Mt. Wachusett loop
Where: Mt. Wachusett When: December 4, 2025 With: Solo I was in need of some trail time, but a long ride/full day trip to the White Mountains wasn't in the cards. A quick run over to Mt. Wachusett was in order. A storm earlier in the week had dropped about a half a foot of snow, and I wasn't quite sure what to bring for traction so I brought both spikes and snowshoes. There were about half a dozen cars at the Echo Lake Trail trail head when I arrived, mostly parked along the road. I checked out the snow depth and figured I'd be okay with microspikes, but carried the snowshoes anyway, just in case. After a quick chat with other hikers who'd just arrived, I set out for the short (half mile) walk down the road to the Harrington Trail. The trail showed signs of travel, but only boots...no snowshoes. I slipped the spikes on and began the hike. The snow wasn't especially packed down - it seemed like only a few folks had walked the trail since the storm - but the snow was ...