Mts. Webster and Jackson

For this winter hike, we decided on Jackson first and then stay on the ridge to reach Webster. Short, easy, and right to the point. At least that was the original plan!

We met at the trail head parking lot around 9:30am. There was a fresh snowfall of about 3 inches making road travel slower than usual. Martin was driving from Stowe, VT and had the furthest to travel. He had mentioned that if road travel conditions were not good that he might not meet us. Compass, Scott's dog, began to whimper, "When are you guys starting...I want to get going!" After waiting 15 minutes, we started at 9:45am.

We crossed the road and met a large group who told us they turned around due to very icy conditions. We put on our MicroSpikes and up we went. Attending were Luciano, Rob, Kevin, Scott and his dog Compass, Jon and myself. Jon led for the climb up to Mt. Jackson while I led after that.

We started up the trail moving pretty fast, and with the temperatures that morning I heated up pretty quickly under my jacket. Shortly after getting around the first bend before it grades out a bit, we stopped to drop some layers.

The three steep sections to Bugle Cliff junction were a sheet of ice...VERY ICY...I wished I had brought my crampons. What added to the difficulty is that temperatures were so warm that snow was accumulating at the bottom of our MicroSpikes making them useless…we had to keep grinding our boots onto the ice or kick them against a tree so we could use the spikes. Careful maneuvering was required to get up the steep sections by holding on to trees, rocks and anything else that could help us get up! We felt like we were auditioning for the Ice Capades…twirls, spins, butt slides, triple salchow and double toe loops!!! Compass had no problems going up and looked at us as if we were wimps. :-) 

We all conversed back and forth, laughed, and kept on trekking towards the junction. Even after Bugle Cliff, with the powder snow hiding a trail that is a sheet of ice beneath, I could have worn my crampons all the way to summit! Arriving at the Webster-Jackson junction we still had not run into anyone on the trail. We continued upward on the Jackson Branch and encountered more snow on the trees as we climbed up. We saw a group at the top of the summit ledges and blue skies were overhead! This summit is very popular with Gray Jays and we did not encounter a single one the entire day.

We continued on to the ledges not sure what to expect. It was a combination of ice and snow so caution was exercised. At the summit we were greeted by brand new signage.

We all took quite a few photos for the first few minutes we were there. We broke out our lunches and marveled at the view of the Presidential Range before us. Scott took great care of Compass by making sure she kept warm in his pack. So cute! We probably had the summit to ourselves for a good 10 minutes before three Canadian women arrived and then shortly after a couple.  We packed up our things and started our hike to Mt. Webster using the Webster Cliff Trail.

Loose powder on the Webster Cliff Trail was doable with MicroSpikes thanks to a group ahead of us who had snowshoes and breaking trail. We had some sections on our bums sledding out, with a few big bumps that set us air born that was quite entertaining. Compass was having a blast! The sun came out and we hiked along the ridge in a winter wonderland!

We were socked in on the summit of Mt. Webster but the wind helped give us some periodic views. More butt surfing was in order for the descent down the Jackson Branch. We reached the Silver Cascade that resembled a vertical ice castle with layers of ice and large frozen icicles.

As we were leaving we heard a shout and it was Martin! He had car trouble and started hiking on the trail at 11AM. He booked because he caught up to us…we had a 90 minute head start! It was so great to see him. I finished my winter 4,000 footers two years ago and he has been keeping this insulated coffee mug filled with chocolate candy to give to me since then! Thank you Martin…very thoughtful of you. Martin is also one of our new board members.

We were a bit nervous about getting down all the icy sections we climbed up on but thankfully it had warmed up and these areas had turned slushy so we had no issues. We were down and out by 4:00pm. A few went back to our house for some après-hike festivities around the fireplace followed by a delicious meal prepared by Jon: seasoned pork loins, potatoes, green beans and salad. And I cannot forget the Amaretto Cake topped with whipped cream that I think everybody had 2 slices!

It was such a great day with amazing weather conditions and trail conditions. Thank you to everyone who joined us! We loved having Compass along!!!

Trip Report by Mike
Pictures taken by Jon 

The open rock summit of one of the easier 4,000 footers Mt. Jackson [4052'] rewards with fine views of the Presidentials! Mt Webster [3910 ft.] has excellent views of Crawford Notch!

ROUTE: We'll be hiking a loop to the top of Mount Jackson that promises outstanding views of the sourthern Presidential Peaks! We'll begin with the Webster-Jackson Trail that passes by a short spur trail to Elephant Head. In 0.6 mile we'll reach another spur trail to Bugle Cliff with stunning views of surrounding peaks from the rim of Crawford Notch! At 1.4 we'll reach a trail junction and continue straight ahead for another mile reaching the summit of Mt. Webster. [The route left is how we will return, 1.1 miles from Mount Jackson]. We'll then take the Webster Cliff Trail for a 1.3 mile stretch that connects with Jackson's summit. A few haphazard cairns will guide us off the peak for a steep departure down where we'll eventually return back to our cars.

STATS: Approximately 6.5 miles with 2100' feet of elevation gain.

GEAR:  Appropriate winter gear required.  This must include insulated winter boots (no 3 season hiking boots, no exceptions), MicroSpikes, snowshoes, NON COTTON layers of clothing, a pack big enough to hold even the clothes you take off once you warm up.  No hydration systems.  Bring a headlamp or flashlight because we may be hiking out in the dark. Don’t forget lunch and snacks.

PACE:  This will be a group hike at a moderate pace; we will stay together and the slowest hiker will set the pace.  If you are unable to control your pace, enjoy great company, and hike with the team then please don't come.

HIKE PLANNING INFO:  We will send out an e-mail a few days before about the weather forecast and additional details.

After The Hike: Everyone is welcome to join us back our house for dinner. It's $10 per person to pay for our food cost; please note price increase. You may want to bring a change of clothing to be more comfortable and you can use our showers.

Lodging Option: We have 8 bunks available at our house near Waterville Valley, NH for Friday and/or Saturday night. Please note the 2016 price increases: Friday night is $25 and Saturday night is $35 [includes dinner]. Coffee/bagels each morning and linen/blankets/towels are provided. We have limited space in the fridge to store your beverages/food so it's best to bring a small cooler. Space is limited so email us ASAP to reserve a bunk!