Trip report
Welch Dickey Loop Trail Hike
Hiking/Walk DATE: 04/13/2019 - 04/13/2019
Trip/Event Location: Thornton, NH
US
Trip Leader(s): JPHiker , HikerBiker
Max # People: 12
Trip Guiding / Event Fee: No, I will not be asking participants for money
Difficulty Level: Moderate
The Welch-Dickey loop trail hike is the ideal Spring warm-up hike for two big reasons: It is among the first of the trails in NH's White Mountains to be clear of snow and ice in the spring;
...From I-93 take exit 28 (Campton/Waterville Valley), and go east on Route 49 (Mad River Road) towards Waterville Valley. At about 4.5 miles east of the traffic light at the Campton dam (junction with Rt. 175) turn left and over the small bridge, onto Upper Mad River Road. Continue on this road for about 0.7 mile, then turn right onto Orris Road. At this point you should see a sign for the Welch Dickey trail on the right, with an arrow directing you to turn right. Continue on Orris Road for about half a mile to before it makes a sharp turn to the left. On the right you should see the parking lot for the Welch-Dickey Trails. Turn right into it, and park anywhere. If you don't have the yearly parking pass for the WMNF (or the National Parks "Golden Age" Pass), go to the self-pay kiosk at the end, and follow the instructions on how to pay for parking.
Trip Report/Photos
The usually mild mannered Welch Dickey loop trail turned out to be a bit more of a bear than advertised. Large areas in the woods were still covered in snow, and most of the trail still e hibited the classic “monorail” of hard packed ice in the center. The open ledges, however, were clear, though a bit slippery in parts where the melt water flowed. Micro spikes and Yak Trackers came in handy (or is it footly?) on the icy snow cover, but needed to be removed for the open rocks. Some of us got tired of that routine and kept them off from Dickey back down to the trailhead without any mishap. As we approached our lunch spot on the top of Mt. Welch, the fog and clouds lifted up, and gorgeous scenery greeted us for the rest of the trip. We all agreed that the lingering snow cover even made the views that much more alluring. The only drawback at this point is that the sun came out in full force,and though mercifully turning the day into a truly wonderful spring day, it also caused us to get sunburnt. Still, as Ed pointed out, this turned out to be one of those great memorable White Mountains Hike. We capped this all off by heading down to the old Swiss-German William Tell restaurant, which in its current incarnation is now an Irish pub named J.L. Sullivan’s. Great food and beer, and we highly recommend it if you are hiking in the Campton-Waterville Valley. One of us,at least, liked his Black & Tan beer. Somebody else, who shall remain nameless, did not. I guess you have to be Irish to really like this.
- The Trip Has No Photos -
What Members Are Saying About This Trip/Event
- Love your write-up and great sense of humor, thanks for sharing! :) A beer and a tan, sounds good to me! - Boston
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Boston
Apr 14, 2019 at 10:13 AM
Comment: Love your write-up and great sense of humor, thanks for sharing! :) A beer and a tan, sounds good to me! |
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