Date(s) Hiked: June 23, 2007
Trails(s) Hiked: Blueberry Ledges up to Whiteface Summit; Rollins over to Passaconway, Walden Trail Loop with view spur and summit spur; Down Dicey's Mill to the bottom.
Total Distance: 12.5 miles or so with the spur trails.
Difficulty: Long day, terrain was not bad.
Conditions: Perfect weather...cool temps, occasional clouds, plenty of sun. Wind was a bit stiff at times...
Special Required Equipment: Good map, dry weather for the Ledges.
Trip Report: The Trailboss is back. In more ways than one. First, this is my first, and much overdue, first major hike of this season...the boat is partially to blame for that :wink: Second, as some of you sensed last year, this hike made me a bit nervous after my "oh shi%" moment on North Tripyramid slide last year...and this hike went off without a hitch. Thanks guys for your advice.
So it was a perfect day. Got a really late start....at 11am or so. Got a buddy to join me on this one...good idea. It was a college buddy of mine, Ron. So we found our way to Wonalancet and up to the parking area, which was packed.
Service project or something...
The Blueberry Ledge trail was pleasant. Nice views and easy going. About 2/3 the way up, the pitch increased a lot, but it was not bad. We came to the ledges and took in the views before heading up. It was not bad, but Ron, the rockclimber, really was a great moral support for me and was able to provide a helping hand on the three sections we had to scale. I was so to overcome them....not bad considering that there were some handholds and some trees.
We lunched on the south ledges and then continued to the summit. Nice views, nice sunshine. We hit it right...clouds and rain up north, clouds down south, we shot the middle....sun and clouds.
At the Kate Sleeper Junction, we spoke with a hiker from South Carolina who was getting in his #32, I had just done my #33 and was on to #34. We wished him well and headed down Rollins along the edge of the bowl to Passaconway. Nice views, but the trail drops a lot of vert before coming to Dicey's Mill. I was checking the map to make sure that we did not miss something...because the last part the trail is below the ridge and not on it.
From here we headed up the Walden Trail...doing it clockwise. Good choice. The switchbacks and occasional steep pitches were much more manageable than the other side, which is just a freefall! At the top, we dug the great vista from the ledge. The summit was a mere run up the spur and touching the top, before heading back to the view. After that we headed back down, but only after hitting the view spur that leads N from the Walden trail maybe .25 miles or so down a ridgeline to a nice view that looks N and E. Well worth the .5 miles or so and the climb back up....
If that was not enough, the last vista, freshly pruned, looks E over Chocorua and into Maine. I could see Sebago on the distance...so maybe 50 miles or so...I could also see Killington-Pico from the views before...impressive.
The descent down Walden, as I said, was steep and intense. Not a good ascent IMHO.
Dicey's Mill was a nice descent....right in the middle of the bowl with great old growth trees (much Nor'Easter and Ice Storm damage though...) a nice stream crossing with a campsite, and a biker who was looking for a punishment I guess....he was going to bike down the trail (complete with water bars and big rocks) with NO helmet or bodygear.... :blink:
The descent was fast. The bottom part, through the private meadow and down the road, was very pleasant. Dug the area. It was reminiscent of my hikes in the Highlands of Scotland...rural farmland giving way to dramatic mountain scenery.
We got back at just shy of 7pm and then headed back home. We stopped by Tom's Brother's Pizza in Plymouth and enjoyed great pizza and some professional lacrosse on TV. Got home at 10pm. A great day.
The views included:
From Whiteface: Kearsarge S, Chocorua, Passaconway, Moosilauke, Gunstock, Cardigan, Smart's, Owl's Head, Tripyramids, Killington/Pico.
From Passaconway: Same as above and also Lafayette, Liberty/Flume, Tecumseh, Osceolas, Owl's Head, Kinsmen, Garfield, South Hancock, Twins or Bonds, Carrigain, Presis in the clouds, Attitash/Bear Peak, etc.
Trails(s) Hiked: Blueberry Ledges up to Whiteface Summit; Rollins over to Passaconway, Walden Trail Loop with view spur and summit spur; Down Dicey's Mill to the bottom.
Total Distance: 12.5 miles or so with the spur trails.
Difficulty: Long day, terrain was not bad.
Conditions: Perfect weather...cool temps, occasional clouds, plenty of sun. Wind was a bit stiff at times...
Special Required Equipment: Good map, dry weather for the Ledges.
Trip Report: The Trailboss is back. In more ways than one. First, this is my first, and much overdue, first major hike of this season...the boat is partially to blame for that :wink: Second, as some of you sensed last year, this hike made me a bit nervous after my "oh shi%" moment on North Tripyramid slide last year...and this hike went off without a hitch. Thanks guys for your advice.
So it was a perfect day. Got a really late start....at 11am or so. Got a buddy to join me on this one...good idea. It was a college buddy of mine, Ron. So we found our way to Wonalancet and up to the parking area, which was packed.
Service project or something...The Blueberry Ledge trail was pleasant. Nice views and easy going. About 2/3 the way up, the pitch increased a lot, but it was not bad. We came to the ledges and took in the views before heading up. It was not bad, but Ron, the rockclimber, really was a great moral support for me and was able to provide a helping hand on the three sections we had to scale. I was so
to overcome them....not bad considering that there were some handholds and some trees. We lunched on the south ledges and then continued to the summit. Nice views, nice sunshine. We hit it right...clouds and rain up north, clouds down south, we shot the middle....sun and clouds.
At the Kate Sleeper Junction, we spoke with a hiker from South Carolina who was getting in his #32, I had just done my #33 and was on to #34. We wished him well and headed down Rollins along the edge of the bowl to Passaconway. Nice views, but the trail drops a lot of vert before coming to Dicey's Mill. I was checking the map to make sure that we did not miss something...because the last part the trail is below the ridge and not on it.
From here we headed up the Walden Trail...doing it clockwise. Good choice. The switchbacks and occasional steep pitches were much more manageable than the other side, which is just a freefall! At the top, we dug the great vista from the ledge. The summit was a mere run up the spur and touching the top, before heading back to the view. After that we headed back down, but only after hitting the view spur that leads N from the Walden trail maybe .25 miles or so down a ridgeline to a nice view that looks N and E. Well worth the .5 miles or so and the climb back up....
If that was not enough, the last vista, freshly pruned, looks E over Chocorua and into Maine. I could see Sebago on the distance...so maybe 50 miles or so...I could also see Killington-Pico from the views before...impressive.
The descent down Walden, as I said, was steep and intense. Not a good ascent IMHO.
Dicey's Mill was a nice descent....right in the middle of the bowl with great old growth trees (much Nor'Easter and Ice Storm damage though...) a nice stream crossing with a campsite, and a biker who was looking for a punishment I guess....he was going to bike down the trail (complete with water bars and big rocks) with NO helmet or bodygear.... :blink:
The descent was fast. The bottom part, through the private meadow and down the road, was very pleasant. Dug the area. It was reminiscent of my hikes in the Highlands of Scotland...rural farmland giving way to dramatic mountain scenery.
We got back at just shy of 7pm and then headed back home. We stopped by Tom's Brother's Pizza in Plymouth and enjoyed great pizza and some professional lacrosse on TV. Got home at 10pm. A great day.
The views included:
From Whiteface: Kearsarge S, Chocorua, Passaconway, Moosilauke, Gunstock, Cardigan, Smart's, Owl's Head, Tripyramids, Killington/Pico.
From Passaconway: Same as above and also Lafayette, Liberty/Flume, Tecumseh, Osceolas, Owl's Head, Kinsmen, Garfield, South Hancock, Twins or Bonds, Carrigain, Presis in the clouds, Attitash/Bear Peak, etc.
