mavs00
New member
As a post-Thanksgiving treat, we decided to take on this short hike up this firetower peak that has long been on our “to do” list. It did not disappoint. HOLY COW, For the effort involved (very reasonable), this is quite possibly one of the finest views in the entire park. Sure there are better summit views out there, but not many that are just 2 pleasant hours from the car.
We drove 3.5 hours in from Rome and met Bushwhacker (Brian) and Eric (Peak_bgr’s son) at the Allen trailhead at about 8:30 AM. It was a brisk 22 degrees as we started and the sky was clear. We were decked out for full winter conditions (minus snowshoes) and we warmed quickly. After reaching the turn off to Adams from the main trail, we started heading up. This newly restored trail is wonderful, wide and soft. We took it slow and focused on enjoying the trip.
While there was only a dusting of snow down low, we could tell from the looking at the other peaks around, the big ones were sporting the white caps of winter up high. Sure enough, as we approached the 2900’ mark, it got icy. We decided to throw on the crampons and not have to futz around dodging ice. Brian and Eric chose to bareboot, and they certainly struggled more than we did. By around 3200’-3300’, there was solidly 2-3 inches of ice on all rock surfaces. It was certainly doable without them, but we had em, so why hassle.
After a little over two hours we hit the summit and the firetower. The tower box itself was in disrepair, but the stairs and landings have all been restored. We went up to the 4-5th level and were well above the trees. Man, the view was SIMPLY AWSOME. You are in the middle of it all and it’s 360 all the way around.
My trusty -KESTREL- unit recorded 18.1 degrees on the summit with 10 MPH winds (4 degree wind chill). There was even a little rime ice forming on the tower. We quickly had some lunch and enjoyed the views. I crashed around the summit areas and found some other nifty views. Overall, we were up there for about 45 minutes and then headed out. The afternoon warmed up nicely and with the sun shining we got downright HOT coming down. By the time we got down to the trailhead, it was a balmy 30 degrees.
All in all, a simply amazing hike. We did it in just over 5 hours and we took our time. You’d likely be faster as we really relaxed this one. This hike is pretty easy, all the way through, and like I said, the effort/reward ratio is real high. It’s like a Noonmark on the western side of the peaks.
More pictures of this hike in my-GALLERY-. (Adams firetower)
We drove 3.5 hours in from Rome and met Bushwhacker (Brian) and Eric (Peak_bgr’s son) at the Allen trailhead at about 8:30 AM. It was a brisk 22 degrees as we started and the sky was clear. We were decked out for full winter conditions (minus snowshoes) and we warmed quickly. After reaching the turn off to Adams from the main trail, we started heading up. This newly restored trail is wonderful, wide and soft. We took it slow and focused on enjoying the trip.
While there was only a dusting of snow down low, we could tell from the looking at the other peaks around, the big ones were sporting the white caps of winter up high. Sure enough, as we approached the 2900’ mark, it got icy. We decided to throw on the crampons and not have to futz around dodging ice. Brian and Eric chose to bareboot, and they certainly struggled more than we did. By around 3200’-3300’, there was solidly 2-3 inches of ice on all rock surfaces. It was certainly doable without them, but we had em, so why hassle.
After a little over two hours we hit the summit and the firetower. The tower box itself was in disrepair, but the stairs and landings have all been restored. We went up to the 4-5th level and were well above the trees. Man, the view was SIMPLY AWSOME. You are in the middle of it all and it’s 360 all the way around.
My trusty -KESTREL- unit recorded 18.1 degrees on the summit with 10 MPH winds (4 degree wind chill). There was even a little rime ice forming on the tower. We quickly had some lunch and enjoyed the views. I crashed around the summit areas and found some other nifty views. Overall, we were up there for about 45 minutes and then headed out. The afternoon warmed up nicely and with the sun shining we got downright HOT coming down. By the time we got down to the trailhead, it was a balmy 30 degrees.
All in all, a simply amazing hike. We did it in just over 5 hours and we took our time. You’d likely be faster as we really relaxed this one. This hike is pretty easy, all the way through, and like I said, the effort/reward ratio is real high. It’s like a Noonmark on the western side of the peaks.
More pictures of this hike in my-GALLERY-. (Adams firetower)
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