We had unseasonably warm temperatures this week, so Laura and I busted loose and took a week day off to explore while the weather was so nice. Thankfully the weather was nice, because the rest of the hike... was an adventure. We arrived at the Mead Base Camp in Sandwich which generously allows parking for the trail, to find cows on the loose! We had read the parking area was muddy and boy, was it ever?! We got ready and headed out on the Wentworth Trail. I had hiked this trail several years ago in June. This was an entirely different experience. We wore spikes as the ground cover seemed thin enough to not warrant snowshoes. That was our biggest mistake. During this in between season, it's pretty beneficial to carry all the traction. What conditions may be like down below does not necessarily match conditions at elevation. We started out OK, although the trail does immediately start to climb so as usual, I found myself out of breath right away. I like a little build up before the climb to get myself warmed up. As we continued the snow cover deepened and we found ourselves sinking through the snow as had others before us. It was an arduous climb that took much longer than it should have, but we were taking care to make sure our steps were not going to send us sliding over the edge. Some very short sections are rather steep and although well covered in trees, no one wants to find out if a tree is strong enough to stop a fall. Eventually we made it to the summit area, where the snow was deep enough that some of our postholing was almost hip deep. It was a crystal clear, bluebird day.. but honestly, I was done. I wasn't having fun in the conditions. The snow was softening as the day warmed, so while I think snowshoes would have been better up high, I still think we would have been sinking some. We enjoyed a few minutes on the summit cairn taking pictures and video. The views up there really are beautiful and we were so lucky with the weather. It was a bit windy, but the views for miles made up for that. We contemplated the descent and how messy it would be but once we started to get a bit chilly, we just went for it. It definitely was messy, the snow had melted considerably even since our ascent. We were tired and just ready to be done, so we went a lot quicker going down, gravity helping us to slip and slide through the slush. Thankfully no major incidents and we made it back to the car in an hour less than going up! In retrospect, it was a good hike, the views were incredible and we were away from work enjoying the outdoors. Can't complain about that.
Strava Activity
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| Cows and mud in the parking lot |
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| water crossings are starting to fill as the snow melts |
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| summit cairn |
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| looking back at Mt Israel on our way out |
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