Pressie Traverse Comments and Advice Sought

Last year I attempted north to south in a day and ended up falling victim to cramps around eisenhower. I'm no stranger to big milage days, and had done the pemi loop in a day the year prior with no problem but the difference was it was hot and sunny for the Presi day. If you can plan it for a cooler day I think it would be a big help.

I went up Madison by the Watson Path when I did a moonlight traverse. Because we were planning to hike across in the dark, we ascend at a leisurely pace in late afternoon to get to the top before it got dark, so we opted to try the Watson Path. At beginning of my trip report, I have a brief description of it, and in the album at the bottom of my post, there are some photos of the Watson Path both below the trees and approaching the summit, which may help you with a vision of the trail. There is a really nice waterfall, and the trail in general is very pretty. However, I would agree with Kevin in going with Valley Way if this is your first traverse. Seeing that you just recently went up the Valley Way though, you'll be able to take these suggestions here and make the best decision for you. Another thing I can add is that when you get to treeline on the Valley Way at the hut, the path is much easier to the summit, and you can drop your pack if you choose. But, when you hit treeline on Watson Path, you're looking about the same distance up to the summit, but the boulders are much bigger, so its a little more of a scramble, and with your pack.

I have not done a South to North traverse, although I would love to try it as a summer hike if I ever get the opportunity.

Kevin Rooney said:

A couple of observations - 1) heading up from the north with more than 1 liter of fluid is excess weight. Superhydrate before you start, and then tank up at Madison hut. 2) The Watson Path is interesting, but it's steep, rough, and slower. To illustrate - when Brutus was about 3, he accompanied a group of us on a Presie traverse starting up Valley Way. They split off at Watson, while he and I continued up Valley Way. We visited for about 15 minutes at the hut with a gal very interested in Brutus, and then on to the summit. My friends, who were faster hikers, didn't arrive until 10 minutes later - rather tired and a bit fried. The take away is familiar - the shortest route is not necessarily the fastest. I've found the same is true if you start the traverse via the Pine Link - by the time you struggle to the summit of Madison, Pierce seems a helluva long way off!

Since this is your first traverse, I'd go with the conventional wisdom - go north to south, travel light, know your water sources and how much to carry between them, go up Valley Way, and avoid Clay, Jackson & Webster. Get creative on subsequent traverses. Avoid making your first an epic.

YMMV.

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Thanks Kevin. Appreciate the input.

Agree about the water - I'll be well hydrated. I'll carry 2-3 L in my bladder after Madison Hut. And will follow conventional wisdom for most things here I imagine..definitely N to S, and definitely not Jackson and Webster.

I like Clay and it's the part of the range I visit the least so that call can be made on the fly...or crawl. It's also not too much to add to the day.

I've been up and down Watson a few times and agree it's a more challenging trail than Valley Way/Osgood but that is one I need to ponder. No epic planned here but I may have one or two small variations on the standard...

Thanks all for the suggestions:

Surf - a hot day would probably crush this plan and me. Good thought. I hope to go at the end of June/early July but will hope it's not one of those humid, bad air days

DMO - great thoughts on Watson. Wow - Watson Path at night? It's hard to follow in the day in places. Thanks - I should have been more clear in my OP that I'm pretty familiar with most of the trails in question, but have never done the physical traverse in a single day, which leads to...

Roadtripper: thanks. I've not done the Bonds Traverse but have done a few higher mileage days (Bond and back in a day (winter), trip around owls head (all by trail) with a summit trip up and down the slide along the way - that was mosly flat but had the added benefit of multiple blowdowns, interesting crossings, and obscure trail There's been a other high mileage days but it's also the 9000' ish of elevation gain that will take some working toward for me.

Good idea about the distance trips. Kilkenny Ridge, Carter/Wildcat, Kinsmans, and lots of interesting loops in the Pemi - time to get the map and plan something interesting.

The idea of climbing Madison from Appalachia twice in a day about 2 weeks beforehand has crossed my mind - I think that would make a good litmus test for the elevation. Still just a thought though

Thanks!

training was mentioned, The year I did the traverse, I did some jogging and walking & was as close to my ideal weaight as I have been since. (far from where I am now)

Did a few two and three peak trips, a four peak Catskill trip doing 1/2 the Devils Path & then tried a Pemi Traverse. Managed to get Franconia Ridge, Garfield & Galehead & then back via Twin Brook. That was a good warm up. In the fall, post traverse, tried pemi again in reverse, did Bonds, Twins & Galehead & then back on the Twin Brook.

Current storm notwithstanding, how are the trails / snow / etc at BSP??

Mike P. said:

training was mentioned, The year I did the traverse, I did some jogging and walking & was as close to my ideal weaight as I have been since. (far from where I am now)

Did a few two and three peak trips, a four peak Catskill trip doing 1/2 the Devils Path & then tried a Pemi Traverse. Managed to get Franconia Ridge, Garfield & Galehead & then back via Twin Brook. That was a good warm up. In the fall, post traverse, tried pemi again in reverse, did Bonds, Twins & Galehead & then back on the Twin Brook.

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Thanks Mike. That's what I figure too. I'll try to hit some longer mile days with lots of ups and downs. Did 14 miles in the Pilot Range this Saturday which is moderate terrain, but it has that rolling ridgeline...up some ...down some. I just like that ridge anyway. Those are solid days on the Pemi loop you did BTW - your legs had to be fried by Galehead on the first one. I like the idea of a 16-20 mile day through there though so I may try one of those.

Baxter State Park doesn’t open until the 15th, does it? And I suspect that trails on Katahdin are closed until Memorial Day.

Watson Path - used it 2 of 3 times for a one day pres, but I prefer Valley Way.
Training - Wildcats and Carters in a day is good prep

The number one thing I would advise is to sleep at a local place after the traverse. It is AWFUL trying to drive afterwards, especially when you spot cars which adds to driving time. The safest thing to do is rest up and drive home the next day.

Here's my opinion about getting ready for long hikes in general and specifically the Presi Traverse. When I did my first Presi Traverse, I was in my 50’s so I wasn’t in my 30’s anymore either. I also went against prevailing wisdom and went south to north. That was a logistical decision and not a hiking decision. I also added Jackson. And because I was working on another project at the time, I also added Isolation to the mix. About 30 miles total.

For me, I felt I was in good enough shape to get up down all of the mountains on the Presi Traverse and could handle any steep sections along the way. In fact, probably the steepest section you will encounter of any sustained length is getting from the Lakes Hut up to Monroe. Anyway, the key to me was training to be on my feet all day. Twenty miles is a long walk no matter what terrain you are on and if you’re not used to being on your feet for that long a period of time, then you’ll be in for an even longer day.

During the 6 weeks prior to my Presi Traverse I did hikes of 13, 15, 21, 17 and 9 miles. The 2 longest hikes were Owl’s Head (circumnavigated) and Isolation/Davis, not tough by any means but lots of steps required. To me, other than the summit cones of Washington and the northern peaks, the traverse is not that rugged. It’s just a lot of steps.

JohnL

JohnL said:

To me, other than the summit cones of Washington and the northern peaks, the traverse is not that rugged. It’s just a lot of steps.

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From Madison Hut to LOC is 8.7 miles and 3900 feet (all summits including Clay), much of which is on those big, sharp, northern Presi rocks.

Tim

bikehikeskifish said:

From Madison Hut to LOC is 8.7 miles and 3900 feet (all summits including Clay), much of which is on those big, sharp, northern Presi rocks.

Tim

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Not really. The Gulfside Trail is a virtual boulevard. Adams' summit is only 0.6 miles out and back from T-Storm Jct, Jefferson is 0.7 up and over and Washington is at most 1/3 mile of rock hopping, similar to the descent from it on the Crawford Path, which is, other than the very top section, a manufactured stairway down to the Lakes Hut.

JohnL

Blue said:

Watson Path - used it 2 of 3 times for a one day pres, but I prefer Valley Way.
Training - Wildcats and Carters in a day is good prep

The number one thing I would advise is to sleep at a local place after the traverse. It is AWFUL trying to drive afterwards, especially when you spot cars which adds to driving time. The safest thing to do is rest up and drive home the next day.

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Thanks Blue! Yes, Valley Way is easier on the feet for sure and Wildcats and Carters sounds like a good training day, lots of ups and downs on the ridge. I imagine that adds up to quite a bit of elevation during the day. Good suggestion.

And I will definitely be staying local both before and after the hike. I think I'd end up sleeping in the car if I tried to drive very far after! Originally I was considering hiking northbound because I could hike right into a bed after Madison but I'll probably stick with SB for all the obvious reasons.

JohnL said:

For me, I felt I was in good enough shape to get up down all of the mountains on the Presi Traverse and could handle any steep sections along the way. In fact, probably the steepest section you will encounter of any sustained length is getting from the Lakes Hut up to Monroe. Anyway, the key to me was training to be on my feet all day. Twenty miles is a long walk no matter what terrain you are on and if you’re not used to being on your feet for that long a period of time, then you’ll be in for an even longer day.

JohnL

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Thanks for the thoughtful input John. That's a long day you hiked. It sounds like we have almost opposite concerns for training - interesting how we all have different strengths and needs when it comes to preparing.

20+ miles is a long day but the mileage is much less of a concern in my case than is the cumulative elevation gain. I'm confident hiking all day and into the 20s (I'm familiar with 20-milers) and although I love steeps and don't find scrambling difficult, my issue is that my quads tend to feel the effects of lots of elevation gain and loss in a sustained hike. I need to increase the muscle stamina in my legs in order to not cramp in the last 6-8 miles so have been planning a couple training hikes (in another thread on elevation hikes) with 6-8,000 feet of gain in a day. I don't imagine I'll do anything over 20 miles before the traverse though, or only one if I do.