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The
snow was much deeper after we left the Hale Brook gorge, and completely
covered the rocks on the trail. It was mostly hard-packed snow, but we
occasionally postholed. There were a few small downed fir and spruce trees
that we had to duck under. Many of the trees higher up along the trail
were covered with lichen, and had Old Man's Beard lichen hanging from the
trunks. The weather kept getting foggier the higher we went.
After
passing the switchbacks, the trail circled around to the other side of the
mountain, then turned to head up. Near the top, another hiker and his dogs
caught up to us. He was the first person we had seen all day. We had lunch
on the summit and talked to the other hiker and his sons who had arrived
not long after we did. The summit was bare and there was no snow, but it
was a bit muddy in spots, with patches of alpine grasses growing. The book
had said the rocks up here were supposed to be magnetic, but our compass
didn’t act particularly weird. There was a large cairn at the actual
summit.
After
snacking, we returned down the same trail. The snow made going down easier
and in a few steep places, Holly and Erin glissaded down on their butts,
while I stuck to the much drier method of boot skiing. We had four ski
poles between us and I gave all of them to the kids to make it easier on
them in steep portions of the trail
Just before the first brook crossing, I filled up a small insulated fabric
bag with snow so we could take it home. On the slippery part of the trail
by the gorge, I fell and cut my finger on one of the few rocks that
wasn’t covered by snow, so we stopped so I could quickly bandage it up.
On the lower brook crossing, I had to carry Muffin across because she was
afraid.
Finally,
we reached the car and headed for (1) a bathroom, (2) a snack at
McDonald’s, (3) gas for the car, and (4) home. Usually, Holly hates
climbing, but admitted that part of this trip was fun because of the snow.
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Holly
climbing up the Hale Brook Trail. The combination of the fog and Old Man's
Beard lichen hanging from downed trees gave the woods an slightly eerie
look. |
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