Outdoor Diversion: Bluebird Day on the Hancocks

Summit: Hancock (4,420'), South Hancock (4,319')

Trail route: Hancock Notch Trail, Cedar Brook Trail, Hancock Loop

Trail conditions: Solid trail with some loose unconsolidated snow and don't step off the trail

Weather: Cool to warm temps, cloudless blue sky with lots of sunshine

Total miles: 10

Total time: 5:50

A check of the weather forecast and trail reports indicated a great day on the way for a hike. My biggest concern was warm temps softening up the trails. I would be bringing three types of traction, microspikes, trail crampons and snowshoes.

With the time change I was once again driving to the trailhead in the dark. I was the second one in the Hancock Outlook parking lot. There was one hiker that was heading out onto the trail just before me. He was young and fast and I would never see him again.

I started out bare booting. About a half mile down the trail I put on microspikes. The trail was solid and the microspikes were the right traction. I did the Hancock Loop Trail clockwise so that was up North Hancock first. Just after starting up the steep trail that parallels the Arrow slide I swapped traction to snowshoes so I would have the advantage of the televators that would take some strain off my calves.

It's a slow, relentlessly steep climb to the summit. There was a lot of snow at the summit and I could see above the treetops. Two years ago on a hike to this summit the snow was so deep that we were walking above the treetops. It was a great day for basking and lingering, not even a wisp of a breeze and lots of warm sunshine. There were no clouds and the view was spectacular.

I kept my snowshoes on for the hike across the ridge to South Hancock and that proved to be the right choice of footwear as there was several inches of loose snow. At times it was sticky and balled up on the bottom of the snowshoes but not to the point of being intolerable. I reached the summit of South Hancock and saw another hiker come up behind me.

Being familiar with what was ahead of me I changed to the trail crampons knowing the trail was a very steep descent and probably smooth from hikers butt sliding down. I soon found that I made the right choice.

I didn't do any butt sliding since my pants were getting quite thin from previous butt sliding descents. It was still a quick trip down to the trail junction and completed the loop. I met two more hikers here and that would be a total of four for the day.

I kept the trail crampons on all the way out as the the snow was soft and sticky. The snow does not ball up on the crampons and it was a pleasant hike out. It was very warm at the parking lot and it felt good after the recent frigid temps over the past week.

With just a few more days of winter this was an absolutely stellar day for a hike in the mountains just before the official start of Spring this weekend!

Enjoy the photos and video!