jfront2112
11-24-2014, 11:37
Date*of Hike: November 22, 2014
Trail Conditions: From the Appalachia trailhead the Valley Way trail is covered with about an inch or two of packed snow. The snow in the trees got deeper as I gained elevation. Probably a few inches. The stream crossing at Brookside was easy to navigate. Nobody had been up Brookside since the most recent snows. I broke trail all the way to Watson through about 4 or 5 inches of snow. Snow was very dry an powdery. Someone had crossed over from Valley Way and went up Watson ahead of me which made the trail a bit easier to navigate. Above the treeline the winds (measured by my Kestrel) were sustained at 20 to 30 MPH. Partly cloudy with temps at about 20 degrees with windchill about 4 degrees. I met up with one person not too far from the treeline who had summited and assured me that there was some serious wind up there.*The winds got progressively worse as I made the ascent. Winds began to knock me over and travel was very slow. At times I couldn't move and had to take cover in between the rocks or just lay on the ground and let the worst wind pass over me.*I was about 1/4 mile from the summit when the winds, upward of 60 MPH, made it impossible to move. Besides that, I noticed one of my microspikes had peeled off my foot and I turned around. I can't believe I found it on the way down which made the steep sections of Watson a little easier. There's a good little bit of snow, but not enough to cover the rocks and roots so the trails were a rough to navigate.
Special Equipment Used: Trekking poles for balance. I used one short pole*above the treeline as I was not carrying an ice axe. I bare booted up until Watson where microspikes helped*but the snow was very dry with no hardpack so traction was limited. Eye and face protection were necessary above treeline. Spikes were probably not needed above treeline as all the rocks were exposed and not covered*with ice so traction was good which was probably why I didn't notice my missing spike. I had full emergency gear, shelter and*sleeping bag just in case.
Comments: I used some of my shoulder season gear up there which was a mistake. Traction might not have been necessary above treeline, but Hillsound crampons at a minimum. It's too easy for a microspike to peel off your foot. My overmitts and lightweight gaiters were shredded.*Expedition weight gear only up there. I also should have turned around sooner.*Madison, although the easiest of the northern presidentials, is not to be taken lightly.
It seems most people climbing Madison and Adams turned around on Saturday. I met a climber at the trailhead who was waiting for the rest of his party who were attempting Adams. He turned around, but the three people with him continued despite his warnings. He had years of climbing experience and said they had not done much winter hiking and were planning on summiting no matter what the weather. It sounded like a recipe for disaster, but as I was leaving he got word they were safe. I don't know if they summited, but I hope they learned from this. I know I did.*I've been doing this for 5 years and feel I made some questionable choices that day. The best of which was to turn around
Trail Conditions: From the Appalachia trailhead the Valley Way trail is covered with about an inch or two of packed snow. The snow in the trees got deeper as I gained elevation. Probably a few inches. The stream crossing at Brookside was easy to navigate. Nobody had been up Brookside since the most recent snows. I broke trail all the way to Watson through about 4 or 5 inches of snow. Snow was very dry an powdery. Someone had crossed over from Valley Way and went up Watson ahead of me which made the trail a bit easier to navigate. Above the treeline the winds (measured by my Kestrel) were sustained at 20 to 30 MPH. Partly cloudy with temps at about 20 degrees with windchill about 4 degrees. I met up with one person not too far from the treeline who had summited and assured me that there was some serious wind up there.*The winds got progressively worse as I made the ascent. Winds began to knock me over and travel was very slow. At times I couldn't move and had to take cover in between the rocks or just lay on the ground and let the worst wind pass over me.*I was about 1/4 mile from the summit when the winds, upward of 60 MPH, made it impossible to move. Besides that, I noticed one of my microspikes had peeled off my foot and I turned around. I can't believe I found it on the way down which made the steep sections of Watson a little easier. There's a good little bit of snow, but not enough to cover the rocks and roots so the trails were a rough to navigate.
Special Equipment Used: Trekking poles for balance. I used one short pole*above the treeline as I was not carrying an ice axe. I bare booted up until Watson where microspikes helped*but the snow was very dry with no hardpack so traction was limited. Eye and face protection were necessary above treeline. Spikes were probably not needed above treeline as all the rocks were exposed and not covered*with ice so traction was good which was probably why I didn't notice my missing spike. I had full emergency gear, shelter and*sleeping bag just in case.
Comments: I used some of my shoulder season gear up there which was a mistake. Traction might not have been necessary above treeline, but Hillsound crampons at a minimum. It's too easy for a microspike to peel off your foot. My overmitts and lightweight gaiters were shredded.*Expedition weight gear only up there. I also should have turned around sooner.*Madison, although the easiest of the northern presidentials, is not to be taken lightly.
It seems most people climbing Madison and Adams turned around on Saturday. I met a climber at the trailhead who was waiting for the rest of his party who were attempting Adams. He turned around, but the three people with him continued despite his warnings. He had years of climbing experience and said they had not done much winter hiking and were planning on summiting no matter what the weather. It sounded like a recipe for disaster, but as I was leaving he got word they were safe. I don't know if they summited, but I hope they learned from this. I know I did.*I've been doing this for 5 years and feel I made some questionable choices that day. The best of which was to turn around