Summits: South Carter (4,430'), Middle Carter (4,610')
Trail route: Nineteen Mile Brook Trail, Carter Dome Trail, Carter-Moriah Trail, North Carter Trail, Imp Trail, Imp Connector to Dodge Camp, Road walk back to parking lot
Trail conditions: Packed trail to start with unconsolidated snow in higher elevations, snowshoe broke trail with some postholing, snow depth 3" to 2 feet
Weather: Cool to cold temps with some wind on the ridge, overcast sky
Total miles: 10
Total time: 7:49
Another storm was approaching today with precipitation arriving mid to late afternoon in the form of rain. I thought there would be enough time to beat the rain and at the very least would be almost out by the time it started. I would be joining several hikers today, Guy, Jill, Danielle, Ann and Wayne.
The snowstorm this week dumped up to a foot plus of snow in this area. There had been many hikers on 19 Mile Brook Trail and it was well packed down so we started out with microspikes. When we turned onto Carter Dome Trail the snow was getting a little deeper and unconsolidated but we continued with microspikes that worked well.
When we arrived at Zeta Pass it was getting colder and the snow was deeper. We put on another layer and it was time for the snowshoes. It was here that we split with part of the group going on to Carter Dome and a couple of us would be going to South and Middle Carter having already done Carter Dome in December. I was glad to see the trail had been broken out.
Shortly after continuing the hike to South Carter it was apparent that someone had not been wearing snowshoes and this bare booter really tore up the trail making it a very difficult hike to the summit. There was no bare booting tracks past the summit and it was a much smoother snowshoe track but with deep, loose snow. There had only been a few hikers along the ridge since the last storm.
On the way over to Middle Carter we met a couple of hikers, both had snowshoes. We passed over the summit of Middle Carter without much notice. The next hikers we met were bushwhacking up to Mount Lethe. I had met one of those hikers on a recent hike to the Osceolas. Continuing on brought us down to North Carter Trail. I was glad that it would be all downhill from here but I was in for a surprise.
We met two more hikers on the North Carter Trail and that would be it for the rest of the hike. There was some open areas of water that we just had to walk through as there was no way around it. That trail wasn't too bad and we made a left turn onto the Imp Trail. The trail was about to get interesting.
I have hiked this trail many times and was familiar with the brook that ran down the middle of it for a long stretch. This section of trail proved to be very difficult with snowshoes through open water, large rocks, deep snow, crossing logs and slippery ledges. I thought I had already seen the difficult part of the hike but this was proving to be just as challenging.
Down on the lower part of the trail there was less snow so we took off the snowshoes and bare booted the rest of the way. I was surprised to see that no one had recently used the Imp Connector to Camp Dodge. It was a short walk out to Route 16 and another short walk to the parking lot.
After a difficult hike to Mount Carrigain last Tuesday this was another equally difficult hike. December is proving to be a challenging month for hiking and I still have some long hikes that I need to complete. I'm hoping trail conditions improve before the next hike.
Enjoy the photos!
The hike starts here
19 Mile Brook
Colored icicles
A snow covered 19 MBT bridge
19 Mile Brook
Making the turn and heading up Carter Dome Trail
Easy water crossing
Adding layers at Zeta Pass
On the summit of South Carter
The "view" somewhere between South and Middle Carters
Snow covered bog bridges
Making the turn onto North Carter Trail with some tough snowshoeing ahead
North Carter Trail
This snow fell off the branch but is still hanging on
Imp Connector to Camp Dodge
Camp Dodge
The loop is complete
Having Fun in the Great Outdoors!
No comments:
Post a Comment