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Old Bridle Path: moderately icy, snow cover increasing with elevation. Got by to past Greenleaf Hut without putting on microspikes. Wore spikes on the ridge and for Falling Waters. FW seemed icier in places than OBP, and I was glad to have spikes on for the descent. The ridge had portions of drifting snow, but saw considerable traffic throughout the day, and thus a decent boot track was available for the most part.
Equipment: light traction, poles for stability.
Other comments: Despite so-so weather conditions (summits in clouds, blowing snow, winds 30-40 mph, temps 5-10 F, visibility 50-100 feet), lots of people out that day, including some who, in my opinion, had no business being up there. Saw some interesting choices of outwear, including hooded sweatshirts, shorts (!) and summer nylon hiking pants. Ran into a couple near Lafayette who asked "if there was some sort of trail going down from the summit", and which way it goes (??). While it's nice to see more people discovering the beauty of winter in the mountains, the increasing number of blatantly unprepared folks among them is disconcerting. To those people: if you have little or no experience in winter hiking, then perhaps it makes sense to try something OTHER than a hike involving 2-plus miles of above-treeline ridge, in near-whiteout conditions, as your first outing? Otherwise, if this trend continues we are bound to hear about more epics this coming season. Happy trails and be safe up there!
Equipment: light traction, poles for stability.
Other comments: Despite so-so weather conditions (summits in clouds, blowing snow, winds 30-40 mph, temps 5-10 F, visibility 50-100 feet), lots of people out that day, including some who, in my opinion, had no business being up there. Saw some interesting choices of outwear, including hooded sweatshirts, shorts (!) and summer nylon hiking pants. Ran into a couple near Lafayette who asked "if there was some sort of trail going down from the summit", and which way it goes (??). While it's nice to see more people discovering the beauty of winter in the mountains, the increasing number of blatantly unprepared folks among them is disconcerting. To those people: if you have little or no experience in winter hiking, then perhaps it makes sense to try something OTHER than a hike involving 2-plus miles of above-treeline ridge, in near-whiteout conditions, as your first outing? Otherwise, if this trend continues we are bound to hear about more epics this coming season. Happy trails and be safe up there!
