Cannon?

Hi there...

Cannon is our next target and we are debating how to best get to the peak now that it's winter. Sounds like a steep trip regardless of who it's done.

We would like to do the Hi-Canon trail...but, also have heard that many do the Kinsman Ridge trail

Which is best? Any advice? Are Crampons enough or is an ice ax required...they both sound VERY steep and icy ledgy.

Thanks.

Many recent reports of ascents of Cannon. Most recent reports say snowshoes are sufficient.

HTH,
Tim

The Hi-Cannon Trail has an icy ladder to contend with that can be troublesome for some folks. I think the easiest approach but also quite scenic once you pop above treeline is the Kinsman Ridge Trail starting from the Cannon Mountain Ski Area parking lot.

Hi-Cannon, besides having the ladder, has a stretch just above some cliffs overlooking Lonesome Lake where you want good traction. MSR-style snowshoes (with the many, giant teeth) are typically adequate here, and there's plenty of vegetation to grab onto, but it's a no-slip zone for sure.

Kinsman Ridge Trail from the tram lot doesn't have anything like that. If you go after a fresh snow, note that you'll mingle with the Kinsman Glade so keep a watchful eye out for skiers. After you cross the glade, make sure to turn left and follow the hiking trail up, not straight out to the ski trail. And when you hit the top, there will be a possibly-unmarked fork in the trail. The route to the summit goes right. The spur to the left goes to a clearing overlooking Franconia Ridge. Don't miss this viewpoint!

Hi-Cannon is my preferred winter route. In fact, I hiked Hi-Cannon on Saturday.... the ladder wasn't difficult at all (though they've gotten quite a bit of snow now.) I used snowshoes all the way without any troubles at all.... and there were a couple of guys who barebooted ahead of me. I headed down via the Kinsman Ridge Trail to the south and out Lonesome Lake. There is one very steep stretch coming down KRT there that is a little tough to get down.... you'll need crampons to walk down it.


I've had a bad experience with the north side of Kinsman Ridge (heading up from the tramway.... ) It was icy and I slipped and slid down one of the glades a good 25 feet and luckily stopped before hitting a tree. I personally will never hike that side in winter without an ice axe, but pretty much everyone else will probably tell you that's overkill.

I was pretty happy doing KRT from the north (tramway). There is an exposed section where routefinding might be difficult (blazes on rocks are hard to find in snow....), but is very pretty. I descended KRT to the south and went out via Lonesome Lake (tagging the Cannonball); wicked steep glissade and I used an axe to maintain control. Despite that I went off the trail once and was stopped by a "friendly" branch stabbing me in the thigh.

All routes up Cannon are steep, from the tram is probably the least so but, as mentioned, you cross the glade trail a few times.

I haven't been up the Hi-Cannon trail, but like Poison Ivy I can attest to the fact that the glades area (which you have to pass through if you take Kinsman Ridge from the tramway side) can be dicey. I was there a week before her 25-foot slide and almost ended up sliding myself. But then the next year I butt-slid down that same area while descending Cannon for Dave Bear's 48th, and it was fine...so you never know.

But since you've expressed some concerns over steepness, I'd recommend going up Lonesome Lake trail and connecting to the Kinsman Ridge trail from there. It's still steep but you won't have the Hi-Cannon ladder or the glades area to contend with.

Also, you may have already figured it out, but note that the Kinsman Ridge trail goes up and over the summit, from the Lonesome Lake side to the tramway side. So when people are recommending that you take Kinsman Ridge trail, make sure you understand which side you're starting from. Kinsman Ridge from the tramway side means going through the glades. Kinsman Ridge from the other side means taking Lonesome Lake trail and either cutting over on Hi-Cannon or just staying on Lonesome Lake trail and going by the lake.

One comment on the KRT route from Coppermine Col (ie, taking the Lonesome Lake Trail all the way up past the north side of the lake). There is one spot coming up the KRT there where in the past there has been a wicked flow of ice across the trail with a steep dropoff to the side. The conditions at the time were such that I would not have crossed it without real crampons and even then I would not let go of the tree branches as I did so. This was several years ago, I don't know if it reforms every year or not.

Barkingcat said:

The ice river of which you speak has indeed formed each of the past three years. It's a tricky section, especially going down. But, we just take our time and make sure to use the trees/tree roots on the side of the trail for a bit o' security...and make sure we have adequate traction.

Click to expand...

Would this section be averted if we took the hi-canon or is it a section in that 0.4 mi that is between the hi-cannon and KRT junction (is that the coppermine col?)

hikes-with-him said:

Would this section be averted if we took the hi-canon or is it a section in that 0.4 mi that is between the hi-cannon and KRT junction (is that the coppermine col?)

Click to expand...

If you go both up and down Hi-Cannon, you will miss that spot.

If you go up soon, regardless of route, count on at least another foot of snow that's come down yesterday and today--and it's still snowing in Franconia.

Hey, what about the ski trails? Bring your skis. Ski down. If you have skins, skin up. It's winter. Enjoy it.

Went up LL & KRT last year in January & I don't remember the ice but there are a couple of steep spots where we did change to crampons.

A couple of years earlier did do Hi-Cannon when it was packed out. Was early winter & ladder was just under the snow. (last year when I wentup LL & KRT, the Hi-Cannon trail was not packed out from the junction with LL - it may have been from the cut-off trail)

If I was going today & Hi-Cannon was packed out, I'd go that way. (From Cannon maybe the easiest but it's a pretty steep hike up Cannon any way you go in one place or another.)

Fromn Cannon, doesn't the trail come close to some of the glade ski-trails?

In past years with less use of the woods in winter and more snow, both Hi Cannon and the run up from Coppermine Col were a real bear to break out. Mix in the inevitable powder than builds up in these areas and the steepness of the trail and it could take a couple of hours to go the short distance. Once they were packed out, they were fairly easy although there are definitely a few dicey spots on the run up from Coopermine col.

Based on what I've read thus far, it still appears to me that going up KRT from the ski area is the best way to go. It is steep going up whichever way you go. In the heart of winter, I've encountered few if any skiers in the glades when I've gone up and never needed crampons to deal with ice. It's also faster in my view. Someone made a good point that you need to look for the trail going off to your left as you get above the glades.

I ascended Cannon 1/24 via the Kinsman Ridge Trail from the ski area parking lot and encountered several hikers on the trail. (it's broken out)

The trail switchbacks through a ski glade and can be difficult to follow. Usually angling my way across the glade would result in finding a faded blue blaze. Near the as the glade thins you'll see a tree on the left hand side with ski rope wrapped around it. The trail follows to the left of the tree.

The last 0.5 miles to the summit are exposed and if I did not have a visual of the summit tower following the trail through the windblown drifts would have been extremely difficult. My tracks had completely disappeared on descent.

Used MSR EVO's the entire route.

Given the rain, the woods and glade area are likely to be extremely hard-pack and require crampons with ice axe desirable. I recommend having the axe because it's somewhat steep, sidesloped, smooth, full of stumps & rocks, and the trees are widely spaced out. In other words, if you slip, no terrain feature is going to stop you without potentially severe injury. Then again, this is probably true of most trails in the Whites right now.