Lawn Sale
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I have some cycling/running friends that have heard all about my hiking adventures, but had yet to join me on anything but local hikes. I managed to coerce them into a weekend hike promising nice views, but they didn’t want anything that was too stressful, so I decided on Tom, Field and Willey. The forecast was for sub zero temps without the wind chills, and Ian (the shorter one) has OK gear, but anything below –20° would be a little too cold. We decided to just try it out as if it was too cold we’d hit IME, Ragged Mountain, and a few other shops instead. We set a departure time of 5AM, which would put us out there at 8AM, but the local forecast was for snow and ice overnight. I overslept and awoke at precisely 5AM to find them driving in, so I quickly dressed and we packed my car. Overnight it had rained, which froze on the roads and then snowed on top, creating a mess. Ian said it was a lot of fun driving the 12 miles to my house, and Seth (the taller one) said it took him 45 minutes to go 10 miles. We packed everything into my Trooper and headed out, making surprisingly good time, but they’re snowmobiles anyway and I love driving on the snow. Still, with the rollover we passed on the way up, the snowplow we got stuck behind, and the coffee/fuel stop, we didn’t arrive until about 9:30AM. We quickly changed and were in the woods at 10AM sharp. The wind was pretty brisk, but we went anyway since we would be in the trees the whole way.
We hiked along in snowshoes since it snowed 8” to 12” overnight and the trail was tracked out. It made for easier going and Seth wanted to use his new Denali Ascents anyway. The trip comprised the usual banter along the way, with questions about this or that and the terrain was pretty flat, which made for decent hiking. We came upon an AMC group at the Avalon cutoff that were headed up Tom, and were surprised we’d caught them since they left ½ hour before us. They were breaking trail and I thought of how much I’d like to have Una_dogger there to break trail for us. After that we dipped into the steep ravine on the other side, and Seth decided to keep heading straight, right up the wall on the other side instead of turning down the trail. I seriously doubt my telling him the trail went that way had anything to do with it, but maybe I should share a little responsibility. He slid back down and we continued following the yellow blazes, until Ian decided his 33” flat terrain snowshoes weren’t cutting the steeper stuff, so he wanted to change into crampons. Seth and I snapped some pics while he changed, and well, in front of the camera things can get a little wacky. We have a tendency to joke around a little at times, which can bring some strange looks when we’re in public.
Off we went again, with me breaking trail and Ian in much better spirits, as he had to take half the steps since he wasn’t sliding anymore. Seth was touting the televators on his, and how great they were, and I was as happy as a clam just being out there on such a nice day. Soon the Canadian Jays showed up, and they were worried they’d become a meal to some hungry mountain birds. I explained they were Mountain Pigeons and they typically attacked the last person in line, but that they wouldn’t go after us as the AMC people were back there. I finally gave in and mentioned what they were and that they’d eat from your hands if you held something out. Some people have an issue with this, but I akin it to giving a homeless person a meal, they’re not going to become dependent or starve when we leave the area, it was like a treat to them. I snapped a few pics of them handing out crackers, and they couldn’t stop talking about them for the rest of the trip, truly a high point. We reached the Tom spur at the top and ate some lunch, putting on the down jackets as the wind made things a little chilly.
After a quick lunch we hit Tom and made fools of ourselves a little more, then headed to Field. I decided to not hit Willey because they were starting to feel the effects of the climb, which I thought was really easy. But, I suppose that’s the difference between hiking and not, I’m accustomed to it and despite all the running and cycling they also do, it was having an effect. I was amazed though as we’re all about the same level on the other playing fields, so I naturally figured we’d be the same here. We hiked over to Field, which was tracked out and easy hiking. Ian was worried about his blood sugar as he’s diabetic, and luckily his meter did not freeze. It was normal, so we kept going, but I could tell the hiking was having more of an effect on him.
Once on Field we took more pics and chatted with two people from Maine, one with old school catgut wooden snowshoes that had to be 42” long. We lingered for a little while and headed down the Avalon trail, which got very steep. Seth kept skiing on his snowshoes and wiping out, and I was right behind him having a ball but staying on my feet. Ian was also sliding in the crampons, but was so far ahead he couldn’t see most of the comedy. He rounded a corner and just stopped, let out a big “wow, you guys need to see this”, and we joined him for a clear shot of the snowcapped Presidentials, complete with all the towers on Washington. I think that picture made it all worthwhile to them, but unfortunately the clouds covered the summit before I could snap a pic. We hit Avalon and decided on a water break, making it there in about 15 minutes. More pictures were taken and of course the shenanigans started all over again. About 10 minutes later we sliding again, this time mostly together, and Ian saw us having so much fun he decided to don his snowshoes. After that it was downright comical and we didn’t want the trail to stop. Ian lost it twice, myself 3 times, and Seth a total of 10, but we were all laughing so hard we could hardly stand.
We reached the A-Z trail and headed back to the Highland Center, where we changed again and I made reservations for the annual Fool’s Scout ball at Lonesome Lake at the end of March. On the way out I showed them where my brother and I typically ice climbed, and they were amazed at the people still climbing at 4:30 PM. Once in Conway we had some great Mexican food and hit the Pearl Izumi outlet, which made their day complete. I think they were both asleep before we reached Maine. A great trip with great people, and I hope to get them out there again.
Pics are here.
We hiked along in snowshoes since it snowed 8” to 12” overnight and the trail was tracked out. It made for easier going and Seth wanted to use his new Denali Ascents anyway. The trip comprised the usual banter along the way, with questions about this or that and the terrain was pretty flat, which made for decent hiking. We came upon an AMC group at the Avalon cutoff that were headed up Tom, and were surprised we’d caught them since they left ½ hour before us. They were breaking trail and I thought of how much I’d like to have Una_dogger there to break trail for us. After that we dipped into the steep ravine on the other side, and Seth decided to keep heading straight, right up the wall on the other side instead of turning down the trail. I seriously doubt my telling him the trail went that way had anything to do with it, but maybe I should share a little responsibility. He slid back down and we continued following the yellow blazes, until Ian decided his 33” flat terrain snowshoes weren’t cutting the steeper stuff, so he wanted to change into crampons. Seth and I snapped some pics while he changed, and well, in front of the camera things can get a little wacky. We have a tendency to joke around a little at times, which can bring some strange looks when we’re in public.
Off we went again, with me breaking trail and Ian in much better spirits, as he had to take half the steps since he wasn’t sliding anymore. Seth was touting the televators on his, and how great they were, and I was as happy as a clam just being out there on such a nice day. Soon the Canadian Jays showed up, and they were worried they’d become a meal to some hungry mountain birds. I explained they were Mountain Pigeons and they typically attacked the last person in line, but that they wouldn’t go after us as the AMC people were back there. I finally gave in and mentioned what they were and that they’d eat from your hands if you held something out. Some people have an issue with this, but I akin it to giving a homeless person a meal, they’re not going to become dependent or starve when we leave the area, it was like a treat to them. I snapped a few pics of them handing out crackers, and they couldn’t stop talking about them for the rest of the trip, truly a high point. We reached the Tom spur at the top and ate some lunch, putting on the down jackets as the wind made things a little chilly.
After a quick lunch we hit Tom and made fools of ourselves a little more, then headed to Field. I decided to not hit Willey because they were starting to feel the effects of the climb, which I thought was really easy. But, I suppose that’s the difference between hiking and not, I’m accustomed to it and despite all the running and cycling they also do, it was having an effect. I was amazed though as we’re all about the same level on the other playing fields, so I naturally figured we’d be the same here. We hiked over to Field, which was tracked out and easy hiking. Ian was worried about his blood sugar as he’s diabetic, and luckily his meter did not freeze. It was normal, so we kept going, but I could tell the hiking was having more of an effect on him.
Once on Field we took more pics and chatted with two people from Maine, one with old school catgut wooden snowshoes that had to be 42” long. We lingered for a little while and headed down the Avalon trail, which got very steep. Seth kept skiing on his snowshoes and wiping out, and I was right behind him having a ball but staying on my feet. Ian was also sliding in the crampons, but was so far ahead he couldn’t see most of the comedy. He rounded a corner and just stopped, let out a big “wow, you guys need to see this”, and we joined him for a clear shot of the snowcapped Presidentials, complete with all the towers on Washington. I think that picture made it all worthwhile to them, but unfortunately the clouds covered the summit before I could snap a pic. We hit Avalon and decided on a water break, making it there in about 15 minutes. More pictures were taken and of course the shenanigans started all over again. About 10 minutes later we sliding again, this time mostly together, and Ian saw us having so much fun he decided to don his snowshoes. After that it was downright comical and we didn’t want the trail to stop. Ian lost it twice, myself 3 times, and Seth a total of 10, but we were all laughing so hard we could hardly stand.
We reached the A-Z trail and headed back to the Highland Center, where we changed again and I made reservations for the annual Fool’s Scout ball at Lonesome Lake at the end of March. On the way out I showed them where my brother and I typically ice climbed, and they were amazed at the people still climbing at 4:30 PM. Once in Conway we had some great Mexican food and hit the Pearl Izumi outlet, which made their day complete. I think they were both asleep before we reached Maine. A great trip with great people, and I hope to get them out there again.
Pics are here.
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