting with clouds but improving throughout the day, mild temperature, and a light north wind which we should be sheltered from all day. The forecast was completely on-target for the day – we had terrific conditions.
Our first target for the day was Mount Whiteface. We set off on the Blueberry Ledge Trail and soon after leaving the road Sue pulled out her Microspikes. In the low spruce the trail was snow and ice covered with occasional open spots. We made our way past the lower junction with the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff and saw little change in trail conditions. Eventually, we cleared the low spruce and moved into the open hardwoods below the early ledges. The trail cleared and Sue retired the MicroSpikes – for a while. Soon after hitting the open woods the clouds started to break, the sun was out, and the temperature climbed. We both de-layered to more comfortably handle the heat and continued with the climb. The ledges around the upper junction with the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff are generally clear and we had no trouble making it through this area and onto the climb past the trails junction.
On this hike I decided to do a small test. I have previously used PowerGel on many hikes but the place where I purchased them (Sam’s Club) no longer sells them. Too bad, they had a terrific price. I started looking for a suitable alternate product and found the Monster Hitman energy shots. Again, Sam’s Club has them at a terrific price. I have never tried a product like this before but was interested in seeing how they helped – if at all. A short distance above the trail junction I pulled out a Hitman and enjoyed the Strawberry sweet-tart flavor. It went down nice, very good flavor, no after-taste, and no need to flush it with a load of water. The Hitman Energy Shot seemed like a good choice based on the advertised duration of several hours versus ~45 minutes with a gel pack. It was worth a shot (pardon the pun).
We were well into the next steep pitch after the upper junction when we made a brief stop. Within a couple minutes a large Golden Retriever was standing below us on the trail barking, his hair was up, and his tail was wagging. Evidently he was a little confused. Both Sue and I crouched down and invited him to join us. He was a very friendly dog and soon the hair on his back relaxed. The name on the tag was Kody. A few more minutes and a hiker came up the trail. With the pair reunited Sue and I set off on our climb. On the next stop Kody once again came to visit and this time the owner and his hiking partner were close behind. It was Peak576 (Dave Langley) and with him was HIKERNED (Ned Bergman). We visited for a few minutes and decided it was time for some traction. Out came the MicroSpikes and Stabilicers. Sue and I stayed with these all of the way until we were back on clear ground.
Dave and Ned set off ahead of us and we hiked our usual pace toward the Whiteface Ledges. The upper ledges were half clear and half loaded with snow and ice. We managed to make our way up the various ledge sections without any problems and soon were on the outlook enjoying the sunny conditions and great views. It was a little hazy but not bad.
Soon we were on the Rollins Trail headed for the summit of Whiteface and then our hike around the rim of The Bowl. The trail disappears near the summit of Whiteface and becomes a bushwhack. Hopefully things will open up once the snow melts. There is still a significant snow cover in the area. The monorail is solid for the full distance across to the junction with the Dicey’s Mill Trail. If you’re careful the Rollins Trail can be bare booted without any problem. Drift a little left or right and you’ll be in a very deep posthole. We carefully made our way around The Bowl with a brief stop a short distance before the Dicey’s Mill Trail for some lunch – and another Hitman.
In the vicinity of the Whiteface summit Sue picked up a fleece jacket that was evidently dropped by Dave or Ned. Before reaching the Dicey’s Mill Trail we came upon a dropped water bottle. One of the two was hiking on MSR’s across the Rollins Trail. At the trail junction we could see fresh MSR tracks heading toward Passaconaway but not returning. It made sense to leave the jacket and bottle here. Either they would pass through the area and pick them up or we would on our return and carry them out.
Near the site of Camp Rich we again met Kody and his friends. We explained where their lost items were left and were soon on our final climb to Mount Passaconaway. We were still on light traction and it was adequate for the climb. By the time we reached the outlook near the summit the high clouds had moved back in. We still enjoyed great views of the surrounding area. We made the quick visit to the summit area, got some pictures, and set off for hike out on the long Dicey’s Mill ramp.
The hike down was uneventful. At 2300 feet we were on a trail with more clear ground than ice and we stopped to remove the traction. Soon, we hit the major crossing and had no trouble at all getting from one side to the other – poles are helpful. The remainder was an easy cruise to the trailhead. I’ve hike this loop a number of times in both directions. One surprise on this hike was the way I was feeling at the end. The final section of trail leading to the fields is usually a time when I notice significant fatigue setting in. Not this time. I felt better than on any prior hike. Clearly, I had quite a bit of hike left in me. The only change I made to the usual routine was the Monster Hitman. It seems the stuff really works. I’ll complete a similar test next time out to see if it is more than coincidence.
Roughly fifteen minutes later than planned we reached the trailhead, packed our things, and headed south. Hiking with Sue is always a treat. Thanks Sue, I really enjoyed the day and hope you did too.
Pictures will follow.
I’ve posted some pictures from the hike.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
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