Adams in the Springtime

After schedule-driven attrition of our original 6-person group, 4 finalists got to enjoy the outing: Mike, Jon, Ron, and Alex.  A bad weather forecast had gotten continually better, to the point where were now facing a beautiful partly cloudy day.  We got to Lowe's store, where the Lowe's Path trail begins, at 8:30am or so, and were off and running shortly after 8:50.  Temps quickly warmed to the 70s as we headed up, and we stopped several times to de-layer.  Our pace was fairly industrious, but we paused every half-hour or so to relax and smell the roses - be they the Log Cabin, Grey Knob, Thunderstorm Junction, Adams 4, some interesting flora, or just a great outlook.

Once we emerged from the timberline, the weather was breezy and in the 60s, but with lots of sun.  Despite the sun, we were able to cross the few snowfields that remained, without much postholing.  At one point, we enjoyed the sound of the Lost River roaring under the rocks beneath us.  In another place, a small water gusher was erupting, evidently from snowmelt flowing through a channel in the rocks underneath. 

Lowe's Path took us straight over to Adams 4, a subsidiary peak, and also afforded us a great view of Sam Adams on our right as we made our way ever closer to the main summit.  We also got a number of great views on our way up of Mt. Madison to the Northeast and Mt. Jefferson to the South.  There was also abundant human scenery, most notably from Quebec, as we learned that this was a 3-day weekend for them.

After encountering the massive cairn at Thunderstorm Junction a few hundred feet beneath Adams' main summit, Mike and Alex agreed that it had seen better days and was sagging a bit.  Not having any blue pills at hand, we decided to defer attempting any resurrections.  As we moved on up, the terrain showed Adams' true colors: the mother of all rock piles.  After 20-30 minutes of patient rock work, we reached the summit at around 1:00.  We enjoyed lunch and some great views - and of course asked one of the Candaians there with us to snap a group summit photo.

Heading down, we were careful to watch our footing on all the rocks.  When we got back to Thunderstorm Junction, Mike and Jon took a brief break to enjoy the area while Alex and Ron made a quick side trip to tag the Sam Adams summit.  Further down, we enjoyed a stop at Grey Knob Cabin, perched atop the western wall of the King Ravine.

We reached the cars around 5:00, and headed to MIke's, where he and Jon hosted a great cookout.  What a spendid day.  And what great company!

Hey, come join me in the Presidentials for a spectacular early-season visit to Mt. Adams, the Northeast's 2nd-tallest peak!  Enjoy breathtaking above-treeline views and intimate company (um, relatively speaking...) during and afterwards for dinner - we'll be small in number, though not in spirit.

While we will be taking things at a moderate pace, I do need to say that this is not a warm-up hike. It entails approximately 10 miles of hiking, and 4,500' of vertical gain, and we will encounter areas of not-yet-melted snow and ice.   Ramping up for lots of hiking as the summer gets underway? This is a great step along the way.

Depending on time, conditions and our own desires, we may also have the option of tagging neighboring Mt. Madison's iconic pyramidal peak. After checking the weather forecast a couple of days in advance, I'll be consulting with everyone about the expected conditions and necessary gear, finalizing the plan, and encouraging car pooling.

Hope to see you!