Elizabeth
New member
Date: Earth Day, 2011. (Also Good Friday)
Trails: Valley Way, Brookside, short segment of Watson Path, Lower Bruin, inadvertent bushwhack, Valley Way, Osgood, Valley Way
Conditions and Equipment: Lower Valley Way was mostly covered with highly-compacted snow and ice, with a few bare sections. Somewhat slippery. I started in bare boots and soon added Yak Trax. Brookside was partially-compacted snow, with tracks of only one other person visible. Some postholes. Brook crossings were somewhat challenging due to slippery, icy rocks; but water levels not particularly high. The icy falls were very attractive. After the first crossing of Snyder Brook I used snowshoes. Snow was clumping onto the bottom of the snowshoes, so I switched to 10-point crampons after Salmacis Fall. The crampons clumped somewhat, but not as badly. I decided not to attempt Watson Path to the summit, as it appeared to be untracked, and I was tired of the clumping snow. Lower Bruin was untracked, and I lost the way after a bit - hence the inadvertent bushwhack to Valley Way. Crampons continued useful for well-packed snow of upper Valley Way and first part of Osgood Trail. The last few hundred feet to Madison summit was more rock than snow or ice. On the way back down via Valley Way, I used crampons for all but the last mile and a half or so, where bare-booting allowed for some glissading.
Most of the other hikers I met wore full crampons, and I was glad for mine. A few people had microspikes, and seemed to be doing O.K., though you could see places where their feet had slipped on some of the steeper sections of upper Valley Way. The dogs did fine with their built-in microspikes; but they have four legs. For the two-legged, poles were essential at brook crossings and on steep sections of trail. Snowshoes were necessary only for the lower part of Brookside Trail.
Photos from this hike can be seen at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32876400@N08/sets/72157626560007856/
___________________________________________________
NH48: Elizabeth 48/48; Gracie 40/48; Salty 39/48
Trails: Valley Way, Brookside, short segment of Watson Path, Lower Bruin, inadvertent bushwhack, Valley Way, Osgood, Valley Way
Conditions and Equipment: Lower Valley Way was mostly covered with highly-compacted snow and ice, with a few bare sections. Somewhat slippery. I started in bare boots and soon added Yak Trax. Brookside was partially-compacted snow, with tracks of only one other person visible. Some postholes. Brook crossings were somewhat challenging due to slippery, icy rocks; but water levels not particularly high. The icy falls were very attractive. After the first crossing of Snyder Brook I used snowshoes. Snow was clumping onto the bottom of the snowshoes, so I switched to 10-point crampons after Salmacis Fall. The crampons clumped somewhat, but not as badly. I decided not to attempt Watson Path to the summit, as it appeared to be untracked, and I was tired of the clumping snow. Lower Bruin was untracked, and I lost the way after a bit - hence the inadvertent bushwhack to Valley Way. Crampons continued useful for well-packed snow of upper Valley Way and first part of Osgood Trail. The last few hundred feet to Madison summit was more rock than snow or ice. On the way back down via Valley Way, I used crampons for all but the last mile and a half or so, where bare-booting allowed for some glissading.
Most of the other hikers I met wore full crampons, and I was glad for mine. A few people had microspikes, and seemed to be doing O.K., though you could see places where their feet had slipped on some of the steeper sections of upper Valley Way. The dogs did fine with their built-in microspikes; but they have four legs. For the two-legged, poles were essential at brook crossings and on steep sections of trail. Snowshoes were necessary only for the lower part of Brookside Trail.
Photos from this hike can be seen at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32876400@N08/sets/72157626560007856/
___________________________________________________
NH48: Elizabeth 48/48; Gracie 40/48; Salty 39/48
Last edited:
