BIGEarl
Well-known member
December 11, 2008: Liberty and Flume
Trails: Liberty Spring Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Flume Slide Trail
Summits: Mount Liberty, Mount Flume
Hikers: Fitz and me
Fitz and I headed north from Nashua in a pretty good rain storm. As we traveled north the precipitation decreased until we were seeing periods of none. In fact, by the time we reached Plymouth the roads were mostly dry. We had generally gray conditions and couldn’t see any summits. When we hit the Basin lot it didn’t take very long to go through our pre-hike routine and set off south on the Franconia Notch Recreational Trail. Our first objective was the starting point of the “bushwhack” shortcut to the hard right in the Liberty Spring Trail.
The base on the Recreational Trail is not yet adequate for snowmobiles and we had a nice, quiet walk to the turning point. In very little time we were taking a left off the Recreational Trail and heading for a point on the Liberty Spring Trail that would save ~.5 miles, each way. In about the same time as it took us to reach the turning point, we reached the hard right on the Liberty Spring Trail and continued the short distance to the Liberty Spring – Flume Slide trails junction. Here, we were faced with our first decision. Climb the Flume Slide Trail or the Liberty Spring Trail. After a quick look at the Flume Slide Trail noting the very light traffic, we continued on the Liberty Spring Trail. By this point in the hike we both were up to temperature and shed the excess layers we had at the start.
The lower part of the Liberty Spring Trail has many open areas with mud, ice patches, and areas of snow. Overall, the traction is good but it is necessary to watch your step because of the snow over ice conditions. We reached the stream crossing at approximately 2000 feet and found ourselves climbing into a cloud. Soon, the trail made another sharp turn, this time left, and we started the steep climb to the ridge. The steepness of the trail combined with the unpredictable nature of the footing had us pull out Stabilicers, which we used all of the way to Mount Flume. With the traction problem taken care of we dug in to the chore of climbing to the junction with the Franconia Ridge Trail. Along the way we left the wide open stands of hardwoods at the lower elevations and moved into the spruce. We also managed to climb out of the clouds. A short distance below the Liberty Spring Tentsite I noticed the air had cleared. I also noticed there were clouds overhead, but very high. I commented on this to Fitz and we noticed the views had really opened up to the west, in between the two layers of clouds. I expected some pretty interesting pictures before the day was over.
At the Liberty Spring Tentsite we decided to stop and re-fuel. At that point we had climbed over 2000 feet in our hike with a slow start for 500 feet but the other 1500 feet were non-stop. After the break we were off for the Franconia Ridge Trail and on to our first summit for the day, Mount Liberty. The final .3 miles to Liberty has a mild elevation gain of 200 feet. Along the way the air was generally clear but occasionally a cloud would blow through. We reached the open area before the actual summit and my first thought was get the camera. There was a terrific view of Mount Moosilauke sticking through the lower layer of clouds with a higher layer well above. After getting that shot I started looking around and there was something interesting is nearly all directions. In fact, we had views that went all the way to Washington. We had undercast, overcast, and mountains in between. Unfortunately these conditions didn’t last long but we were able to get quite a few pictures and could only hope some were good ones.
We made our way to the summit of Liberty for the necessary summit shots. With that out of the way I asked Fits if we should hang around and enjoy the views (there weren’t any) or keep moving. He said “Keep moving” and with that we were off for Mount Flume.
Except for some ice on our exit from Mount Liberty, the hike to Mount Flume was very uneventful, and without views since the clouds had moved in again. The trail is very well tracked out with no ice at all. In a relative short time we were on the final climb to Mount Flume. I knew there was a question waiting at the summit. We stepped onto the summit clearing, got a couple summit pictures, and suddenly Liberty popped out of the clouds. After a couple more pictures we had a question to resolve.
U-turn or take the Flume Slide Trail down? U-turn means we simply go back the way we came in. Take the Flume Slide Trail down means hold onto your hats – this can be interesting.
That can be a tough question, especially if your preference is for loops instead of round trips. Our decision was to head for the Flume Slide Trail. If there was obvious recent traffic it would be our exit. No traffic meant u-turn. A light snow had started to fall. We reached the trails junction, turned right, and never looked back. We hiked roughly 200 yards down the Flume Slide Trail when I decided I would feel more comfortable on crampons instead of Stabilicers. Fitz agreed and we both made the change.
We’re having fun now. The hike down is a steep one, loaded with ice and great trail views. This is a trail that requires full attention when using it for a descent. It’s simple – if you start talkin’, stop walkin’. I can’t imagine having a safe descent on the Flume Slide Trail while also having a conversation, there’s too much to keep track of. Slowly we made our way down one tricky section after another tricky section and soon found the trail grade moderating. We hit bottom without a single problem along the way. That wasn’t bad. Now the test comes in the form of a long slog essentially contouring around the base of Mount Liberty back to the Liberty Spring Trail. And, it is long, or at least seems that way. It’s easy hiking with a few stream crossings, some mud pits (still very wet and soft), some ice patches, and snow. Eventually we came upon the sign post at the Flume Slide – Liberty Spring trails junction. Here we pulled out our headlights for the final ~.6 mile to the truck. Then, we hiked the short section of trail, then the reverse “bushwhack” shortcut, and then the Franconia Notch Recreational Trail back to the Basin.
I think we both wanted to get packed and head south quickly. With little conversation we loaded our things into the truck and were off – heading north to go south. In a little over an hour Fitz dropped me off in Concord where I had a few hours of work waiting for me.
It’s been a while since I hiked this route and I forgot how much fun it can be. Thanks Fitz, it was a terrific hike.
Pictures:
BIGEarl's Pictures
I have an album posted but the usual captions are not included with the pictures. Once I arrange access to a high-speed connection I’ll add this information to the shots and post a notice. Sorry, but the pictures were uploaded without captions. The best I could come up with was a dial-up connection today.
The name of the album is: Liberty & Flume, 12/11/2008
Trails: Liberty Spring Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Flume Slide Trail
Summits: Mount Liberty, Mount Flume
Hikers: Fitz and me
Fitz and I headed north from Nashua in a pretty good rain storm. As we traveled north the precipitation decreased until we were seeing periods of none. In fact, by the time we reached Plymouth the roads were mostly dry. We had generally gray conditions and couldn’t see any summits. When we hit the Basin lot it didn’t take very long to go through our pre-hike routine and set off south on the Franconia Notch Recreational Trail. Our first objective was the starting point of the “bushwhack” shortcut to the hard right in the Liberty Spring Trail.
The base on the Recreational Trail is not yet adequate for snowmobiles and we had a nice, quiet walk to the turning point. In very little time we were taking a left off the Recreational Trail and heading for a point on the Liberty Spring Trail that would save ~.5 miles, each way. In about the same time as it took us to reach the turning point, we reached the hard right on the Liberty Spring Trail and continued the short distance to the Liberty Spring – Flume Slide trails junction. Here, we were faced with our first decision. Climb the Flume Slide Trail or the Liberty Spring Trail. After a quick look at the Flume Slide Trail noting the very light traffic, we continued on the Liberty Spring Trail. By this point in the hike we both were up to temperature and shed the excess layers we had at the start.
The lower part of the Liberty Spring Trail has many open areas with mud, ice patches, and areas of snow. Overall, the traction is good but it is necessary to watch your step because of the snow over ice conditions. We reached the stream crossing at approximately 2000 feet and found ourselves climbing into a cloud. Soon, the trail made another sharp turn, this time left, and we started the steep climb to the ridge. The steepness of the trail combined with the unpredictable nature of the footing had us pull out Stabilicers, which we used all of the way to Mount Flume. With the traction problem taken care of we dug in to the chore of climbing to the junction with the Franconia Ridge Trail. Along the way we left the wide open stands of hardwoods at the lower elevations and moved into the spruce. We also managed to climb out of the clouds. A short distance below the Liberty Spring Tentsite I noticed the air had cleared. I also noticed there were clouds overhead, but very high. I commented on this to Fitz and we noticed the views had really opened up to the west, in between the two layers of clouds. I expected some pretty interesting pictures before the day was over.
At the Liberty Spring Tentsite we decided to stop and re-fuel. At that point we had climbed over 2000 feet in our hike with a slow start for 500 feet but the other 1500 feet were non-stop. After the break we were off for the Franconia Ridge Trail and on to our first summit for the day, Mount Liberty. The final .3 miles to Liberty has a mild elevation gain of 200 feet. Along the way the air was generally clear but occasionally a cloud would blow through. We reached the open area before the actual summit and my first thought was get the camera. There was a terrific view of Mount Moosilauke sticking through the lower layer of clouds with a higher layer well above. After getting that shot I started looking around and there was something interesting is nearly all directions. In fact, we had views that went all the way to Washington. We had undercast, overcast, and mountains in between. Unfortunately these conditions didn’t last long but we were able to get quite a few pictures and could only hope some were good ones.
We made our way to the summit of Liberty for the necessary summit shots. With that out of the way I asked Fits if we should hang around and enjoy the views (there weren’t any) or keep moving. He said “Keep moving” and with that we were off for Mount Flume.
Except for some ice on our exit from Mount Liberty, the hike to Mount Flume was very uneventful, and without views since the clouds had moved in again. The trail is very well tracked out with no ice at all. In a relative short time we were on the final climb to Mount Flume. I knew there was a question waiting at the summit. We stepped onto the summit clearing, got a couple summit pictures, and suddenly Liberty popped out of the clouds. After a couple more pictures we had a question to resolve.
U-turn or take the Flume Slide Trail down? U-turn means we simply go back the way we came in. Take the Flume Slide Trail down means hold onto your hats – this can be interesting.
That can be a tough question, especially if your preference is for loops instead of round trips. Our decision was to head for the Flume Slide Trail. If there was obvious recent traffic it would be our exit. No traffic meant u-turn. A light snow had started to fall. We reached the trails junction, turned right, and never looked back. We hiked roughly 200 yards down the Flume Slide Trail when I decided I would feel more comfortable on crampons instead of Stabilicers. Fitz agreed and we both made the change.
We’re having fun now. The hike down is a steep one, loaded with ice and great trail views. This is a trail that requires full attention when using it for a descent. It’s simple – if you start talkin’, stop walkin’. I can’t imagine having a safe descent on the Flume Slide Trail while also having a conversation, there’s too much to keep track of. Slowly we made our way down one tricky section after another tricky section and soon found the trail grade moderating. We hit bottom without a single problem along the way. That wasn’t bad. Now the test comes in the form of a long slog essentially contouring around the base of Mount Liberty back to the Liberty Spring Trail. And, it is long, or at least seems that way. It’s easy hiking with a few stream crossings, some mud pits (still very wet and soft), some ice patches, and snow. Eventually we came upon the sign post at the Flume Slide – Liberty Spring trails junction. Here we pulled out our headlights for the final ~.6 mile to the truck. Then, we hiked the short section of trail, then the reverse “bushwhack” shortcut, and then the Franconia Notch Recreational Trail back to the Basin.
I think we both wanted to get packed and head south quickly. With little conversation we loaded our things into the truck and were off – heading north to go south. In a little over an hour Fitz dropped me off in Concord where I had a few hours of work waiting for me.
It’s been a while since I hiked this route and I forgot how much fun it can be. Thanks Fitz, it was a terrific hike.
Pictures:
BIGEarl's Pictures
I have an album posted but the usual captions are not included with the pictures. Once I arrange access to a high-speed connection I’ll add this information to the shots and post a notice. Sorry, but the pictures were uploaded without captions. The best I could come up with was a dial-up connection today.
The name of the album is: Liberty & Flume, 12/11/2008
