Was It Cold? Hale Yes!

Sunday, January 23, 2011

    My hike today was among the coldest I’ve done. -5˚ at the Rt. 302 parking lot and it stayed there all day. I picked Chris up shortly after 6:30 and we headed over to Twin Mountain New Hampshire. We saw a fox on the frozen Pleasant River just below the Rt. 2 bridge in West Bethel. I love to watch foxes, I’ve been lucky enough to have seen many over the years. This on was traveling, hunting for something to eat no doubt. I wish I’d been able to take a photo.
    We arrived a the parking lot a few minutes after 8:00. I have never used chemical toe warmers and only once used hand warmers but today I started off with toe warmers and was glad to have them. I later got out some hand warmers and they stayed in my gloves for the rest of the day. We were on the trail by 8:20. Zealand road, the usual access to Hale brook trail, is closed in winter. This meant a 2.8 mile walk to the intended trail. Fortunately the road was plowed for logging operations, for about 1.5 miles.

                                           

The remainder is the winter trail to Zealand Hut and the North end of the Pemigewasett Wilderness and so was well packed. We bare-booted the distance in an hour and twenty minutes.

                                           

We took a short break for a snack and to put on snowshoes. The 2.2 miles to Hale summit  is not long or steep by New England standards but adding 4.5 lbs of snowshoes to your feet slows you down.
    We had gone about half a mile when we were overtaken by a solo hiker who Chris recognized. It was a guy who has probably climbed these mountains more times than anyone, ever. There is a new fad among Peak-baggers who are not content to merely climb all the 4000 footers or all in winter or all in one year or season. The newest affliction is called “The Grid”. It is, climbing all the 4000 footers in every month of the year. That’s right, 48 mountains times 12 months or 576 mountains. This gentleman has finished his third round of “The Grid”, an incredible achievement.
    After a short chat, we continued. I said before, the additional weight of snowshoes slowed us down.

                                                   

Having started the Hale Brook trail about 10:00, we were at the top a few minutes before 1:00. We met the other gentleman coming down a few minutes before we got there.

                                                             

Moses the hiking dog had done well in the cold and had climbed his second winter 4000 footer.  Due to the cold, we only took a few photos and then headed down to a sheltered area to have a snack.
    To keep the blood flowing we headed down at a brisk pace  as we were working less going downhill. Chris also resorted to hand warmers at about this time. We got back to the road portion of our return and were overtaken by a couple cross country skiing. They had a dog with them and Moses enjoyed a romp with him for a few minutes. We got back to the parking lot at 3:20 and got home around Five.

Tips and Tricks:
             Hiking in cold weather poses some unique challenges. A little known phenomenon I've learned about is that when you eat something your body directs blood to your stomach to help with digestion. The result is, cold hands. This only becomes an issue for me when it is below 20 degrees or so. You have to learn your comfort zone and adjust accordingly. For me, at five below, that  means eating smaller amounts more often, using chemical hand warmers and planning to stop for shorter periods (If I keep moving, uphill or down, I usually won’t get cold).

Middle Carter

Saturday, January 8 2011

    I hiked with Chris and Moses the hiking dog today for the first time since doing Abraham last summer. Chris hadn’t hiked since mid November and would show the effects as we set off on our hike.  I picked them up at 7:30 and drove to the trail head.
    With the network of trails in the White Mountain National Forest there are often many ways to climb the same mountain. The choice we made was to go up and back on the South Branch of the Imp trail to the North Carter trail and Carter Moriah trail. Parking at the trailhead, we geared up and set off about 8:45. The elevation at the beginning is 1,270 feet and the summit of Middle Carter is 4,610 feet. With nearly 10 miles and 3,300 feet of elevation to gain,  this hike is as strenuous as some of the climbs across the road on the Presidential Range.  The temperature was around 15°, that would not change all day. This might seem cold but is actually pretty comfortable to hike in since you are working really hard. The trail skirts the edge of the Imp Brook valley and is wooded in it’s entirety. With no views, the only reason to stop was to chit chat, snack, drink and to catch one’s breath as the climb steepened.

We  gained the upper trail junction with North Carter trail at about 11:45 and after a short break and a couple of photos, we started off again.

The next 1.2 mile section is a bit of a slog. No views and a very steady, moderately steep grade, slowed our pace considerably. We met one other hiker just below the trails intersection with the Carter Moriah trail and spoke to him for a few minutes It was 1:00 when we gained the ridge.

With only .6 mi. to go we set off to gain the summit and finish the climb. At each ledge outlook we stopped to enjoy the hard earned views and snap a few more pictures.

Usually in winter, we would stop in a sheltered place below any possible exposure to the wind and add some layers of  clothing to protect against it. Today there was zero wind to deal with so we kept going. At 1:45 we were at the summit. There was no sign or apparent cairn so we had walked until there was no more up and called that the top.

After a quick snack, a couple more pictures and a congratulatory pat for Moses the hiker dog, (he had just climbed his first winter 4,000 footer) we began our descent. Micro-spikes made the snow covered trail easy to negotiate but our pace was still slower than usual.
     I plan my hikes with my average pace in mind, 1.3 MPH uphill and 2 MPH downhill. Since Chris has always been the stronger hiker, I figured we would be out by 4:00 or so. I Emailed Linda our hiking plans as I always do. I included my latest ETA to be home.  At 3:30 we were at  the upper trail junction and with 3.1 miles to go, I knew not only would we be late getting home but we would end our hike in the dark. This  was a first for me. Although I always carry a headlamp, I like to leave a margin of daylight in case something goes wrong.  We could still see the trail as we hiked the last half mile but only just. It was pretty much full dark when we got to the parking lot.   
    All in all a great day out and with a late return but no harm done. As with most of my hikes, I learned some things. First, don’t take for granted the person you hiked with is in the same physical shape he or she was in  the last time you hiked together if it’s been a while since you did so. Second, always pad your time a bit for trail chatter, especially if you are hiking with someone who stops when they talk! I have hiked alone so often lately that I’d forgotten to add in time just for interaction with another person.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Mt. Whiteface and Beyond

I learned the exquisite torture today of thinking I was at the summit when I really had over a quarter mile to go. My hike of Mt. Whiteface was the first for me in nearly two months and the first of 2011. The former condition was a problem since at 52 it doesn’t take long for me to get out of shape. I really need to have a regular exercise routine. I enjoy each and every hike I go on whether with other people or by myself but I sometimes suffer. Today was one of those days.
 I got to the trailhead a bit later than I wanted. It was a bit slippery when I left home and it turned out to be further to the trailhead than I thought.

I arrived there at 9:00 and got ready to go which meant getting hikers and gaiters on and  packing away or taking out things I don’t think I’ll need based on trail conditions and expected weather. There were three women from Mass already there and gearing up to climb Passaconaway which is nearby and accessed from the same parking lot. They along with two people I saw upon returning to the parking lot were the only others I saw all day.

Wonalancet, New Hampshire is an area that was first settled around the time of the Revolutionary War. A very picturesque valley where my hike started. The first half-mile is a road walk up to the head of the valley where I could see the Eastern ledges of Whiteface in the distance. Once on the actual trail my trial began. The warm weather of the past few days made the trails a mess.
  Hiking on the slushy snow and subsequent freezing provided for icy, uneven  footing that made futile, any attempt at an even, steady pace.

I had Micro-spikes with me but the icy spots were interspersed with sections of mostly rock and then ledge. Nearer the top I did put them on because ice covered ledges really made their use essential. I made my way slowly up the mountain feeling the effects of my long layoff.
 Once I played hide and seek with a friendly squirrel for a few minutes until he held still in the open long enough for me to take his picture. Another time, after a short break I startled a moose and it startled me. The wind was blowing hard enough to mask any noise either of us was making but when I started hiking and my metal micro-spikes hit a rock, the woods to my left shuddered, shook and snapped as the moose did an about face and bolted in the other direction. The trees were so thick at this point that I couldn’t see him but I could see the tops of the trees sway as he pushed his way through.
After the excitement died down I continued on my way. A short time later I was at the base of a series of steep ledges below the summit or so I thought. I checked the GPS, another tenth of a mile or so to go. Not bad. I carefully climbed the ledges and the views which had been minimal to this point, began to improve. I took a series of pictures as I gain each higher ledge until I reached the top.

The GPS showed I was on the summit but it also showed less than 4000 feet elevation. I looked Northwest and realized, there was higher ground in that direction.  The White Mountain Guide had said, Whiteface had a wooded summit .3 miles beyond the ledges. Now I could have stopped there and no one would have been the wiser but I wouldn’t have felt right about it so, tired and sore as I was I hike over and got my summit shot at the “actual” summit.

It was now 1:15 and with four miles to go and dicey footing slowing me down, I knew I was going to be later than I had said I would be, getting home. I headed off and went as fast as I could safely go.  It took me until nearly 4:00 to get back down. It would have been nice to have someone at this point to commiserate with but there was nobody to hear my lament but the squirrels and a few chickadees.  I was really happy to be sitting in my vehicle!