We started down the South Kaibab trail at 5:45AM and because of shifting clouds got to enjoy two sunrises on the way. The views were stunning. It looks very different and, strangely, smaller from inside the canyon versus from the rim. The varying waves of different-colored rock made every turn breathtaking.
Despite being the shortest and easiest pair of Adirondack High Peaks, even these aren’t always “easy”. Hiking was uneventful (but pretty!) until we hit the open summit rock. Upon exiting the cover of the trees, we were immediately hit with constant 30mph winds and gusts high enough to knock me over.
The trail to Big Slide was hard-packed snow the whole way. Perfect for snowshoes. No ice the whole way.
Today was an absolutely perfect day to hike. It was chilly (14°F at the start), not so cold that your sweat freezes your zippers but cold enough that snow didn’t stick to your clothes. Or your snowshoes! (Yep, it’s snowshoe … Continued
I was a bit surprised (happily) that both Dial and Nippletop have received a decent amount of snow. There was 3-5″ above 4,000′ elevation. Nippletop was cold and the wind was whipping. I used spikes between Dial and Nippletop, and … Continued
Not exactly ideal conditions to enjoy a hike, it was warm, humid, and wet. When the Van Hoevenberg trail had running water on it, I knew that it would be a sopping mess getting to TableTop.
After climbing Mount Mansfield with the family and Abraham/Ellen/Killington on my own, we had one more day of hiking in mind, the very popular Camel’s Hump. We wisely opted for an early start, helped along by the weather (finally!) breaking.
I planned a solo/company optional hiking day, and was originally going to drive over to New Hampshire to try my hand at the Whites. Lo, the pre-dawn rain convinced me otherwise, so I decided instead to do the three southernmost peaks in the Vermont 4,000′ list.
Vermont has 5 mountains above 4,000′ elevation, with 4,393′ Mount Mansfield as the highest. When viewed from the side, Mansfield roughly resembles an elongated head. Looking south-to-north, there is a bump for a forehead, then a sloping prominence to the tip of the nose, two small bumps along the ridge as the lips, and the high point on the rounded chin.
This hike will always be a favorite of mine, especially on perfect-weather days like this one. It was a great way to spend an afternoon!
This hike was supporting Neil Luckhurst and his Project 100, which is raising funds for the ADK High Peaks Foundation.
Yesterday perfectly encapsulated shoulder season: A nice 3-4″ of cool snow on the way in; about 6″ of snow (drifting in places) at elevation; icy steep pitches, sometimes hiding under powdered snow; warming sunshine melting low-lying snow by the end of the day creating wide mud swaths.
We opted for a short climb of Mount Colden, up and back via Lake Arnold. This is our third trip along this route together, our first time was our 46th peak.
