Paradox
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I wanted to hike Mount Isolation before June 17, in order to finish the 48 NH 4Ker's that day on Mount Jackson. But the weather report Friday evening 6/26/06 indicated that the weather would clear around 10 am in Vermont as opposed to noon around Mt. Washington. I began to consider Mt. Mansfield rather than Mt Isolation. I got up Saturday morning and found the same weather report on the net. Further surfing revealed that it was raining where I live in Holderness, NH. But, the weather outside my window was beautiful. Trusting a dry hand over a wet computer screen, I said Mt. Isolation it is. I hustled the dogs into the car and got to the Rt 16, Rocky Branch trailhead before 9 am. Hit the trail at 9:00:00. The trail to the height of land is an easy to moderate grade the whole way, good footing, no blowdowns of note, numerous but well behaved insects, and fast. A few large muddy areas are easily traversed.
After the height of land the trail quickly became a washed out, rapidly moving, brook, requiring poles to keep the feet dry. After 0.4 mile or so I became frustrated with the hopping from rock to rock and I could hear the Rocky branch river thundering loudly still a quarter mile away. I decided that the bushwhack due North was an option that would allow me to escape the brook I was muckin' through and avoid the two river crossings near the Isolation trail junction.
At (NAD 27, UTM, 19T) 0317139 4896872 I ventured timidly into a thick spruce thicket, to find that after about 50' it thinned out quickly. It became a largely open, hardwood forest. Two large muddy areas required poles to traverse without hotfoots. I joined the Isolation trail at 0316945 4897283 which is North of the second crossing of the Rocky Branch River.
The Isolation Trail is fast and dry enough to the third crossing which was doable with poles and my longer legs. My Labrador Retrievers charged straight through. I passed two other hikers at this point neither as large as I, and they were having a tough time of it without poles. Another problem for them was their rottweiler did not seem to enjoy the water like the Labs. They said they were headed to Mt Isolation and had started out about the same time as I had from the Rocky Branch Shelter campground. I never saw them again. Clearly, bring your poles or leave your rottweiler if you want to make better time.
The fourth crossing is only about 300 feet away and I got my first hotfoot there. The fifth crossing was pretty easy. The Isolation trail became difficult for me to follow above the fifth crossing. I bushwhacked up a ravine that was blowdowns the whole way. There were many footprints in the area so I just kept going, wishing I had brought my chainsaw. I had to bushwhack for 0.3 mile to the Davis Trail at 0315655 4899220 which is impossible to miss.
The Davis trail to the summit is very fast. I spent about 45 minutes on top for lunch. Mount Washington was in the clouds as was much of the Southern Presidential Range. All in all the views were worth the climb. The view into the Dry River Wilderness is very impressive. Three hikers from Connecticut came along after 15 minutes or so. They left Rt 16 at 7:30 am. but had a much tougher time with the lower 2 crossings. One of them fell in up to his neck to the barely suppressed smirks of his comrades. That is until they found out that he lost their GPS. Clearly, I passed them during my bushwhack, so I must have picked up about an hour and 45 minutes by avoiding the two lower crossings. They told me that they also had lost the trail above the 5th crossing and bushwhacked up the ravine.
On the way back down I figured that I must have diverged left from the Isolation Trail at some point and might find it if I headed further North on the Davis Path. Buzzzzzzz, wrong. I eventually started another bushwhack at 0315716 4899322 that eventually found the Isolation Trail again at 0315968 4899348 between where I lost it and the Davis Trail. On the way down things were much drier and through open woods, so I did make the right choice. I ran into two hikers that were on the trail and made it much further than I did. What I am trying to say here is that the Isolation Trail is there, some where in that 400 feet between were I emerged on the way up and where I turned East on the way down. But, I lost it on the way up and could not find it on the way down.
On the way down I also bushwhacked around the fourth and third crossings. An easy traverse through dry open woods that is only about 250 feet long. The only way to go to keep the feet dry and safe.
Water is available everywhere, so bring a filter rather than carrying it. I did not have to worry about weather as it never rained that day. Not a single bug bite, never pulled out the DEET. The way is clear for June 17th.
An additional comment is that the roads were very heavily patrolled by the State police and local police. I counted 8 radar trap setups on the roads surrounding the Presidential Range and Pemi Wilderness.
Pictures will be appended when I figure out how to do it.
pic
After the height of land the trail quickly became a washed out, rapidly moving, brook, requiring poles to keep the feet dry. After 0.4 mile or so I became frustrated with the hopping from rock to rock and I could hear the Rocky branch river thundering loudly still a quarter mile away. I decided that the bushwhack due North was an option that would allow me to escape the brook I was muckin' through and avoid the two river crossings near the Isolation trail junction.
At (NAD 27, UTM, 19T) 0317139 4896872 I ventured timidly into a thick spruce thicket, to find that after about 50' it thinned out quickly. It became a largely open, hardwood forest. Two large muddy areas required poles to traverse without hotfoots. I joined the Isolation trail at 0316945 4897283 which is North of the second crossing of the Rocky Branch River.
The Isolation Trail is fast and dry enough to the third crossing which was doable with poles and my longer legs. My Labrador Retrievers charged straight through. I passed two other hikers at this point neither as large as I, and they were having a tough time of it without poles. Another problem for them was their rottweiler did not seem to enjoy the water like the Labs. They said they were headed to Mt Isolation and had started out about the same time as I had from the Rocky Branch Shelter campground. I never saw them again. Clearly, bring your poles or leave your rottweiler if you want to make better time.
The fourth crossing is only about 300 feet away and I got my first hotfoot there. The fifth crossing was pretty easy. The Isolation trail became difficult for me to follow above the fifth crossing. I bushwhacked up a ravine that was blowdowns the whole way. There were many footprints in the area so I just kept going, wishing I had brought my chainsaw. I had to bushwhack for 0.3 mile to the Davis Trail at 0315655 4899220 which is impossible to miss.
The Davis trail to the summit is very fast. I spent about 45 minutes on top for lunch. Mount Washington was in the clouds as was much of the Southern Presidential Range. All in all the views were worth the climb. The view into the Dry River Wilderness is very impressive. Three hikers from Connecticut came along after 15 minutes or so. They left Rt 16 at 7:30 am. but had a much tougher time with the lower 2 crossings. One of them fell in up to his neck to the barely suppressed smirks of his comrades. That is until they found out that he lost their GPS. Clearly, I passed them during my bushwhack, so I must have picked up about an hour and 45 minutes by avoiding the two lower crossings. They told me that they also had lost the trail above the 5th crossing and bushwhacked up the ravine.
On the way back down I figured that I must have diverged left from the Isolation Trail at some point and might find it if I headed further North on the Davis Path. Buzzzzzzz, wrong. I eventually started another bushwhack at 0315716 4899322 that eventually found the Isolation Trail again at 0315968 4899348 between where I lost it and the Davis Trail. On the way down things were much drier and through open woods, so I did make the right choice. I ran into two hikers that were on the trail and made it much further than I did. What I am trying to say here is that the Isolation Trail is there, some where in that 400 feet between were I emerged on the way up and where I turned East on the way down. But, I lost it on the way up and could not find it on the way down.
On the way down I also bushwhacked around the fourth and third crossings. An easy traverse through dry open woods that is only about 250 feet long. The only way to go to keep the feet dry and safe.
Water is available everywhere, so bring a filter rather than carrying it. I did not have to worry about weather as it never rained that day. Not a single bug bite, never pulled out the DEET. The way is clear for June 17th.
An additional comment is that the roads were very heavily patrolled by the State police and local police. I counted 8 radar trap setups on the roads surrounding the Presidential Range and Pemi Wilderness.
Pictures will be appended when I figure out how to do it.
pic
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