Hiking in the White Mountains: Mount Passaconaway

Showing posts with label Mount Passaconaway. Show all posts

Fluff Butt Friday . . . BoopFace & WiggleDoodleWay

Date of Hike: 1/15/21

Blueberry Ledge Trail: 3.9 miles / Rollins Trail: 2.5 miles / Dicey's Mill Trail: 5.5
Total Miles: 11.9 / 4,094' elevation gained

Trip Report:

- On Friday morning Sarge and I drove over to Ferncroft for another easy winter hike over Mount Whiteface and Passaconaway. With temps predicted to be above freezing at 4,000 feet we got an early start, 7:45AM, while it was still cold to avoid the trails becoming a little slippery.

- All trails were well packed down and perfect for light traction. The ledges were pretty straight forward, Sarge needed only one boost up on the first scramble, and motored up all the others with ease.

- Views from the ledges were pretty good with clouds floating below and above us, however once we hit the Rollins Trail we were in the clouds for the cruise across the ridge between peaks.

- Sarge set a decent pace throughout the hike/run and the trails were very quiet as we saw three hikers and a dog on the Blueberry Ledge Trail and five hikers and a dog while descending the Dicey's Mill Trail.

- We finished at 10:45AM arriving back to an almost full trailhead. With temps warming up and feeling like April it was nice to get changed in the warm sun and relax at the Jeep before heading back home for lunch. :)

Sarge patiently waits at the Blueberry Cutoff junction

Sarge takes in the view from the top of the first ledge

Sarge with Mount Passaconaway behind him

Sun shining through the clouds to the south

Perfect morning with the puppers!

Happy dog!

MMD 50K 2018 . . . Death by Sandwich Range

Date of Run: 8/11/18

Tripoli Road: 0.7 miles / Livermore Trail: 3.6 miles / Mount Tripyramid Trail: 2.8 miles / Kate Sleeper Trail: 3.3 miles / Blueberry Ledge Trail: 0.7 miles / Tom Wiggin Trail: 1.1 miles / Dicey's Mill Trail: 3.2 miles / Rollins Trail: 2.6 miles / Kate Sleeper Trail: 0.8 miles / Downes Brook Trail: 2.3 miles / Bushwhack: 1.3 miles / Sabbaday Brook Trail: 2.0 miles / Mount Tripyramid Trail: 3.3 miles / Livermore Trail: 2.6 miles / Tripoli Road: 0.7 miles
Total Miles: 31.4 (10,700 feet elevation gained)

Trip Report:
- Another August and another fun trail run with a great group of runners of all ages. This year's course had us running through the Sandwich Wilderness over some of the more enjoyable running trails, along with two super steep one mile bursts mixed in, and a bushwhack to make things interesting.
- Some runners started at 5AM, others at 6AM, while Ben, Jerimy, Nate and his dog Piper, Stas, Tim, and myself started at 7AM.
- Stas was the rabbit for the first half of the run, he set off ahead of us setting a blazing pace through the Tripyramids and the Sleepers, we last saw him at the top of the north slide and wouldn't see him for awhile. The rest of us stayed together throughout the run while leap frogging from time to time. During the run, I would go a little faster on the downs (Tom Wiggins and leaving Passaconaway's summit), while everyone would catch me on the ups and pass me (Dicey's Mill), I'd settle in with the group during the minor up and downs (Kate Sleeper, Rollins).
- The weather was close to perfect, so hydrating and fueling was not an issue, especially with two water and fuel stations at mile 11 and 21, many thanks to Todd, Alan, Levi and Katrina.
- As we headed up Passaconway's summit cone we caught up to Stas and ran with him to the summit before parting ways as we reached the Rollins Trail.
- I held my own most of the day over this very fast route, probably 75% was made for running/fast hiking, where last year's route in the Great Gulf and King Ravine was probably 10-15% runable!
- When we reached the bushwhack section along the Downes Brook Trail we decided to stick together, the route was originally flagged but someone had gone in and taken down the flagging, they probably thought we weren't going to take it down once finished. It wasn't a bad whack but it was thick and scratchy but not a knife fight. It did slow us down quite a bit at first but then Tim got us on a good line and we made our way over to the Sabbaday Brook Trail. My original goal was to run a sub 8 hour but without the flagging I reset my goal to 8:15.
- Once we hit the Sabbaday Brook Trail we all went at different paces. Ben went into over drive with Tim following along for a little bit before Ben pulled away. Nate and I struggled together up the steep last mile to the ridge, it was brutal but we made it!
- Once back on the Mount Tripyamid Trail, Piper and Nate took an extended break so Piper could get some water, relax, and cool down before the steep descent on the open south slide. I continued on motoring down the slide.
- I made great time down the slide but was unable to catch Tim over this technical section, once back in the woods the trail levels out and is built for speed so there would be no catching Tim on this day, but I was still thrilled with my time back down to the Livermore Trail and Tripoli Road finale.
- I quickly made my way back to Osceola Vista Campground with four straight sub eight minute miles to finish strong and come in at 8 hours and 11 minutes, four minutes behind Tim and twenty-two minutes behind Ben, good enough for third!
- After finishing, I relaxed and ate a tremendous amount of food while cheering on the other runners coming in and finishing and talking about hiking, running, and coming up with unique running/hiking routes with everyone until well past sunset. :)

Click here for the whole photo album that has multiple contributors.

Elevation over distance profile

Map of the route

Ben and Jerimy jogging up the Livermore Trail

Tim makes his way up the start of the north slide

Stas sets a blazing pace up the slide

Tecumseh and Osceola's

Ben and Tim taking a breather while Stas motors ahead

Nate and Piper make their way up the slide

Kate Sleeper Trail

View from the Blueberry Ledge outlook

Mount Passaconway

Nate and Piper head up the relentless steep half mile up Sabbaday Brook Trail

Death By Sandwich . . . Range : Tripyramids, Sleepers, Whiteface & Passaconaway

Date of Hike: 4/16/16

Livermore Trail: 3.8 miles / Scaur Ridge Trail: 1.1 miles / Pine Bend Brook Trail: 0.8 miles / Mount Tripyramid Trail: 1.3 miles / Kate Sleeper Trail: 3.0 miles / Rollins Trail: 2.2 miles / Dicey's Mill Trail: 1.6 miles / Rollins Trail: 2.2 miles / Kate Sleeper Trail: 3.2 miles / Mount Tripyramid Trail: 2.3 miles / Livermore & Big Pines Trails: 2.7 miles
Total Miles: 25.8 (7,945 feet elevation gained) Garmin Forerunner 910XT

Trip Report:
- An amazing weather pattern came strolling through the northeast over the weekend so I took advantage of the abundant sunshine and warm temperatures to get in a pretty brutal hike in and out of the Sandwich Range Wilderness. The hike began and ended at the Livermore trailhead, and from mile four through twenty the hike was filled with up and downs over bare ground, breakable ice, snow, ice flows, and ice bulges ranging from an easy to very difficult.
- Knowing it was going to be a long day I got an early start at 6:45AM and easily made my way up the old Livermore Road to the Scaur Ridge Trail. The Scaur Ridge Trail is probably the easiest way up to North Tripyramid, the footing is good and the grades are easy to moderate. The ice started around 3,000 feet but was easy to walk up with my microspikes.
- Once gaining the ridge I hooked a right onto the Pine Bend Brook Trail where things got really interesting, especially over the last quarter mile below the summit. The trail became steeper and filled with 'bullet proof' ice, it was impossible to get any bite in the ice with my spikes so I headed into the woods and monkey climb paralleling the trail. Since it was very early in the morning and still cold out the ice had yet to soften up, so I spent most of the last 0.2 miles in the woods off trail hugging trees and carefully making my way up to the summit.
- From North Tripyramid I headed over Middle and South. There was another small section just below Middle where I had to veer off trail but compared to North it was easy, and heading up and down South was a cakewalk.
- Below South Tripyramid I hooked onto the Kate Sleeper Trail from the top of the south slide. The Kate Sleeper Trail has a very secluded feel to it even though two trails where it begins and ends at, Mount Tripyramid and the Rollins Trail are heavily used, this trail sees very little use and is often overlooked. It's too bad it is because it is one of the most beautiful stretches of trail in the White Mountains. While there are no views, the pathway is very scenic and beautiful with abundant moose activity, lots of poo on the trails! I got lucky on this day as I almost walked right into a mommy moose and her calf. I came around a corner and startled them and then they startled me, they both went scurrying off into the open woods.
- The trail was easy for travel through the Sleeper Ridge, it was a mix of soft ice and corn snow, these great conditions changed as soon as I stepped onto the Rollins Trail. There was more ice to deal with again, and three or four times I had to venture off trail a couple of feet and use trees to descend, however it was getting warmer by the minute so my spikes were biting in better and better.
- After a few miles I reached the junction with the Dicey's Mill Trail and made the relentless climb up to the summit cone of Mount Passaconaway. I really lucked out here as conditions have improved drastically over the past week and I was able to easily make my way through the steeps without having to leave trail while ascending and descending as there were enough rocks above the ice and tree branches on the side of the trail to help me out.
- All the summits for this hike are wooded, but Passaconaway, North and Middle Tripyramid have nice outlooks near the true summit. At the outlook for Passaconaway I ran into a hiker and his little dog Otis who looked to be having a ball. During this icy April the little dogs have had a definite advantage over the bigger ones, they can maneuver up and down the ice or off in the woods easier than the big dogs where it can become dangerous for them.
- Now it was time to backtrack over the Rollins and Kate Sleeper Trail. I felt really strong heading back over Whiteface and down the Kate Sleeper Trail to the Whiteface / East Sleeper Col, and then all of a sudden I started to get that bonking feeling. Stupid me, I forgot to bring an electrolyte drink, and delayer so I started to overheat and become sluggish. I haven't felt this bad on trail since my 2014 H2H run. I made sure to slow down and carefully make my way through the Sleepers until I popped back out on the South Tripyramid Slide where the rest of the hike was all down hill. Once reaching the slide I immediately felt better again.
- The slide was in summer conditions, no snow or ice, making this probably the best way to do the Tripyramids right now as an out and back to avoid the ice on the northside of North Tripyramid.
- Once below the slide I enjoyed the last few cushiony miles over the lower end of the Mount Tripyrmid Trail before leaving the Sandwich Wilderness and back onto the Livermore Trail.
- On my way out I made a side trip on the Big Pines Trail which lead me to three huge White Pines. These pine trees dwarf all other pines and and are quite the site to see. There are not many left as they where harvested in the mid 1700's by King George who used the trees to build his ships for his navy fleet. The White Pines where marked with the King's Broad Arrow (click here for more info). I wonder if there are any White Pines with the mark still around in the White Mountains, it's been 250 years so if one still stands the bark from the tree would probably have overtaken the King's Broad Arrow marking.

First car in at the Livermore Trailhead. Mount Tecumseh in the background

Hiking up the old Livermore Road (trail). Great footing with numerous trails leaving this road throughout its length

The Scaur Ridge Trail. Dry in the sun, icy in the shade!

Pine Bend Brook Trail was rotting snow transitioning to all ice

Hiking along the icy trail. This was one of the easier spots!

Looking north from North Tripyramid downlook

Waterville Valley with Mount Tecumseh and an obstructed view of the Osceola's from Middle Tripyramid's outlook

Looking over to where I'm heading, Mount Passaconaway

Heading down the top of the South Slide and the Sleeper Slide

West Sleeper Summit, with a tiny cairn...of moose poop!

Hiking along the Kate Sleeper Trail, spotted a tree with an old yellow blaze. There are a few spots along here with faded old yellow blazes. I wonder when and why it changed over to blue?

The Kate Sleeper / Downs Brook Trail junction. I always enjoy this spot, there are a couple of old yellow blazes near it and a little open marsh area near here just off trail.