Mt. Weeks (3,901 ft) & Mt. Weeks South Peak (3,885 ft) 9-8-19

Distance: 13.3 mi.
Elevation: 2,219 ft (overall) 3,847 ft (total)
Time: 1:52 (Mt. Weeks) 3:06 (South Weeks) 4:51 (Mt. Weeks) 6:44 (Total)
Trails: York Pond Trail, Kilkenny Ridge Trail

A cloudy forecast for the weekend meant it was time to check off the two Weeks Peaks from the New England Hundred Highest list for me as they don't have any views from the summits or trails. I'm nearing the end of the list and have only one other hike that won't have something for a view. Unfortunately today it also decided to start raining as I got closer to the trail head and it continued to do so for a little while into my hike. This wasn't quite what was predicted, but I had brought my rain jacket just in case.

There were a few other vehicles at the trail head today so I knew others were hiking as well. By the time I got past where Bunnell Notch Trail turns off to the right though, I could tell I was the first hiker heading further up the York Pond Trail towards the Weeks Peaks. This section of trail has lots of tall grass next to the trail as you hike over multiple bog bridges. My pants/legs were getting wet enough through here I could no one had been through yet this morning. In hind sight, I should have had my rain pants for this grass and the ferns that would come later.

Tall grass along the start of the trail hiding the foot bridges

The trail is very gentle to start, staying mostly flat for quite a ways before slowly starting to gain elevation. About halfway up to Willard Notch is where this trail gets the steepest, but even then it is still pretty tame for the Whites and has good footing. It levels back out some again before reaching the junction with the Kilkenny Ridge Trail. At this point in the hike today the rain was just finishing up. What this meant is that all of the upcoming ferns along the trail were now going to be nice and wet as I pushed through them. This was going to get my legs even wetter and that water would then slowly work its way down into my boots.

The trail crosses at this old dam

Gradual climbing

Moss and tree covered rock along the trail

As you get higher up onto the peaks you run into the infamous sections of ferns. I was surprised by how big they were and long you would hike through them. It's certainly not something you see all the time hiking these mountains. As I mentioned earlier though, it meant for wet legs today and eventually wet feet as the water ran down into my boots and socks. When I got to the summit of North Weeks, the first thing I did was take my boots off and ring the water out of my socks. It's not very often I need to do that. The summit of North Weeks has a small opening along the trail and also a small cairn. If it weren't for these, you'd likely start to walk past the high point without realizing it. There are no views and the top doesn't come to any sharp high point. Today the summit was a bit in the clouds/fog and it made for an interesting scene.

Mt. Weeks summit

The trail works its way down North Weeks by working around the south side of the peak through one long switchback of sorts. This section was probably the roughest section of trail of the day. The branches here could have used a bit of a trim in places and there were some rocky bits plus some rooty sections of trail. After coming down to the col it becomes an enjoyable hike up and over Middle Weeks, which has no real indication as to where the high point is other than your own judgement.

The climb up South Weeks is where you start to come across plenty of blow downs from past storms. Most of these have been cleaned up pretty good, but there a few that I had to climb over, under, or around. There was one interesting group of trees that actually made a bit of a brief tunnel to walk through. Navigating this section of trail was probably the most difficult just because of the obstacles. But going back down through it was easier as you already know where to go and how to get through it. At the short spur path to the summit of South Weeks is where I saw the only other hiker of the day on this route. He was actually trying to set a new fastest known time for completing the Cohos Trail. I'm not sure if he made it, but he was making good time when I saw him

The trail going through a bit of a tunnel in the trees

There were lots of old blow downs closer to South Weeks

Summit of South Weeks

The hike back up and over all the peaks goes pretty smoothly. Lots of ferns and stretches of enjoyable trail. While the rain stopped a while ago, it wasn't warm enough for things to fully dry out. The sun seemed like it wanted to make an appearance through the clouds, but it only made a somewhat brief appearance. With no view along this hike, I wasn't missing out on much though.

The best view of the day

Lots of ferns along the trail today

Some trees were covered in old man's beard

After resummiting North Weeks it was smooth sailing all the way back down. More hiking through the ferns followed by mossy sections of woods and then even some shorter sections of hobble bush lining the trail. Back down near the bottom I stopped to enjoy a small cascade next to the trail and take some pictures of it that I didn't want to do in the rain. The one brook crossing is a bit more work on the way out because you have to climb back up onto the concrete wall of the other side rather than just jump down off of it. Water levels were low enough today and my feet were already soaked, so I just walked up to the edge through the water and climbed up. Others appear to go just upstream so it might be easier there if you don't want to get wet.

By the time I got back to my truck it appears that all the other hikers finished their treks or turned around to come back when it is drier. Even with the rain and damp conditions on the trail today, I found this hike to be quite enjoyable. I'll certainly be back through here at some point when it is drier. Maybe as a similar loop, but most likely as a traverse so I can check out more of the trail and surrounding area.

A small cascade next to the trail

Google Earth representation of the hike

For all the pictures from the hike, just go to my gallery on SmugMug

Mt. Monadnock (3,165 ft) 5-7-16

Distance: 6.88 mi.
Elevation: 1,587 ft (overall) 2,045 ft (total)
Time: 2:56 Summit 4:28 Total
Trails: Old Halfway House Trail, Cart Path, Mossy Brook Trail, Marian Trail, Marlboro Trail, Smith Summit Trail, Great Pasture Trail

The primary goal for this hike was to do some trails that I haven't done for a while. I was going to do a longer route up and then would decide on my route down once I was at the summit. The start of the hike was nice. It was good to see things finally starting to green up in the woods after such a drab end of winter and start of spring.

Green developing in the forest

At an early stop for a few photos, I was lucky enough to have the surprise of a deer eating in the trees only about 35 feet from me. Once I noticed her, I tried to stay still and quiet to keep from scaring her off. Eventually another deer stood up out of it's bedded position as well. This second deer appeared to be last years fawn from the doe I was already watching. Over time I started to move around more trying to get photos and even made some noise. The deer were unphased by this and had already decided I wasn't a threat. Eventually I moved to get a better view and they soon came even closer while continuing to eat. Once they were about 25 feet from me, I decided I would leave them be and get on with my hike. It was a pretty interesting interaction with them.

A deer eating behind some saplings

The rest of the hike up the Old Halfway House Trail went smoothly and quick. Soon I was at the intersection with the Cart Path. This trail is an easy walk through mostly open hardwoods. It stays at almost the same elevation for the entire length of it. As soon as it moves into the softwoods though, the trail ends and becomes the Mossy Brook Trail.

The Mossy Brook trail follows the path of the Mossy Brook crossing it one time. It has a completely different feel to it than the Cart Path with spruce trees all around and moss covered rocks in the brook. It's nice and quiet here and had much more green today than the trails up to this point. At the top of the trail, instead of going right and up to Monte Rosa like most would, I headed left up the Marian Trail to the Marlboro Trail.

Mossy Brook Trail

This was another quiet trail today. I saw some moose sign early on, but never did see any wildlife. On this trail I was starting to get up into the low clouds for today, so the few viewpoints on the route didn't provide much to look at.

Marian Trail

The Marian Trail comes out relatively low on the Marlboro Trail for how long you have been hiking. So there's still quite a bit of climbing to do before the summit. Today I was lucky enough to see almost no hikers at all until just before the summit. Unfortunately, there were more hikers than I would have expected for a cloudy day and also one quite loud group. Normally I find a spot off to the side of the summit and enjoy my time up there even when crowded. But today, with the lack of views and the loud people making what had been a nice quiet hike less enjoyable, I headed down pretty quick.

Summit in the clouds

I had been thinking about doing some route down that would get me towards the park headquarters so I could hike back on the Parker Trail, but based on the loud group and the direction its members seemed to be heading, I quickly changed plans and headed down the Smith Summit Trail. It's one of my favorite trails anyways, and I decided I wanted to descend via the Mossy Brook Trail. I had enjoyed it and the quietness over there so much earlier, I decided to get back to it so I could forget the loud group on the summit.

Hiking down out of the clouds

The hike down went pretty quick and without any issues. I saw only 5 other people on the entire descent and got to have the woods mostly to myself with plenty of peace and quiet. I also got back tot he parking lot shortly before it started to rain lightly. So I didn't even get wet.

Conditions on the summit: Cloudy with an average wind speed of 9 mph with gusts up to 13 mph. 46 degrees with a 43 degree wind chill.

For the fully gallery of photos, go here

Route for the day

Mt. Monadnock (3,165 ft) 3-27-16

Distance: 4.68 mi.
Elevation: 1,741 ft (overall) 1,834 ft (total)
Time: 1:59 Summit 3:21 Total
Trails: Dublin Trail

On Easter morning I had the time to hike the Mt. Monadnock before family activities were to start. Having not gotten out on a mountain since New Years Eve, I took full advantage hoping that this would get me into a pattern of hiking again. The forecast was mixed, one said it would be cloudy to start the day, but another that is intended to be for the summit said it was going to be sunny. Even though it looked cloudy/foggy at home, I headed out anyways. The sky was full of clouds all the way to the trail head and when I started my hike. I still like the mountain even in the fog, so I wasn't that upset.

Not being very far into "Spring", everything was still pretty brown down low with plenty of bare trees and no leaves. Due to the lack of winter we experienced this year though, there was also no remaining snow/ice or mud in most places. The start of the hike went well and it didn't take long before I hiking up into the fog and lower levels of the clouds. At this time, I met a pair or hikers coming down that said it was nice being above the low clouds on the summit. Not sure if this would mean just being between two layers of clouds (something I have seen here before) or above all the clouds, I continued on steadily.

Heading into the fog

Soon I came to the one section of trail that always seems to be at least a little bit wet. There was a short section of ice remaining here. This is the one section I thought I might run into some ice. I was able to make it up the ice without putting on my microspikes by using some of the debris that on it for traction. Even though it's a short section and there were plenty of tracks leading around the ice, I still would have used them if I needed to. This spot has been widened a lot by people that aren't prepared for the ice in winter or are worried about getting their feet wet the rest of the year. It bothers me just how many people will do this when hiking a mountain. I know it's mostly a lack of experience, but mud and wet trail conditions are something you should always be prepared for and you should be able to stay or trail, or be willing to turn back if not prepared.

Continuing up the trail, I found one more spot that could have been tricky due to ice. Luckily there were plenty of rocks sticking out that you could go between and avoid stepping on the ice all together. The trail then leads into the section that I enjoy the most on this route. As it nears the treeline, it goes over lots of large sections of exposed rock. For some reason, I've always enjoyed this type of spots. As I neared the top of this section, I could see ahead that the sun was trying to come though the clouds now. I must be near the top of the layer of clouds. I guess those other hikers were talking about possible undercast conditions.

A small patch of ice

Ice mixed in with some rocks

The trail climbing over bare rocks

With the hope of undercast skies, I picked up the pace a little bit. I've never been above the clouds in full undercast conditions and I wasn't sure if the clouds were going to clear up quickly now that the sun was getting up into the sky a bit more. Without taking many breaks, I started to get up to the treeline and the last bits of the clouds. Before long I was at the junction with the Marlboro Trail and was completely above the clouds. It was nice and sunny up here without much wind. I stopped and took a few pictures and looked all around. I now casually headed up the rest of the way to the summit.

Undercast skies from the Marlboro/Dublin Trail junction

The summit didn't have many people today. Combine that with the completely undercast sky, and it was a great day to be up here. In all directions, there wasn't a thing to see other than the tops of clouds. The only thing else that was trying to stick up was a small section of Pumpelly Ridge. As cool as it is to be above the clouds, it was also a bit disappointing to not be able to see anything else when the sky above you is as clear as can be. I still took my time enjoying the summit and seeing a few people come and go. But eventually I needed to head down so that I wouldn't be late for plans with the rest of my family.

Looking west over the clouds

Pumpelly Ridge trying to stick out of the clouds

Miles brought his bunny ears this Easter morning

I headed back down the trail. I stopped just before treeline to take in the last of the views and grab some more pictures. I then started back into the trees and soon into the clouds. I was seeing a few hikers on their way up and gave them the good news that it would be sunny on the summit. I was able to make good time on the way down and over the little bits of ice. It was odd being back down under the clouds with no direct sunlight shining down after being on the summit with such nice conditions.

Getting ready to head back into the clouds

More exposed rock on the trail

Later in the day, as I told family that I hiked, I got responses like "The view must have sucked today" since it was still cloudy down low. Thankfully I was able to respond with "Nope, they were great actually." I've hiked when some ares near the hike were undercast, but never when the entire sky was like this. It was a really interesting experience. Hopefully now I can see it sometime while hiking in the White Mountains so that I can see some other peaks sticking up above the clouds and have more to look at.

For all the pictures from the hike, just go HERE

Mt. Monadnock (3,165 ft) 12-31-15

Distance: 5.22 mi.
Elevation: 1,647 ft (overall) 1,920 ft (total)
Time: 2:24 Summit 3:37 Total
Trails: Old Toll Road, Sidefoot Trail, Noble Trail, Cliff Walk Trail, Smith Connecting Link, White Dot Trail, White Arrow Trail, Old Toll Road

Trying to get one more day of the year checked off my Monadnock hiking list, I did an early morning hike for New Years Eve day. I normally go away for the holiday, so this was another hard to hike day of the year. This year though I was able to hike up just after sunrise and be done in time to head north for the long weekend.

There was finally some snow on the ground, but not enough for snowshoes yet. To save time today, I used the Old Toll Road instead of the Halfway House Trail like I normally do. It wasn't plowed yet, but was on the descent. At the Halfway House Site there were some views out past the clouds, but the summit showed to be in the clouds. I put on my Microspikes and headed for the Noble Trail.

Halfway House Site view

No one had been up the Noble Trial yet since it snowed. It hasn't been many days since the snow, but it's not a popular trail in winter anyways. Conditions were pretty good and I made it up just fine. There had been some traffic on the Cliff Walk Trail and Bald Rock had a thin layer of ice on most things. Smith Connecting Link had tracks until the Amphitheater Trail, but nothing above that. It's pretty easy to follow until the open rocks right at the end though and I have been on it many times before. The remainder of the climb to the summit became increasingly icy, but spikes were good enough traction.

Noble Trail

Cliff Walk Trail

Bald Rock

Ice covered rock near the summit

The summit was in the clouds and the wind was blowing around 20 mph. Since there were no views, I didn't stay long. I did have the summit to myself while I was there though. The White Arrow Trail wasn't bad to descend, since it had a bit less ice than the White Dot Trail. The trail markings were mostly covered in snow and ice though, so it was good to be familiar with the route.

At the summit

Miles the Mountain Monkey on the ice covered rocks

The ice bulge a bit below treeline on the White Arrow Trail hasn't really formed yet. Warm temps kept it pretty small so far. There was running water going down over it though which I am sure will add ice quickly. Heading down more, the ice got better, but spikes were certainly still helpful. One pair of hikers didn't appear to have traction and I thought I heard one of them say they hoped there wasn't more ice higher up. Hopefully they made it safely or turned around when things got bad.

The stone steps on the White Arrow Trail

For all the pictures from the hike, just go HERE