The forecast had shown a -15F windchill at the summit which was very mild for Mount Washington. Being a lover of colder weather and used much worse, I decided it would be a good day to train with my overnight winter pack.
I got to Mount Washington State Park around 5 am after a 1 quick hour drive from the cabin. Being a Monday and the fact that it was veterans day the parking lot was relatively empty compared to what it would be on a busy day. I had a quick bite to eat which was a leftover subway sandwich before I donned my back and headed to the trail. I soon arrived at the trailhead and saw the posting of the summit. It was calling for -15F windchill, but that could change for the better or for the worse.
I began to work my way up to trail with a heavy pack for training purposes and to get used to my winter overnight pack. It had brought back memories of early adventures when I was just starting to hike seriously. I was enjoying the gradual incline gain until I reached the junction for the Lions head trail which meant I would be going up until I reached the summit of Mount Washington. After 2 minutes after turning on the junction I put on my traction which were just simple hill sounds. There wasn’t a need for full 12 point crampons at this time. As I approached the edge of the treeline I wandered if the forecast was going to be accurate or not.
Once I was above treeline I was completely socked in by the clouds. I knew at this point I wasn’t going to get any views. The trail didn’t looked broken, so I knew I was the first one up for the day so far. The trail wasn’t too hard to follow despite the cairns being covered by rime ice. The wind started to pick up and I worked my way to the summit. When I reached the summit the wind stopped for the most part. I heard a truck backing up and only then I realized that I can’t see the truck and I hope the driver sees me. I wasn’t exactly planning for this, is exactly why my winter shell is bright red. I could only imagine the headline. “Hiker hit by truck at Summit” Hopefully that is not foreshadowing. I reached the summit sign and took a quick picture before sitting my back and eating a much deserved lunch.
After my quick meal, I began the descent back down. I ran into 7 hikers before I got back to treeline. Just before treeline I had complete silence around me. I could not even hear the wind in the air. It was a very unique and breathtaking experience. Once I got back down to treeline it was pretty straight forward until I reached the parking lot. Its always a good day for a hike.
