Date(s) Hiked:June 16, 2006
Trails(s) Hiked: Various Ski Trails (Ascent: Lower Pike, Mid Pike, Forty-Niner, Summit Glades. Descent: Poma Line, Poma Loop, Birch Glades, Charlie's Highway); The Service Road on the ascent and Lower Service Road on the descent; upper section of Pico Link on ascent.
Total Distance: 5-6 miles.
Difficulty: Moderate. Descent by the Poma Line was difficult.
Conditions: Service Roads were dry. Ski trails were wet underfoot. Weather: Sunny with some afternoon haze that lifted. Highs were in the 70's at the base and 60's at the summit. Black flies were biting.
Special Required Equipment: Trail Map of Pico might help or a good topo. Long Trail Guide was not too helpful. Some preliminary recon was done using Google Earth.
Trip Report: Seeing that the weather was going to be nice and Ms. Trailboss was going to be babysitting on Friday night, I decided to take some time to make a quick run up Pico. Our recent discussions about Pico were making me reminiscent of my time there--the last time I was there was in 2001. I also felt that I wanted to scout it out again because we would be skiing there this coming season, and that I had not hiked this high peak (summit elevation is 3,967').
I pulled in around 12:45pm and found some activity at the base--maintenance was working on the Little Pico Triple and a crew was re-roofing the Lodge. Good to see some maintenance was being done. After lunch, I geared up and began my ascent. I decided to head straight up Lower Pike to the HSQ and then picking up the service road to the summit. Lower Pike was not too bad--the grass had been trampled down by ATV's. The ground was wet underneath. After a 10-15 min stroll, I was at the HSQ base. I sat on one of the chairs and also checked out the lift control room--which was open. Interesting. From here, I picked up the service road and headed up under the line. However, I soon found that I had taken the wrong road and was soon standing at the summit of Little Pico where contractors were re-decking the unloading ramp. I turned around and headed back down.
Back at the HSQ, I opted to take Mid-Pike up. I saw a CVPS Power Pick Up carefully wending down the Upper Service Road, so I pointed my trekking poles in that direction. 20 mins later I was at the booster pump station for the snowmaking plant and on the road. The road ascends from the base to Outpost and then goes through a switchback under the Golden HSQ before cutting across the Birch Glades, Mid Pike, and then ascending Easy Street and switchbacking up Forty-Niner and Summit Glade before making the final ascent to the summit. It was used to access the lift and the summit antennae.
I walked up it to Summit Glade and then literally stumbled across the Pico Link, which offered a fun alternative to the road. It meandered through a couple knolls before dropping me at the entrance of the fabled Pico-Killington connector. This wide trail is used to move groomers and other equipment between the two (I've been told) and also was used to pipe water and sewage from K-Mart to Rutland (another thing I was told). It is a very wide and leveled highway of sorts--about 50-100 feet wide. There were groomer tracks in the mud and there was a manhole cover just before the Pico Link!
After taking in the view, I decided to hike S along the Connector and found the Pico Link, which climbed up away from the Connector and ascended through softwoods via a boulder staircase of sorts. It broke into the open at the very top of Forty-Niner.
I sat on a chair at the Summit Terminal--Pico had finally replaced the "Bear Mountain" plexiglass piece that was acting as a window for the control booth. After poking around the lift, I went to the Ski Patrol shack and sat for a while taking in the incredible views...better than Killington's IMHO.
I think I also saw the slopes of either Suicide Six or Quechee Lakes. The 'Dacks were in the haze.
From here I descended Forty-Niner and then picked up the access road to the true summit, which in hindsight was directly behind the Ski Patrol Shack. This area is still open and snowmaking pipe was still in place :blink: I checked out the antennae stations and then looked for the remnants of the Poma. There were some trail remnants of Upper Giant Killer and it was clear to see where skiers once went. All that remains of the Poma are the concrete footings--the summit terminal footings are actually downslope from the summit.
I decided to scope out the former liftline. The Poma line has been replaced by a power line that soars overhead. This line had been installed by either Verizon Wireless or CVPS. The wooden towers for the power line can be easily seen from Route 4 and these wooden towers were not the lift towers as I had thought. The liftline was incredibly steep--especially between footings 8 and 7. More surprising was that there was a snowmaking line that ran the upper half of the liftline. :blink: Skiers and riders now poach this line and it is unfortunate that Pico has abandoned it considering that the snowmaking was in place! Some steep terrain that rivals stuff at Jay and Sugarbush.
I carefully picked my way down mossy ledge, thanks in part to holding onto the former haul rope for the Poma, to the lower liftline where the Poma base terminal stands silent vigil over the old liftline and the former access trail--now dubbed "Poma Loop." The Pomas were gone but the springs were still in the release track. The bullwheel was in place but the electronics, motor, and lift shack were all gone. While hiking, I came across some unofficial trail cuts and during my time on the mountain I found a very nice stand of hardwood that were wide open and ready to be skied!
From Poma, I hiked up the Loop to the Birch Glades and looked for remains of the Birch Glades Double. The liftline and unloading area were easy to discern but there were no footings. Hiking down the glades, which are much longer than they appear on the trail map, I came across a spool with the line of the lift on it. I peered into "Birch Woods" which looked very nice.
Picking my way through tall grass, I made it to the Service Road and hiked down to Outpost and out to the base. I got back to the car at 4:30 or so...about 3 hours after I started.
It was a nice hike and I can't wait to be on skis at Pico this season. I just hope that there is more snowmaking on the Eastern side of the mountain than what appeared. Only Forty-Niner and a couple of trails off the Golden Express sported HKD towers. Upper KA and Upper Sunset ' 71 had lines, but no visible hydrants :blink: Pike had very few visible hydrants and no HKD towers :blink: :blink: One thing I did note was that the older snowmaking lines had hydrants that were below wooden hatches and not visible above ground. Hopefully this is what the deal is with these trails or that the hydrants were being replaced. It would be a real shame to have lines in place and no snowmaking taking place!
Trails(s) Hiked: Various Ski Trails (Ascent: Lower Pike, Mid Pike, Forty-Niner, Summit Glades. Descent: Poma Line, Poma Loop, Birch Glades, Charlie's Highway); The Service Road on the ascent and Lower Service Road on the descent; upper section of Pico Link on ascent.
Total Distance: 5-6 miles.
Difficulty: Moderate. Descent by the Poma Line was difficult.
Conditions: Service Roads were dry. Ski trails were wet underfoot. Weather: Sunny with some afternoon haze that lifted. Highs were in the 70's at the base and 60's at the summit. Black flies were biting.
Special Required Equipment: Trail Map of Pico might help or a good topo. Long Trail Guide was not too helpful. Some preliminary recon was done using Google Earth.
Trip Report: Seeing that the weather was going to be nice and Ms. Trailboss was going to be babysitting on Friday night, I decided to take some time to make a quick run up Pico. Our recent discussions about Pico were making me reminiscent of my time there--the last time I was there was in 2001. I also felt that I wanted to scout it out again because we would be skiing there this coming season, and that I had not hiked this high peak (summit elevation is 3,967').
I pulled in around 12:45pm and found some activity at the base--maintenance was working on the Little Pico Triple and a crew was re-roofing the Lodge. Good to see some maintenance was being done. After lunch, I geared up and began my ascent. I decided to head straight up Lower Pike to the HSQ and then picking up the service road to the summit. Lower Pike was not too bad--the grass had been trampled down by ATV's. The ground was wet underneath. After a 10-15 min stroll, I was at the HSQ base. I sat on one of the chairs and also checked out the lift control room--which was open. Interesting. From here, I picked up the service road and headed up under the line. However, I soon found that I had taken the wrong road and was soon standing at the summit of Little Pico where contractors were re-decking the unloading ramp. I turned around and headed back down.
Back at the HSQ, I opted to take Mid-Pike up. I saw a CVPS Power Pick Up carefully wending down the Upper Service Road, so I pointed my trekking poles in that direction. 20 mins later I was at the booster pump station for the snowmaking plant and on the road. The road ascends from the base to Outpost and then goes through a switchback under the Golden HSQ before cutting across the Birch Glades, Mid Pike, and then ascending Easy Street and switchbacking up Forty-Niner and Summit Glade before making the final ascent to the summit. It was used to access the lift and the summit antennae.
I walked up it to Summit Glade and then literally stumbled across the Pico Link, which offered a fun alternative to the road. It meandered through a couple knolls before dropping me at the entrance of the fabled Pico-Killington connector. This wide trail is used to move groomers and other equipment between the two (I've been told) and also was used to pipe water and sewage from K-Mart to Rutland (another thing I was told). It is a very wide and leveled highway of sorts--about 50-100 feet wide. There were groomer tracks in the mud and there was a manhole cover just before the Pico Link!
After taking in the view, I decided to hike S along the Connector and found the Pico Link, which climbed up away from the Connector and ascended through softwoods via a boulder staircase of sorts. It broke into the open at the very top of Forty-Niner.
I sat on a chair at the Summit Terminal--Pico had finally replaced the "Bear Mountain" plexiglass piece that was acting as a window for the control booth. After poking around the lift, I went to the Ski Patrol shack and sat for a while taking in the incredible views...better than Killington's IMHO.
I think I also saw the slopes of either Suicide Six or Quechee Lakes. The 'Dacks were in the haze. From here I descended Forty-Niner and then picked up the access road to the true summit, which in hindsight was directly behind the Ski Patrol Shack. This area is still open and snowmaking pipe was still in place :blink: I checked out the antennae stations and then looked for the remnants of the Poma. There were some trail remnants of Upper Giant Killer and it was clear to see where skiers once went. All that remains of the Poma are the concrete footings--the summit terminal footings are actually downslope from the summit.
I decided to scope out the former liftline. The Poma line has been replaced by a power line that soars overhead. This line had been installed by either Verizon Wireless or CVPS. The wooden towers for the power line can be easily seen from Route 4 and these wooden towers were not the lift towers as I had thought. The liftline was incredibly steep--especially between footings 8 and 7. More surprising was that there was a snowmaking line that ran the upper half of the liftline. :blink: Skiers and riders now poach this line and it is unfortunate that Pico has abandoned it considering that the snowmaking was in place! Some steep terrain that rivals stuff at Jay and Sugarbush.
I carefully picked my way down mossy ledge, thanks in part to holding onto the former haul rope for the Poma, to the lower liftline where the Poma base terminal stands silent vigil over the old liftline and the former access trail--now dubbed "Poma Loop." The Pomas were gone but the springs were still in the release track. The bullwheel was in place but the electronics, motor, and lift shack were all gone. While hiking, I came across some unofficial trail cuts and during my time on the mountain I found a very nice stand of hardwood that were wide open and ready to be skied!
From Poma, I hiked up the Loop to the Birch Glades and looked for remains of the Birch Glades Double. The liftline and unloading area were easy to discern but there were no footings. Hiking down the glades, which are much longer than they appear on the trail map, I came across a spool with the line of the lift on it. I peered into "Birch Woods" which looked very nice.
Picking my way through tall grass, I made it to the Service Road and hiked down to Outpost and out to the base. I got back to the car at 4:30 or so...about 3 hours after I started.
It was a nice hike and I can't wait to be on skis at Pico this season. I just hope that there is more snowmaking on the Eastern side of the mountain than what appeared. Only Forty-Niner and a couple of trails off the Golden Express sported HKD towers. Upper KA and Upper Sunset ' 71 had lines, but no visible hydrants :blink: Pike had very few visible hydrants and no HKD towers :blink: :blink: One thing I did note was that the older snowmaking lines had hydrants that were below wooden hatches and not visible above ground. Hopefully this is what the deal is with these trails or that the hydrants were being replaced. It would be a real shame to have lines in place and no snowmaking taking place!
