7:02 AM on Saturday, January 28, 2017
An exhausting hike for several reasons. 1) Even well-established bushwhacks require more effort than following a maintained trail. 2) I used my XC ski gear for the first time, carrying my hiking boots in case I wanted to switch out of the XC ski boots. 3) My pack was extra heavy because I brought additional emergency gear, having been spooked by a short story about death in the mountains. 4) Much of the bushwhack was post-holed; now I understand why some people are so vehement about post-holing.
The stream crossings all had snow bridges, but there was plenty of open water too.
This minor cairn in the woods marks the summit of Owl's Head.
It was a hard hike up, so I was happy to reach the summit. Little did I know the return would be even more tiring.
Fluttering in the breeze, the birch bark reminded me of Tibetan prayer flags.
On the return, I passed Black Pond again, and viewed the Hancocks in the background. On the way up it was snowing, so I couldn't see beyond the trees on the other side of the pond.
My new NNN-BC ski gear worked great. The backcountry skis are wider than typical cross country skis and have metal edges and beefier bindings for more control. The boots are more substantial also, and I was able to complete the hike without switching from ski boots to hiking boots.
I stayed at the Notch Hostel on Friday night so I could get a good night's sleep and still have an early start on Saturday. When I got to the hostel, Serena greeted me with a hug and declared I was "hamily" now, part of her hostel family. I spent the evening chatting with Serena and the other guests. Kim was Serena's long time family friend and visiting the hostel for the first time. Gail was one of the very first guests when Serena and Justin opened the hostel last year. The woman that lives in a room upstairs in exchange for cleaning at the hostel had a few friends visiting. One had the same first name and last name as Serena and was from the same town in Massachusetts.
I brought a can of Trillium Ft Point Mosaic Dry Hopped to enjoy at The Notch Hostel. Another guest saw the empty can and insisted I share his bomber of Hill Farmstead Dorothy. We spent an hour discussing beers and skiing. The Hill Farmstead was as good as I remembered, but not as good as the Trillium, at least on this night. I declined a second glass and went to bed at 10 PM.
In the morning I ate breakfast and drove the short distance to the Lincoln Woods parking lot. I skied the first 3 miles on an old railroad grade along the Pemigewasset River. Then I hid my skis in the woods and put my snowshoes on over my ski boots for the rest of the hike.
I was hungry and tired with an hour drive to SAaLT Pub in Gorham. Traffic was clogged by skiers leaving Loon, so when I saw the Gypsy Cafe that people at the hostel recommended highly, I pulled in. The mushroom and Brie soup was quite good paired with a Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale. After eating, I hobbled to the restroom and changed out of my sweaty clothes for the drive to Gorham.
I took time to text my family that I returned safely from my hike.
Me: "Also...I read a scary story about a hiker dying in the winter, so I carried extra emergency gear. Very heavy, and wore me out. Fell many times while snowshoeing because my load was unwieldy."
Alexa: "Better safe than sorry dad!!!!"
Me: "Yep. But it's a balancing act. Carrying too much gear can lead to dangers from exhaustion, or falling and getting injured, or just wet and cold."
Meanwhile... Michael texted me this photo of him and Becca enjoying the good life at Squaw Valley. "California skiing in January is a little different than Wyoming, haha"
An exhausting hike for several reasons. 1) Even well-established bushwhacks require more effort than following a maintained trail. 2) I used my XC ski gear for the first time, carrying my hiking boots in case I wanted to switch out of the XC ski boots. 3) My pack was extra heavy because I brought additional emergency gear, having been spooked by a short story about death in the mountains. 4) Much of the bushwhack was post-holed; now I understand why some people are so vehement about post-holing.
Stats:
- Peaks: Owl's Head
- Weather: 15F, 15mph, light snow most of day
- Parked: Lincoln Woods Trailhead of the Kancamagus Hwy
- Trails: Lincoln Woods, Black Pond bushwhack, Lincoln Brook, Brutus bushwhack, and back
- Time: 8h28m
- Distance: 15.8mi
- Track: GaiaGps
An overview of my Single Season Winter 48 with links to all the trip reports is here.
I stayed at the Notch Hostel on Friday night so I could get a good night's sleep and still have an early start on Saturday. When I got to the hostel, Serena greeted me with a hug and declared I was "hamily" now, part of her hostel family. I spent the evening chatting with Serena and the other guests. Kim was Serena's long time family friend and visiting the hostel for the first time. Gail was one of the very first guests when Serena and Justin opened the hostel last year. The woman that lives in a room upstairs in exchange for cleaning at the hostel had a few friends visiting. One had the same first name and last name as Serena and was from the same town in Massachusetts.
I brought a can of Trillium Ft Point Mosaic Dry Hopped to enjoy at The Notch Hostel. Another guest saw the empty can and insisted I share his bomber of Hill Farmstead Dorothy. We spent an hour discussing beers and skiing. The Hill Farmstead was as good as I remembered, but not as good as the Trillium, at least on this night. I declined a second glass and went to bed at 10 PM.
In the morning I ate breakfast and drove the short distance to the Lincoln Woods parking lot. I skied the first 3 miles on an old railroad grade along the Pemigewasset River. Then I hid my skis in the woods and put my snowshoes on over my ski boots for the rest of the hike.
Black Pond Trail was well packed and easy walking, but the bushwhack was tiring. Bushes kept whacking me in the face (go figure!) and getting caught on my pack. Plus someone had postholed deeply, making the footing difficult, twisting my snowshoes and causing me to stumble every now and then. Near the end of the bushwhack I caught up with Gail (from the hostel) and her friend Joe. Joe was embarrassed that he didn't have his snowshoes and apologized profusely. I just laughed it off and told him not to worry about it, but the hiking did get easier once I was in front of shoeless Joe. I met Gail and Joe again later as I was hiking back down. They were making slow progress and thought they would get back to the trailhead well after dark. I asked if they needed anything, water, food... Joe said he needed my snowshoes, and offered me $1000 for them. I laughed; I think he was just kidding, wasn't he?
The Lincoln Brook Trail was easy hiking, fairly flat and well packed, but the Brutus bushwhack was brutal. It seemed to go straight up the mountain (even though it isn't as steep as the slide path) and was steep enough that my snowshoes would slip if I didn't stamp them into the snow each step. I had to stop a few times to catch my breath, which is not typical; usually I just put my head down and hike to the top. There were several tracks that branched off, so I had to decide which one to follow. I consulted my planned route using GaiaGps on my iPhone and just guessed which to follow. My chosen path led to a giant ice-covered boulder. It looked like the hiker tried to go up the ice, slid down, and then decided to detour around the boulder. I followed the track through dense saplings, having to squeeze between trees that my pack couldn't fit through without pushing the trunks apart.
Eventually, I reached the ridge on top and followed it to the clearing that marked the summit. Before the summit I met a hiker returning. He asked me if I followed his crazy bushwhack path and we laughed about the rock and tight squeeze. We discussed going down the slide instead of backtracking his difficult track. Soon I reached the summit; it was impossible to miss because the snowshoes tracks ended a few feet past the tiny cairn. I snapped a photo and headed back down.
There was no path broken out to the slide, so I just followed the most distinct track, put down by the 6 people who summitted a bit before me. At one point I stopped for a drink and my left calf cramped painfully. I took deep yogic breaths to relax the muscles so I could continue. Later, I did a seated glissade on a steep section (right through the tight trees and over the huge ice-covered rock) and my inner thighs cramped up painfully. I couldn't figure why I my muscles were cramping--I had a good dinner and breakfast, slept well, and ate and drank plenty during my hike. When I got back to the Lincoln Woods Trail and started to ski back to the car the answer was obvious; the cramps were the result of muscles unused to cross country skiing.
The relatively easy Black Pond bushwhack seemed endless on the return. I kept tripping over my snowshoes, gashing my gaiters, and falling in the snow. Two tracks diverged, and I followed the one that looked smoother but it soon devolved into a rough track which eventually rejoined the main track.
I retrieved my skis and was disappointed that I still had to kick and glide on the trail back to the car. I was hoping it would be a 3-mile downhill coast back, but no such luck. I finally got back to the car, eight and a half hours after I started, but every muscle in my legs, back and shoulders ached.
The relatively easy Black Pond bushwhack seemed endless on the return. I kept tripping over my snowshoes, gashing my gaiters, and falling in the snow. Two tracks diverged, and I followed the one that looked smoother but it soon devolved into a rough track which eventually rejoined the main track.
I retrieved my skis and was disappointed that I still had to kick and glide on the trail back to the car. I was hoping it would be a 3-mile downhill coast back, but no such luck. I finally got back to the car, eight and a half hours after I started, but every muscle in my legs, back and shoulders ached.
I took time to text my family that I returned safely from my hike.
Me: "Also...I read a scary story about a hiker dying in the winter, so I carried extra emergency gear. Very heavy, and wore me out. Fell many times while snowshoeing because my load was unwieldy."
Alexa: "Better safe than sorry dad!!!!"
Me: "Yep. But it's a balancing act. Carrying too much gear can lead to dangers from exhaustion, or falling and getting injured, or just wet and cold."
By the time I got settled into the Hikers' Paradise hostel in Gorham, I was hungry again. So I walked the mile to SAaLT Pub for second dinner. It was such a pleasure to walk down a smooth, flat sidewalk with nothing on my feet except Timberlands and nothing on my back except my Nano Puff. The Buffalo Cauliflower and Herb Fries with truffle ketchup were delicious and filling. I enjoyed a Smuttynose Finest Kind IPA while waiting for my food, and then followed it up with an Allagash Black for dessert.
No comments:
Post a Comment