Up early for the uneventful 200 mile drive and arrived in Crawford Notch around 7am. As dawn broke to cloudless skies the early sun lit up the mountains with a fiery red glow. I should have stopped to take pictures! The Notch was still in the shadows and a fierce wind was blasting down the road. I parked at the Elephant Head viewing area that was well plowed and had room for quite a few cars. I was the first there.

I wore my heavy, hooded down jacket (stays in the car) while I wrestled into extra socks and boots. It was c-o-l-d cold. Broke open a couple more hand warmers to keep the camera warm, did a last minute check for keys and kit then dumped the heavy jacket and headed out. The trail started a few yards up the road but I decided to follow other tracks and go over the snowplow bank opposite the parking area. Should have walked up the road further. There was a couple of feet of snow behind the snow bank and the crust would only support me for three out of four steps. Left a few extra post holes for the growing collection.

The trail proper was well broken in and packed down solid, snowshoes were unnecessary. I headed into the woods, keeping the pace up a little to get warm. This didn't take long and, as I had hoped, the trees and terrain gave relief from the worst of the wind.

I skipped the detour to the Elephant Head and also to Bugle Cliff thinking I would catch them later when the sun was higher and lighting up the Notch. The nature of this trail is very forgiving to those, like me, who find persistent uphill work hard work. Short steep sections are followed by easy or level going. I was making good time and was welcomed by sunshine through the trees.

Before I knew it I had reached the split in the trail where one branch heads up to Jackson and the other to Webster. I stopped for a gorp and glug break. No Jays to keep me company. Although my plan was to head up to Jackson first and then maybe do the loop over to Webster I toyed with the notion of popping down the Webster branch a little to see the cascade. Decided to save it for another day.

Didn't dawdle long as the cold started to gnaw at me. The trail continued on in the same fashion as before, a little bit of up fallowed by a nice easy stretch. The snow amounts increased as altitude was gained and there were many magnificent natural sculptures to behold. As I reached one particularly appealing spot with the sun streaming through the open canopy I spied a small sculpture that immediately reminded me of a pair of figures embracing.

The trail wound its way on through a variety of forest environments. Tightly winding through dense spruce to fairly open stretches where I was glad that others had gone before. With the snow clinging to branch and trunk blazes were not easy to spot, if at all. The well trodden trail was a good guide.

Heavily snow laden trees gave way to a limbless, blasted forest where the wind howled. I caught a glimpse of the summit from this clearing before plunging back into the forest. The drifting snow all but obliterated the trail but it was still fairly easy to follow. Prodding with the poles reassured me that the packed trail was indeed beneath the dry, granular powder. Choosing not to don snowshoes I easily kicked my way through the small drifts as I made the approach to the small open summit area.

I came out of the scrubby trees and assessed the final stretch. The bare rock was icy with a scant covering of rime and blown snow. The gradient did not seem too excessive so I decided to continue to bare-boot it. With the full force of the wind at my back I felt as if I could not fall even if I lost my footing! Toe-kicking into the rime and zigzagging around the worst of the ice I made it up the last hundred feet or so without incident. Barely stopping at the junction sign I headed over the top and into the slight protection afforded by a small gully on the leeward side.

Erring on the side of caution for running around the summit and for the descent I put on crampons. I hastily set up the tripod in the gully to take a self portrait and then took one picture of Washington and its neighbors before beating a hasty retreat. The air was gloriously clear and there were many fine photo opportunities but conditions were not those for lingering in. In all I spent no more than five minutes on the summit but by the time I got down into the protection of the trees I had lost all feeling in the toes of my left foot. This was not good.

My brain said I was wiggling but I still could not feel the toes. I headed down at a good pace to generate some body heat and get the circulation going. I decided that if I could still not feel them after a few minutes I would de-boot and apply some massage and a heat pack. Thankfully the brisk pace brought them back to life. Oddly it was the big toe that was last to revive and then with some pain around the nail. This also passed after a few minutes and I could count to five while wiggling.

Around the time I was pondering the prospect of leaving a toe in my sock when I removed it I bumped into a couple on their way up. They had tentative plans to head over to Mitzpah and down the Crawford path. I warned them of the conditions at the summit but could see they were well prepared. I wished them luck and moved on.

With crampons on I kept up a swift pace on the firm trail. Making sure to pick my feet up I checked behind me a couple of times to note that I was not tearing up the trail. For me the extra weight on the feet is more than offset by the ability to move along at a good pace without concern for slick footing. Boot skiing and butt sliding may be more fun and quicker but with my back condition and soloing safety is my primary concern.

In no time I made it back to the Webster-Jackson junction and had some more gorp and replenished my Nalgene. The Gatorade in my Nalgene had turned to thick slush so I emptied it out and replaced it with fresh from a bottle carried in the insulated lunch bag I keep in my pack. This was still liquid and even felt warm! Dumping the slushy Gatorade out off to the side of the trail made it look like someone had relieved themselves there. I disguised this as best I could with snow.

Started feeling the cold after the short stop so headed off again. Bumped into two more solo hikers and exchanged a few pleasantries as our paths crossed. With the sun shining through the trees and the forgiving trail I made it down in good time. When I reached the Bugle Cliff spur I found that neither my primary nor backup battery could coax the camera into life. Three hand warmers in the camera bag were not enough to overcome the cold. I decided to save the views into the Notch for another day.

Got back to the trail head before noon! A round trip time of around 4 1/2 hours, something of a record for me. Checking against the White Mountain Guide I later found that my ascent had taken 35 minutes over book time - amazing! A guide book I have rated this hike as 'difficult' but I have to say I found it one of the easiest so far.

With only half the day gone I decided to take a spin around to the AMC facility at Pinkham Notch as I had never been there. The views of Washington on the drive up were amazing. Considering the scale, seeing the clouds of snow being blasted off the summit indicated just how strong the winds on top were. Despite the sunshine and cloudless skies I would not have wanted to be hiking up there.

Having checked out the facilities I headed north to Gorham to complete the road loop and see which way was shortest. I stopped to take pictures of Madison and Adams from Rte 2, the warmth in the car having revived the camera battery, and the sight of these summits in the sunshine and against the blue sky was fantastic. As I passed the Appalachia trailhead and Lowes Store I could see the wind ripping the snow off the summits and was glad I had hiked in the lee of the mountains for the most part.

Made one stop for a nap at the first rest area on I91 before finishing the journey home in the dwindling light. A long day, but a great day. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, any day in the mountains is a great day.