grouseking
Well-known member
Ok to start off, I haven't been hiking for very long in my life, and I'm only 24 years old. But the amount of snow that is still on the ground in the White Mtns is staggering. I was completely in awe at what I saw today out on the trails. Looking at some history, there have only been a handful of years where we might have had a late melt of snow, one being 2001 and another being 1969. I'm sure there are others....But this year has to be one for the record books. Time to go into detail....
Justin and I parked at the gate for Ravine Lodge Road and were off after 9:30. The gate was open, but I wasn't sure if riding on the road was smart, so we huffed it instead. It served as a nice warmup, and really wasn't too steep at all. Weather did not look promising to start, with gusty winds, cloudy skies and cool temperatures, but as we approached the lodge, things brightened up and the sun came out. There was snow at the lodge, and in the shade, it was about knee deep (first posthole of the day!) Once on the trail, there were areas where we automatically started to posthole and I figured it was time to toss on the snowshoes. Soon enough we came to a solid patch of snow that lasted nearly the rest of the ascent as we put them on. Temps were in the upper 30s/low 40s and Gorge Brook was crashing down, making for a very pleasant walk. Snow was around 18-24 inches deep and we were only around 3000 feet. It made me wonder what lie ahead....
Once the snowshoes went on, the trip went smoothly, albeit slow. When I wear those things, my pace is very slow and steady, which is good I guess. Around noon we took a break at the first real viewpoint and soaked up the sun in all of its glory. Man what a day it was turning out to be. As we continued to climb, the number of blowdowns began to increase and the snow depth continued to increase. Also there were some amazing views of Franconia Ridge for the first time. Once we rounded a corner, a hiker told us it was prob best to just take the snow shoes off because the snow was almost done....another 100 yards or so and we'd be out of it....I should have known better since he didn't have any shoes in the first place, and listened to my instinct to tell me to keep them on.
Once we took them off, there was a dry spot, and then the snow picked right up again....and it got deep!!! We would posthole every once in awhile and then it became fairly often....waist deep, and my new personal record, chest deep!! I couldn't believe it. All of this was just before the snow completely disappeared and we got above the trees. Oh well at least the rime ice was magical.
From here on up, the trek to the summit was a piece of cake, and after ringing out my socks of water (I have two lovely holes in my boots....time for a new pair ) we summited the mtn. Views were astonishing, I took tons of pics, as usual. Thanks to the wind, we only stuck around for a short time. It was getting late already anyways.....
Because I'm really tired...I'll keep the trek down short. Conditions were quite similiar heading down with slightly less snow on the carriage rd, but I was still very impressed by the totals. Then on the Snapper trail, snow was in general 1-2 feet deep with thigh deep areas in locations of drifting. If I did not have snowshoes, I wouldn't have even made it halfway up the mtn. It would have been quite tragic indeed. This is the most amount of snow I have ever seen/heard of this late in the year in the mtns. Again, maybe there have been other occurences, but they must be quite rare.
Back at the lodge by 5:07pm and back at the car by 5:45. Fatigue didn't hit until now, so I shall collapse for the night.
It was a great hike, and I hope to do one like this again some May!
http://grouseking.phanfare.com/album/271142#imageID=16260314 Pics
grouseking
Justin and I parked at the gate for Ravine Lodge Road and were off after 9:30. The gate was open, but I wasn't sure if riding on the road was smart, so we huffed it instead. It served as a nice warmup, and really wasn't too steep at all. Weather did not look promising to start, with gusty winds, cloudy skies and cool temperatures, but as we approached the lodge, things brightened up and the sun came out. There was snow at the lodge, and in the shade, it was about knee deep (first posthole of the day!) Once on the trail, there were areas where we automatically started to posthole and I figured it was time to toss on the snowshoes. Soon enough we came to a solid patch of snow that lasted nearly the rest of the ascent as we put them on. Temps were in the upper 30s/low 40s and Gorge Brook was crashing down, making for a very pleasant walk. Snow was around 18-24 inches deep and we were only around 3000 feet. It made me wonder what lie ahead....
Once the snowshoes went on, the trip went smoothly, albeit slow. When I wear those things, my pace is very slow and steady, which is good I guess. Around noon we took a break at the first real viewpoint and soaked up the sun in all of its glory. Man what a day it was turning out to be. As we continued to climb, the number of blowdowns began to increase and the snow depth continued to increase. Also there were some amazing views of Franconia Ridge for the first time. Once we rounded a corner, a hiker told us it was prob best to just take the snow shoes off because the snow was almost done....another 100 yards or so and we'd be out of it....I should have known better since he didn't have any shoes in the first place, and listened to my instinct to tell me to keep them on.
Once we took them off, there was a dry spot, and then the snow picked right up again....and it got deep!!! We would posthole every once in awhile and then it became fairly often....waist deep, and my new personal record, chest deep!! I couldn't believe it. All of this was just before the snow completely disappeared and we got above the trees. Oh well at least the rime ice was magical.
From here on up, the trek to the summit was a piece of cake, and after ringing out my socks of water (I have two lovely holes in my boots....time for a new pair ) we summited the mtn. Views were astonishing, I took tons of pics, as usual. Thanks to the wind, we only stuck around for a short time. It was getting late already anyways.....
Because I'm really tired...I'll keep the trek down short. Conditions were quite similiar heading down with slightly less snow on the carriage rd, but I was still very impressed by the totals. Then on the Snapper trail, snow was in general 1-2 feet deep with thigh deep areas in locations of drifting. If I did not have snowshoes, I wouldn't have even made it halfway up the mtn. It would have been quite tragic indeed. This is the most amount of snow I have ever seen/heard of this late in the year in the mtns. Again, maybe there have been other occurences, but they must be quite rare.
Back at the lodge by 5:07pm and back at the car by 5:45. Fatigue didn't hit until now, so I shall collapse for the night.
It was a great hike, and I hope to do one like this again some May!
http://grouseking.phanfare.com/album/271142#imageID=16260314 Pics
grouseking