Mt Chocorua
Where: Mt. Chocorua
When: 10/16/2018
With: Solo
When: 10/16/2018
With: Solo
It's been a long time since I took the exit off 95 in New Hampshire for Route 16. We usually continue north on 95 to Maine, but today I headed to the White Mountains. Mt. Chocorua, to be specific. One of my retirement to-do items is day hikes in the Whites, completing my 4K peaks list and revisiting favorite hikes I've done before. Mt. Chocorua was my first NH peak, climbed as part of an epic weekend in 1984, so I wanted to return to it to begin this next phase of my hiking life.
I was the 2nd car in the Piper Trail parking lot at 8AM, after an easy 2.5 hour drive from home. I skipped the $5 parking pass process, thinking I only had a couple of $20s. I hoped no one would check mid-week, or that the parking fee season was over. [I later realized I DID have change, but not until I was an hour up the trail, and I paid my fee when I returned to the car.] I changed into my boots, grabbed my pack, and was on the trail within minutes.
My plan was to follow the Piper Trail to the summit, then possibly take another route back to make a loop. It was a pleasant day to walk, with cool temps, sunny skies, and the trees still showing much of their autumn colors. A storm front had come through the previous night, leaving the trail somewhat wet, with the winds behind the front still blowing strong. Down in the woods though, I was protected from the wind, so I was able to walk comfortably in just a wicking shirt.
The trail began easily before beginning to climb. There were sections of moderate climbing, where I could chew up trail distance, mixed with steep sections that added altitude quickly. Not much in the way of views for quite a while, but a beautiful woods to walk through. I passed the Weetamoo and Nickerson Ledge trails, then made a side trip to the Pennacook Camp lean-to shelter (very nice, worth a return overnight sometime) before beginning a section of rock step switchbacks. Views began to appear, including glimpses of the summit.
Eventually the trail began to level out (a bit), climbing along the side of a valley on the mountain's flank. I spotted the place where we emerged from our bandit campsite long ago (a rock wall beside the trail), then I was at the trail junction with the Champney Falls trail and on the ridge leading to the summit. Just after the West Side trail ("Bad Weather Route") junction, the trail exited the tree line and the protection from the wind. I added layers, including my mountain parka, and headed out into the open.
The "trail" was now a barely distinct route along rock slabs. There were some paint markings, and an occasional pile of rocks to indicate the way, but other times it was just guesswork. Decades of boots on this popular route, combined with seepage from the previous night's rains, made for slick footing in places. And in some spots, the wet sections had frozen, but still looked just wet. I stepped on one and fell hard. For the most part though I was able to make continuous progress.
That changed when I got to one side of the final "saddle" before the summit cone. It was about 10:30. I'd been able to follow markers (paint and cairns) to a jumble of large boulders, but I couldn't see where the trail went from there. I went back and forth a few times, returning to the last marker I could find and trying to figure out where to go, but without any success. It was very windy, quite cold, I was out on my own, with no other hikers around, and I was concerned about my safety. I certainly could have found a way up to the summit, and in better conditions I might have been tempted to try, but on this day I decided that discretion was the better part of valor, and "close enough" would have to do for this hike. I took a few pictures, then began to head back the way I'd come.
A few minutes later, having made my way down the major slabs, I met up with another hiker making his way up. The first other hiker I'd seen all day. I told him of my troubles and he mentioned the icy rocks. While I'd just fallen, he'd gone down and began sliding a good ways, stopping only when he hit some trees. It had shaken him up, understandably, but he continued up while I went down.
Back in the trees, I stopped at the West Side trail junction and checked my map. A route out with that trail and the Liberty, Hammond, and Weetamoo trails seemed like a good way to go, so I headed down the trail. It didn't appear to have a lot of use...lots of fallen trees across the path. It descended at first, then began to climb before ending at the Liberty trail. I paused to check the map again, and it occurred to me that the Liberty trail also went to the Chocorua summit.
I looked up the trail to an open ledge just a short distance away, and decided it was worth a short walk to see what I could see. Emerging into the open, I looked up to see the summit directly above me, very close by. What's more, a series of substantial cairns clearly indicated the trail route. Another map check confirmed that I was quite close to the summit. What the heck...maybe I could get the summit after all.
That trail wound up being a much better route. Clearly marked, sheltered from the wind nearly the entire way, and much shorter and easier than the Piper trail. It went up the west side of the summit cone before meeting the other end of Piper trail, and then the combined trails made a short scramble to the peak. As I neared the top, I looked up to see the other hiker I'd met on the other side of the summit rock. It was about 11:30. We congratulated each other on the climb, then found a spot sheltered from the wind. He was from Baltimore, and comes to NH for a week each year to climb and see the autumn colors.
We rested and chatted a bit before he set off along the summit ridge to check out some views. I took a few pictures, then made my way back down to the Liberty trail. Followed it off the summit cone, past the West Side and Brook trails, and down to the Jim Liberty cabin. Some large rock slabs just above the cabin were particularly challenging, especially with the wet conditions. The cabin was nice enough. 9 bunks, a small table, and windows for light.
Below the cabin I followed the Liberty trail to the Hammond trail, which I followed to the Weetamoo trail, which brought me back to the Piper trail and a short walk back to the parking lot, arriving a little after 2PM. I fell one more time on Weetamoo...a stumble that turned into a roll down the trail. Not hurt at all, but I rested a bit on the ground, realizing that my legs were pretty fried. The most notable sight along the way was the enormous Weetamoo Rock (truly enormous), but the entire walk was full of beautiful woods, leaf covered trails, rock ledges with spectacular views, deep ravines, rushing mountain streams, and more. And other than two guys I met who were walking up, I had it all to myself the entire way.
Back at my car, I made quick work of my preparations for the ride home (including paying my parking fee), and was soon on the road. I landed back in the driveway just before 5PM. 5.5 hours of driving, 6 hours on the trails. Just about right.
More photos
I was the 2nd car in the Piper Trail parking lot at 8AM, after an easy 2.5 hour drive from home. I skipped the $5 parking pass process, thinking I only had a couple of $20s. I hoped no one would check mid-week, or that the parking fee season was over. [I later realized I DID have change, but not until I was an hour up the trail, and I paid my fee when I returned to the car.] I changed into my boots, grabbed my pack, and was on the trail within minutes.
My plan was to follow the Piper Trail to the summit, then possibly take another route back to make a loop. It was a pleasant day to walk, with cool temps, sunny skies, and the trees still showing much of their autumn colors. A storm front had come through the previous night, leaving the trail somewhat wet, with the winds behind the front still blowing strong. Down in the woods though, I was protected from the wind, so I was able to walk comfortably in just a wicking shirt.
The trail began easily before beginning to climb. There were sections of moderate climbing, where I could chew up trail distance, mixed with steep sections that added altitude quickly. Not much in the way of views for quite a while, but a beautiful woods to walk through. I passed the Weetamoo and Nickerson Ledge trails, then made a side trip to the Pennacook Camp lean-to shelter (very nice, worth a return overnight sometime) before beginning a section of rock step switchbacks. Views began to appear, including glimpses of the summit.
Eventually the trail began to level out (a bit), climbing along the side of a valley on the mountain's flank. I spotted the place where we emerged from our bandit campsite long ago (a rock wall beside the trail), then I was at the trail junction with the Champney Falls trail and on the ridge leading to the summit. Just after the West Side trail ("Bad Weather Route") junction, the trail exited the tree line and the protection from the wind. I added layers, including my mountain parka, and headed out into the open.
The "trail" was now a barely distinct route along rock slabs. There were some paint markings, and an occasional pile of rocks to indicate the way, but other times it was just guesswork. Decades of boots on this popular route, combined with seepage from the previous night's rains, made for slick footing in places. And in some spots, the wet sections had frozen, but still looked just wet. I stepped on one and fell hard. For the most part though I was able to make continuous progress.
That changed when I got to one side of the final "saddle" before the summit cone. It was about 10:30. I'd been able to follow markers (paint and cairns) to a jumble of large boulders, but I couldn't see where the trail went from there. I went back and forth a few times, returning to the last marker I could find and trying to figure out where to go, but without any success. It was very windy, quite cold, I was out on my own, with no other hikers around, and I was concerned about my safety. I certainly could have found a way up to the summit, and in better conditions I might have been tempted to try, but on this day I decided that discretion was the better part of valor, and "close enough" would have to do for this hike. I took a few pictures, then began to head back the way I'd come.
A few minutes later, having made my way down the major slabs, I met up with another hiker making his way up. The first other hiker I'd seen all day. I told him of my troubles and he mentioned the icy rocks. While I'd just fallen, he'd gone down and began sliding a good ways, stopping only when he hit some trees. It had shaken him up, understandably, but he continued up while I went down.
Back in the trees, I stopped at the West Side trail junction and checked my map. A route out with that trail and the Liberty, Hammond, and Weetamoo trails seemed like a good way to go, so I headed down the trail. It didn't appear to have a lot of use...lots of fallen trees across the path. It descended at first, then began to climb before ending at the Liberty trail. I paused to check the map again, and it occurred to me that the Liberty trail also went to the Chocorua summit.
I looked up the trail to an open ledge just a short distance away, and decided it was worth a short walk to see what I could see. Emerging into the open, I looked up to see the summit directly above me, very close by. What's more, a series of substantial cairns clearly indicated the trail route. Another map check confirmed that I was quite close to the summit. What the heck...maybe I could get the summit after all.
That trail wound up being a much better route. Clearly marked, sheltered from the wind nearly the entire way, and much shorter and easier than the Piper trail. It went up the west side of the summit cone before meeting the other end of Piper trail, and then the combined trails made a short scramble to the peak. As I neared the top, I looked up to see the other hiker I'd met on the other side of the summit rock. It was about 11:30. We congratulated each other on the climb, then found a spot sheltered from the wind. He was from Baltimore, and comes to NH for a week each year to climb and see the autumn colors.
We rested and chatted a bit before he set off along the summit ridge to check out some views. I took a few pictures, then made my way back down to the Liberty trail. Followed it off the summit cone, past the West Side and Brook trails, and down to the Jim Liberty cabin. Some large rock slabs just above the cabin were particularly challenging, especially with the wet conditions. The cabin was nice enough. 9 bunks, a small table, and windows for light.
Below the cabin I followed the Liberty trail to the Hammond trail, which I followed to the Weetamoo trail, which brought me back to the Piper trail and a short walk back to the parking lot, arriving a little after 2PM. I fell one more time on Weetamoo...a stumble that turned into a roll down the trail. Not hurt at all, but I rested a bit on the ground, realizing that my legs were pretty fried. The most notable sight along the way was the enormous Weetamoo Rock (truly enormous), but the entire walk was full of beautiful woods, leaf covered trails, rock ledges with spectacular views, deep ravines, rushing mountain streams, and more. And other than two guys I met who were walking up, I had it all to myself the entire way.
Back at my car, I made quick work of my preparations for the ride home (including paying my parking fee), and was soon on the road. I landed back in the driveway just before 5PM. 5.5 hours of driving, 6 hours on the trails. Just about right.
More photos
