Copy/Repost Hike

Ten enthusiastic GOers showed up for the Mount Kearsarge trek. The ground was bare at the start so we strapped our snowshoes to our packs. For the first half-mile, the path meandered around neat looking boulders, through deeply shaded woods. Once we reached the Lincoln Trail, we enjoyed the sunshine. For the next one and half miles this section of trail was wide and doubles as a snowmobile trail. We started to encounter patches of snow. Our adrenaline picked up when we had to use a catwalk to cross a brook that was about seven feet high off the ground. 

Baker's Ledge marked the two-mile point. We took the spur path to check out the views from the cliff and have lunch. We found the views to be quite limited. 

We found we would have been better off to have lunch a bit further on the Lincoln Trail that leads to a clearing with impressive views towards Mt. Cardigan.

While hiking the next two miles above the ledge, it felt like we were in the wilderness since the blazes were faint and routefinding was challenging. The trail was narrow with a few downed trees we had to climb over; and lots of broken branches/twigs were on the trail which plagued us most of the day. We started to encounter much more snow.

After a short, challenging pitch, we came upon an open rocky area where we were rewarded with some pleasant views. As the trail got steeper, many guys decided to put on MicroSpikes and Yak Traks. Continuing on our "wilderness" hike, we eventually entered a grove of old, twisted birch trees, and soon after we reached the parking lot for Rollins State Park which meant we only had a half-mile to go. By this time we were wishing it was summer and had our cars waiting here for us. 

We had difficulty finding the Rollins Path to the summit and ended up going off-trail steeply over the summit ledges. We soon found the Lincoln Trail that led us to the summit. 

The summit is a large, open, rocky area and the clear skies afforded fantastic views in all directions. The wind was refreshing. We only encountered a couple of women on the summit. Many of us climbed up the stairs to the firetower. 

After exploring the summit for a while and posing for the requisite photos, we headed back down the trail. We found the Rollins Trail and used that to return back to the parking lot. We then hooked up with the Lincoln Trail to the descent back to our cars. Routefinding was easier since we had our footsteps to follow. We all made it back safe and sound, although we were weary. 

It took about 3.5 hours for the whole group to make it to the summit, a half-hour break at the top, and about 2.5 hours for the whole group to descend.  

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