NH Tramper
Member
Whiteface & Passaconaway via Blueberry Ledge, Rollins, and Dicey's Mill Trails - 1/8
Date of Hike: Jan. 8, 2013
Trail Conditions: Hike wide, the snow depths ranged from 8" to roughly 2'. Blueberry Ledge Trail was partially broken-out but filled in in places thanks to the wind. On this trail the scrambles were easy (used snowshoes and kept my trekking poles out), however, do note that while there is some decent snow cohesion in places (and loose elsewhere, complete with sun balls rolling around everywhere), ice under the snow flaked in a couple of places creating a possibly dangerous situation. Thankfully our weigh was not the trigger, just a trekking pole poking around to see what was okay. I do expect conditions to get more iffy as the week passes thanks to warmer temps. I also noted several icy branches that must have fallen victim to the sun and freeze-thaw cycle. Beware these changing conditions. Rollins Path was also broken out and filled in. The large blowdown I reported in December has been cleaned up to a degree, at least skirted and the bypasses trimmed (there is still some crawling and ducking needed). Speaking of trimming, I saw lots of evidence someone has recently been cleaning up these trails. Thank you! Walden Trail/Passaconaway Loop was well broken, at least the west side was (we descended that way). We broke out the east side on ascent, nearly from scratch as we did encounter some soft snow and deep drifts nearly the whole way up; tiring but fun. We did note a couple of sections that had once been tramped, but the evidence of such was rare at best. Dicey's Mill Trail was well packed, obviously the most popular winter route, and the crossing was very easy by log or by rocks (which were ice-free today). All Trails had some blowdowns, but nothing that was difficult to pass with a careful limbo or crawl. There was no surface ice anywhere, though the snow surface in general will be getting both icier and mushier as the week passes.
Special Equipment Used: Microspikes and crampons weren't needed (though we had them -- and may be needed later this week on the BBL Trail scrambles), but snowshoes were certainly required. Someone had recently bare-booted as the evidence indicated and they post-holed a lot. Trekking poles helped with balance on the snowshoes, poking around, and with the crossing. My ice ax was training weight today.
Comments: Hiked this one with my friend Karen. We saw nobody our entire hike. We thought we heard voices at one point, we did see some sign of trampers on Dicey's Mill Trail, maybe there today as the marks looked fresh, and we thought there might be some folks camping up there, but we're not sure and didn't really investigate. Great weather day for hiking albeit a tad on the warm side (I layered down to a shirt). Awesome views.
Mike "Tramper" Cherim
Nottingham NH
Date of Hike: Jan. 8, 2013
Trail Conditions: Hike wide, the snow depths ranged from 8" to roughly 2'. Blueberry Ledge Trail was partially broken-out but filled in in places thanks to the wind. On this trail the scrambles were easy (used snowshoes and kept my trekking poles out), however, do note that while there is some decent snow cohesion in places (and loose elsewhere, complete with sun balls rolling around everywhere), ice under the snow flaked in a couple of places creating a possibly dangerous situation. Thankfully our weigh was not the trigger, just a trekking pole poking around to see what was okay. I do expect conditions to get more iffy as the week passes thanks to warmer temps. I also noted several icy branches that must have fallen victim to the sun and freeze-thaw cycle. Beware these changing conditions. Rollins Path was also broken out and filled in. The large blowdown I reported in December has been cleaned up to a degree, at least skirted and the bypasses trimmed (there is still some crawling and ducking needed). Speaking of trimming, I saw lots of evidence someone has recently been cleaning up these trails. Thank you! Walden Trail/Passaconaway Loop was well broken, at least the west side was (we descended that way). We broke out the east side on ascent, nearly from scratch as we did encounter some soft snow and deep drifts nearly the whole way up; tiring but fun. We did note a couple of sections that had once been tramped, but the evidence of such was rare at best. Dicey's Mill Trail was well packed, obviously the most popular winter route, and the crossing was very easy by log or by rocks (which were ice-free today). All Trails had some blowdowns, but nothing that was difficult to pass with a careful limbo or crawl. There was no surface ice anywhere, though the snow surface in general will be getting both icier and mushier as the week passes.
Special Equipment Used: Microspikes and crampons weren't needed (though we had them -- and may be needed later this week on the BBL Trail scrambles), but snowshoes were certainly required. Someone had recently bare-booted as the evidence indicated and they post-holed a lot. Trekking poles helped with balance on the snowshoes, poking around, and with the crossing. My ice ax was training weight today.
Comments: Hiked this one with my friend Karen. We saw nobody our entire hike. We thought we heard voices at one point, we did see some sign of trampers on Dicey's Mill Trail, maybe there today as the marks looked fresh, and we thought there might be some folks camping up there, but we're not sure and didn't really investigate. Great weather day for hiking albeit a tad on the warm side (I layered down to a shirt). Awesome views.
Mike "Tramper" Cherim
Nottingham NH
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