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Our group of 9, including three kids, left the Pinkham Notch Visitor's Center at 8:45 for a loop around the Boott Spur, Davis Path, Crawford Path, Tuckerman Ravine, Lion Head, and Tuckerman Ravine trails. All trails were in excellent condition, with no blowdowns, washouts, or mud anywhere. We had cloudless blue skies, temps in the 50's, and a light breeze all day long. There were a few bugs, but they weren't an issue while we were moving, and only bothered us a little bit on the descent between Lion Head and the Hermit Shelter when stopped for 10 minutes. The summit of Washington was a different story, where we were continuously surrounded by clouds of knats and a few black flies, to the point that we had to go inside to avoid them. Maybe the hoards of tourists attracted them, and the lack of wind (0-5mph) allowed them to stay around.
It was once again confirmed that the least desirable location on Mt. Washington is the summit. The Boott Spur Trail is absolutely spectacular, and far an away my favorite route up the mountain. About half way up the trail breaks above treeline, and the view into Tuckerman, with its dwindling snowfields, waterfalls, and greenery, and the cliffs of Huntington Ravine directly across from you, make this one of the most dramatic panoramic views in the Whites. From there to the top of Boott Spur the trail has good footing, and alternating stretches of relatively easy grades with steeper pitches. The variety of terrain and the tremendous views make you forget you're climbing 3,500' vertical in about 3.5 miles.
We reached Boott Spur, and had lunch on the secondary peak since some really big and curious bees had claimed the very top. From there to Washington was an almost level 1 1/2 miles of Bigelow Lawn, which had great footing and interesting cairns marching across the flats, with excellent views of Monroe, Eisenhower and beyond. We reached the summit, avoided the bugs, and headed down the Lion Head Trail, where the views from Lion Head into Tuckerman were also outstanding, with various wildflowers in bloom. The summer route to Hermit Shelter was much less steep and intimidating than we had anticipated from reading the White Mountain Guide description. It was really nothing - less steep and treacherous than the Kinsman Ridge Trail off the back of Cannon, the Hancock Loop, or coming down off Carter Dome into Carter Notch.
In almost every respect, this was one of the best hikes we've done.
It was once again confirmed that the least desirable location on Mt. Washington is the summit. The Boott Spur Trail is absolutely spectacular, and far an away my favorite route up the mountain. About half way up the trail breaks above treeline, and the view into Tuckerman, with its dwindling snowfields, waterfalls, and greenery, and the cliffs of Huntington Ravine directly across from you, make this one of the most dramatic panoramic views in the Whites. From there to the top of Boott Spur the trail has good footing, and alternating stretches of relatively easy grades with steeper pitches. The variety of terrain and the tremendous views make you forget you're climbing 3,500' vertical in about 3.5 miles.
We reached Boott Spur, and had lunch on the secondary peak since some really big and curious bees had claimed the very top. From there to Washington was an almost level 1 1/2 miles of Bigelow Lawn, which had great footing and interesting cairns marching across the flats, with excellent views of Monroe, Eisenhower and beyond. We reached the summit, avoided the bugs, and headed down the Lion Head Trail, where the views from Lion Head into Tuckerman were also outstanding, with various wildflowers in bloom. The summer route to Hermit Shelter was much less steep and intimidating than we had anticipated from reading the White Mountain Guide description. It was really nothing - less steep and treacherous than the Kinsman Ridge Trail off the back of Cannon, the Hancock Loop, or coming down off Carter Dome into Carter Notch.
In almost every respect, this was one of the best hikes we've done.
