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Franconia Ridge is beautiful to hike any time of 12 months. However it might probably get fairly bushy to climb in winter when it’s chilly and the wind is blowing onerous. The perfect days don’t come round that usually so it is advisable to watch the climate forecast intently and find time for a hike when a superb climate window presents itself.
I obtained a type of climate home windows final week, proper earlier than the Martin Luther King vacation, when the forecast known as for 20-degree temperatures and low winds, reducing to 10-15 mph within the afternoon. That’s distinctive for January, so I cleared my calendar and determined to go for it.
My objective for this hike was to climb 2 5 thousand footers, Mt Lincoln (5080′) and Mt Lafayette (5242′). That is normally carried out as a loop hike, climbing a peak adjoining to Lincoln on the ridge known as Little Haystack (4760′), earlier than following the Franconia Ridge Path over Lincoln, a minor peak named Mt Truman (5020′), after which Lafayette, earlier than descending Lafayette to the AMC’s Greenleaf Hut (closed in winter), and mountain climbing again all the way down to the Franconia Notch trailhead. The overall loop is near 9 miles in size with 4000′ of elevation achieve. It’s a critical hike and more durable in winter when it’s important to carry much more gear.
We’d skilled fairly heavy snowfall the prior week and I didn’t know what sort of snow situations can be on the ridge above treeline. No journey studies have been posted on NETrailConditions.com, which is how critical hikers share that data within the White Mountains.
So I packed all of the gear I would want for the traverse as a result of I didn’t wish to rise up there and never have the ability to end the route. I’ve used all the gear beneath besides the Dion Snowshoes, on earlier winter hikes alongside Franconia Ridge, so this wasn’t my first rodeo.
- Hillsound Path Crampons
- Dion Snowshoes
- Grivel G1 Common Crampons
- Camp Corsa Ice Axe
- North45 Balaclava
- Smith Ski Goggles
- A number of units of gloves, meals, drink, and layers
The day of the hike, I met two associates who wished to affix me and we obtained a civilized begin at 8:30 am. We knew it will take us about 3 hours to get to treeline, a 3.2 mile hike up with 3000′ of elevation achieve. It’s one other 2.8 miles alongside the ridge and down the west face of Mt Lafayette to get to the security of treeline on the AMC Hut, and a pair of.9 miles extra to get again all the way down to the trailhead. Our precedence was to get again all the way down to treeline and the hut earlier than darkish, for the reason that last descent to the trailhead might be carried out by headlamp pretty safely.
We set out and situations have been respectable however not nice. The path was coated by a foot or so of snow and had been post-holed by individuals who hadn’t worn snowshoes after which frozen. Whereas annoying, it meant we might hike of their footsteps, fairly actually, all the way in which to treeline, with none traction aids. The entire water crossings en route have been bridged on the way in which up and we made fairly respectable time.
Just under treeline, my two companions determined to bail as a result of they have been having a foul day – it occurs – and so they headed again down the path. I continued up, judging the climate situations protected sufficient for a solo traverse. I’m cautious however I wished to climb Lincoln and Lafayette in January for my Grid and judged the danger stage as acceptable.
There was simply sufficient wind that I made a decision to guard my face by sporting a balaclava if you get to treeline on Little Haystack there are some rocks on the summit you’ll be able to shelter behind to get out of the wind, so I ducked between them and adjusted my gear for the ridge hike over Lincoln, Truman, and Lafayette The solar was heat however there was a breeze so I opted to placed on a balaclava to protect my face and full crampons for traction. Then I set off.
The ridge path was coated with dry powdery snow about 6″ deep interspersed with stretches of ice. The Franconia Ridge is pretty stage between Lincoln and Lafayette, however there are rocky outcrops and scrambles that one must climb over or round. I favor the surety of crampons over snowshoes for scrambling, nevertheless it was a toss-up as to which might have been the higher choice.
I solely needed to hike a brief distance north to climb Mt Lincoln so I set off. There was nonetheless some undercast within the valley beneath which I reveled in as I walked. I quickly handed a bunch I’d seen on the trailhead heading south and began the climb up Lincoln which concerned clambering over the ice-blasted rock outcroppings. My crampons made this straightforward.
I summitted Lincoln and took within the view, earlier than mountain climbing down the opposite facet to the subsequent goal referred to as Mt Truman which is a bump alongside the ridge between Mt Lincoln and Mt Lafayette. Mt Truman and for the matter Little Haystack are 4000 footers, however not on the AMC’s White Mountain 4 Thousand Footer Checklist. As a substitute, they’re on the Trailwrights 72 peakbagging record which is way more durable to complete as a result of it contains 24 extra four-thousand footers and you may solely rely one peak per hike towards completion. Which means it takes 4 separate hikes to climb Litte Haystack, Mt Lincoln, Mt Truman, and Mt Lafayette.
Truman is only a bump alongside the ridge and is simple to high, nevertheless it has a tough descent down the opposite facet, so I opted to hike round it utilizing a shortcut I’ve used prior to now. However there’s been so little site visitors on the Franconia Ridge Path lately, that I ended up stepping right into a spruce lure. It is a winter hazard the place snow covers the voids between bushes and in the event you step on one you’ll be able to sink into the void and never have the ability to get out.
I did sink in, however shortly realized what was taking place and began to again away, solely to search out that I couldn’t backtrack. I wiggled my toes to interrupt free and that’s after I assume I misplaced one in every of my crampons. Not good. I lunged ahead throughout the spruce lure and managed to scramble out of it on the opposite facet earlier than sinking additional. Good factor too, as a result of I didn’t wish to die there alone.
I shortly put the incident out of my thoughts and headed towards Lafayette, passing via a stand of krummholz (dwarf shrubbery) earlier than rising again out within the open on the opposite facet. Lafayette was about 200 toes of elevation achieve farther up and I felt myself tiring. However I nonetheless had loads of daylight left, so I slowed my tempo and took smaller steps till I reached the summit signal.
That is the place earlier expertise paid off. If you get to Lafayette, it is advisable to flip west to descend to the Greenleaf Hut and never proceed north. The path down is usually a little tough to observe, particularly because it’s solely marked by snow-covered rock cairns that appear to be all the opposite rocks piled on the facet of Lafayette. The vast majority of fatalities on Lafayette in winter happen when folks miss that flip or lose the path on the way in which down and find yourself descending right into a steep gully north of the particular path. I had glorious visibility on my hike, however you’ll be able to actually get into hassle when you’ll be able to’t see the cairns marking the route taking place.
After I obtained all the way down to the hut, I refueled, consuming and consuming. I nonetheless had two hours earlier than sundown and I used to be assured that I’d make it again all the way down to the trailhead by sundown at 4:30. The path beneath the hut (known as the Outdated Bridle Path) runs over a collection of peaklets which can be referred to as Agony Ridge. Whereas they take some effort to climb, I made glorious time on the descent, getting again to the trailhead by 4:00 pm.
I’d had unbelievable climate and moreover my spruce lure expertise, it’d been a reasonably straightforward hike. I used to be elated to “grid out” Lincoln and Lafayette for my 4000 Footer Grid, which means I’ve now hiked them in each calendar month of the 12 months. However that is one route I’m positive I’ll hike many times sooner or later: it’s simply too stunning to move up.
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