Moosilauke rime

Moosilauke is my favorite mountain, and I visit often. Nonetheless, it had been nearly a year since my last visit – far longer than my usual time away – and I was itching to get back up there. Today’s weather forecast promised moderate temperatures and clear skies – and I knew from recent weather that these popular trails should be well packed from the storms two and three weeks ago. Although I got a late start (hitting the trail at 11am), it turned out to be a fantastic day to be in the mountains. Read on!

 

I cruised up the Glencliff trail, passing the familiar sights from many prior climbs. I stopped to chat with some of the other hikers. The first person I met was a solo hiker – on her way down, and likely the first person to summit today – who told me she had summited all the Adirondack 46 in winter more than ten years ago. Impressive! She confirmed today’s trail was well-packed all the way to the summit; I was grateful because I’d forgotten my snowshoes.

As I climbed above 2000′ I encountered fresh snow and fresh rime ice coating every branch and twig. The trees twinkled in the brilliant mid-day sunshine, backed by a deep blue sky, as I donned my microspikes and glided up the trail. The trailbed was hard-packed snow, with nary a sign of ice; indeed, a perfect set of conditions. At the start the base was perhaps one foot deep; on the summit ridge I’d estimate three feet deep. We’ve had some good snowfall – but also periods of rain and warm weather. Let’s hope for consistent weather ahead.

I reached the Glencliff/Carriage junction in about two hours; a respectable time for me in winter conditions. (Watch 60sec video of the final approach.) I snarfed down my lunch – my usual fare, a still-warm egg/sausage/cheese breakfast sandwich from the Lyme Store – and donned a few extra layers to ready myself for the summit.

The ridge crossing was creepy, as all the trees were leaning over the trail, burdened with accumulated ice and rime. I’ve seen this trail in many conditions but never quite like this! I had glimpses of views along the way; to my left the Green Mountains of Vermont were crystal clear in their brilliant white coat; to my right were the rolling peaks of the southern White Mountains. Finally, I caught a peek to the northeast, where the Franconia Range was starkly white against a clear blue sky. It would be a fantastic day to summit!

I reached a point where I could see the summit of Moosilauke. Against the starkly white peak I could easily pick out four hikers on the summit, and one approaching from the left (my trail) and one approaching from the right (Gorge Brook Trail). Wow!

Sadly, that was the last I ever saw the summit. Moments later, the summit was enveloped in its own private cloud, forming as it blew over the top from the northwest, and dissipating as it descended to the southeast. Ugh! After hiking a bit closer, I hunkered down in the trees and waited – hoping the cloud would disappear before I reached the top. Five minutes. Ten minutes. My toes are getting cold! I needed to move on.

I headed out of the protection of the trees and up into the cloud. The summit cone had a remarkable amount of snow — it must have been calm here, for days, otherwise the snow would have blown off. The summit was a tad breezy, with a dense cloud flowing over. Because the temperature was moderate (perhaps 15º) and winds were light (perhaps 10-20mph), I was comfortable staying a while. I waited another ten or fifteen minutes, catching glimpses of the view from time to time. If only I had been fifteen minutes earlier! I would have beat the cloud and had incredible 360º views of the White Mountains and Green Mountains, all in the clear, all coated in fresh white and glowing under the bright sunshine. Just as I left, I was treated to one clear shot:

I headed back along the ridge and hopped up to the South Peak.  Clear views here – but still a cloud on the main peak. Always nice to snap photos of Moosilauke from south peak. The trail is a clear line seen along the ridge at left.

The trip down was fast – a benefit of smooth winter trails – and I was out before 4pm. Despite the cloud, it was a great day to be up high! Be sure to check out the photo gallery – with videos!

Hike stats:
Distance: 12.3km
Gain: 998m
Time: 4h46m (with stops and sidetrips)