Looking for advice on hikes in the Presidentials

Hello to all. I have never been to the Presidentials backpacking . I am looking for advice or any info at all that will guide me in making informed decisions on where and when to hike in the White Mountains. I have done quite abit of hiking in Baxter State Park and I am interesteed in possibly climbing Washington, Monroe etc... any info will be greatly appreciated.

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[Max]

First off, welcome to the board...it's good to have new folks here to share ideas and experiences. I was just up in Baxter State Park last weekend (my 3rd trip there) and am constantly amazed at the wonderful hiking in the Katahdin area. I've still go to go back and do some of the things I've missed (i.e. Doubletop, the Travelers).

Second, since you've never hiked the Presidentials, are you planning some trips in the next month or so, or over the winter? I only ask because you probably want easily accessible routes and not ones that might be affected by road closures once the snow hits. For the first timer, you can start at Pinkham Notch on Rt. 16, south of Gorham NH. The AMC runs a visitor center there and they have lots of trail info and daily weather and trail conditions on Mt. Washington. You can easily do Mt. Monroe from the same starting point. Most first trips up Washington are made via the Tuckerman Ravine/Lion Head trails. You will have no shortage of hikers accompanying you! For the northern Presidentials, the most popular point is from the large parking spot at Appalachia on Rt. 2 in Randolph, just west of Gorham. That is the best starting point for a number of trails in the spectacular King Ravine area, which gives you access to Mts. Madison, Adams, and Jefferson. King Ravine is one of my favorite spots in the White Mts., and it has plenty of trails and plenty of hikers, but a lot less than you will see in the Pinkham Notch area on Mt. Washington!

Third, if you plan a lot of hiking, you may want to pick up a copy of the White Mountain Guidebook, complete with a set of maps. All of the trail descriptions are in the guide and that will give you a great starting point for a lifetime of hiking in the White Mts. Using that and the experience of others who hang out on this forum, you can plan some fun trips, and the input from people here will certainly help if you intend to stay overnight at some of the various huts and shelters.

Fourth, keep hanging around here and some of the other hiking sites, ask plenty of questions, and post your experiences when you do get out for a hike. We'd love to hear them!

Enjoy your hikes and let us know how things go!

Max

[pedxing]

Welcome to the board.

Max covered a lot already.

I don't know if you've been to Katahdin in the winter. I'd suggest that, unless you have lots of experience hiking above treeline in the winter, that you get to know the Presidentials in the summer months before tackling them in the Fall, Spring or Winter - unless you are going with someone who knows them. A man died of hypothermia on Madison in August in the 1980s - so it pays to be careful about tackling the higher peaks.

You might want to scroll through the trip reports on this website.

Another web page worth checking out is: http://www.outdoors.org/activities/hiking/index.shtml It's got lot's of useful links.

[Greg]

Originally Posted by Max

Third, if you plan a lot of hiking, you may want to pick up a copy of the White Mountain Guidebook, complete with a set of maps. All of the trail descriptions are in the guide and that will give you a great starting point for a lifetime of hiking in the White Mts. Using that and the experience of others who hang out on this forum, you can plan some fun trips, and the input from people here will certainly help if you intend to stay overnight at some of the various huts and shelters.

I second this advice:

http://tradingpost.outdoors.org/AB18...D=533&CATID=19

Or for a smaller version just covering the Pressies that's small enough to take with you:

http://tradingpost.outdoors.org/AB18...D=540&CATID=19

The AMC guide has come to be known as the "White Mountain Bible". Welcome to the boards!

Thanks for all the great advice. Although I think hiking in the winter would be really neat I am lokking to go to the white Mtns in the spring-summer -fall time of year. Thanks again for the great advice any more is certainally welcome. Also have any of you kind folks hiked to FORT MTN from North Brother in BSP?? If so what did you think?

Thanks again

[Max]

Funny you mention Fort Mt. as I did North Brother last week. I had been to Fort about 15 years ago, so I didn't bother going back to it this time. But the bushwhack over from North Brother is relatively easy to follow (there is a herd path from so many people doing it), but the tricky part is locating the path on your way back. If you don't find it, getting bogged down in the scrub is not much fun.

[Frodo]

Welcome to the boards Fergiedog,

I climbed Fort mountain about a year ago, and I agree with Max's comments about the herd path. One other thing to concider if heading to Fort, there was a tragic plane crash that took place back in 1944, and it's worth the extra time and effort to bushwhack over to the crash site. I posted a few pictures here if you are interested. http://forums.alpinezone.com/modules...view_album.php

[Mike P.]

Welcome,

In an attempt not to rehash too much:

White Mountain Guide is a virtual necessity.

AMC has chapter hikes that can be joined by non-members if I remember correctly. A couple now should not be too bad on Southern Presidentials if you have some of the winter gear (fleece, shell top & bottom, warm boots) but that window is disappearing quickly, waiting & reading is okay too. AMC's website www.outdoors.org has links to each chapter's webpage.

Just going up into Tuckerman Ravine is quite a nice hike & so well traveled that winter tools should not be needed, just warm stuff & common sense.

Did bushwhack of Fort back in 1998 with a few people that were on North Brother. One spot in the middle on the way back is a little hard to follow (I don't bushwhack much) but it's not too bad. I don't think I'd want to do it alone though. They did have a 1995 death there of someone finishing either the NE 100 or the NE 65 (now 67).

Good advice on the Fort Mtn bushwack. A friend of mine and I did the Marston trail - the Brothers and Mt Coe Loop this past July. I think quite possibly one of the nicest hikes I have done in BSP as of yet!!! We are considering going back up and over to Fort Mtn but neither of us are too keen on bushwacking. What a great place to take photos!
MIke[/img][/url]