Franconia Ridge Dayhike - 26/Sep/96
Here's a map of the route we
followed.
We decided to take a day off of work on Thursday and do a team
building exercise. Actually, a bunch of folks wanted to take a day
off from work and this seemed like a good idea.
People arrived at the Lafayette Place parking area around 8:30 and
after a some time getting organized we headed out on the trail. When
we arrived at the
Bus Stop, a rocky ledge about half way to the hut,
we could all see what was
waiting for us. It was a mix of sun and
clouds, with most of the ridge clear at that time. We spread out
a bit (there being 25 of us) and continued up to hut. Farther up,
at Red Rocks, we paused for more views down, with a nice image of
Cannon and the
ridge we were climbing.
The AMC's Greenleaf hut was still open and we took a well deserved
rest on the
sunny front steps. Some folks
warmed up inside and had
some nice discussions with the croo, including giving them this web
address so they could find pictures of themselves. They were
preparing dinnerfor that night. From the hut
there were nice views of Lincoln and the
rest of the ridge. We looked
up at the ridge and
continued on after gathering everyone back together.
We passed
Eagle Lake, with some
nice views
back to the hut and of
Cannon Mountain
and headed up
into the clouds. Our
group was a
bit more spread out in the fog, but we all stayed in contact. There
were some more views back down but most folks
were pushing on.
Finally, we all made it to the
summit
of Lafayette. There was some snow on the ground, and except for
some occasional views down the ridge, it
remained in clouds. There are foundations of the old horse barn on the summit,
but we didn't need the extra shelter. We
put on
more clothes, ate some food, took some pictures, and
headed on south, towards Lincoln.
The trip to Lincoln was more foggy, and
soon it started snowing on us. Before long we had a brief clearing and
a view back at Lafayette. On Lincoln, it was
cold and windy, so we just paused a few minutes and continued.
Then a nice
rainbow cheered us up a bit for the rest of the
journey. There were clear views into the Pemi of peaks like
Garfield and
Owl's Head. By the time we made it to the
rocky section near Little Haystack it had
cleared and gotten warmer again. The
final section of the ridge was spectacular.
Some of the group had already headed down, but the
rest of us gathered at the Little Haystack
trail junction for more food and a brief rest.
The views of the ridge leading back to
Lincoln were inspiring. At least we could
see where we had been. It had cleared up over the Notch and we could
see the Cannon Cliffs again.
On the way down we stopped at Shining Rock, a
huge slab of granite with water flowing down it most of the year.
This was our final rest spot for the trip.
We descended the Falling Waters trail, enjoying
the great waterfalls and cascades in the fall leaves. We all gathered
at the parking lot around 4:30 and headed out for dinner in North
Woodstock. A great trip for all.
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