Rik
02-21-2007, 06:14 PM
Charlene, my peakbagging wife that doesn't like lists, talked me into a trip to Vermont today. Last year she completed the Catskill 35, 35W, and ADK 46, and has said that there is only one other list that she is interested in finishing and that is the Northeast 115. After todays hike she has only 8 peaks that she hasn't climbed. For me this is like having another list of my own (which I need about as much as I need a hole in my head). The good part is the peaks she has left (Mansfield, Washington, Adams, Madison, Monroe, Eisenhower, N. Brother and Katahdin!).
We took the Battell trail which is the same way I went nine years ago. The road to the trailhead was snow covered but had been plowed and was easily drivable in a sedan. The parking area has room for two to three vehicles. Ours was the only one there today. The trail looks like it had been broken over the weekend. There were ski tracks that looked to be only a day or two old so the walking was easy. Stepping off the trail the snow was still deep and unsupportive. One step on the packed trail without a snowshoe on resulted in a deep posthole so we wore snowshoes all day. Most of the climb is through very open woods and we could see farms and fields below. It was cloudy when we started but the sun would come out on the way down, of course. Just before reaching the Long Trail the woods turned Boreal. Dark and snow covered. The ski tracks ended at the junction with the LT and took off through the woods as if someone had skinned up and then rode powder down. A minute later we were at the shelter and took a break for cocoa. The day was pretty mild but up on the ridge it was breezy. Charlene said she was tired already and wasn't sure she was going to the summit. She said it was just one of those days since we had only walked a couple miles on a broken trail. I suggested she leave her pack to see how she feels going on. The trail at this point was much softer and drifted in. It looked like both new and drifted snow but the treadway beneath was firm and so walking was easy. I remembered this as being an easy walk from last time I climbed this peak. She made it and was later glad she did. I took a few photos from the top. The views were nice but limited by some distant clouds. The summit itself is fantastic. Rime covered rocks and wind blown snowpack feels like I'm on another planet. Sliding back down to the shelter was fast and fun. We took another break for lunch and then strolled down in the afternoon sun. As we drove back to New York the whole Lincoln Mt. massive was in our rearview mirror. Frosted in white we could see it from the NY side of Champlain. Nice visit to Vermonts mountains and country roads.
We took the Battell trail which is the same way I went nine years ago. The road to the trailhead was snow covered but had been plowed and was easily drivable in a sedan. The parking area has room for two to three vehicles. Ours was the only one there today. The trail looks like it had been broken over the weekend. There were ski tracks that looked to be only a day or two old so the walking was easy. Stepping off the trail the snow was still deep and unsupportive. One step on the packed trail without a snowshoe on resulted in a deep posthole so we wore snowshoes all day. Most of the climb is through very open woods and we could see farms and fields below. It was cloudy when we started but the sun would come out on the way down, of course. Just before reaching the Long Trail the woods turned Boreal. Dark and snow covered. The ski tracks ended at the junction with the LT and took off through the woods as if someone had skinned up and then rode powder down. A minute later we were at the shelter and took a break for cocoa. The day was pretty mild but up on the ridge it was breezy. Charlene said she was tired already and wasn't sure she was going to the summit. She said it was just one of those days since we had only walked a couple miles on a broken trail. I suggested she leave her pack to see how she feels going on. The trail at this point was much softer and drifted in. It looked like both new and drifted snow but the treadway beneath was firm and so walking was easy. I remembered this as being an easy walk from last time I climbed this peak. She made it and was later glad she did. I took a few photos from the top. The views were nice but limited by some distant clouds. The summit itself is fantastic. Rime covered rocks and wind blown snowpack feels like I'm on another planet. Sliding back down to the shelter was fast and fun. We took another break for lunch and then strolled down in the afternoon sun. As we drove back to New York the whole Lincoln Mt. massive was in our rearview mirror. Frosted in white we could see it from the NY side of Champlain. Nice visit to Vermonts mountains and country roads.