An Old Fashioned Winter on Old Bridle Path: 2/18/25

Since New Year's it's been a winter of abundant snowfall, prolonged cold and busy winds. The current mantra is "it's a good old fashioned New England winter." I concur with that assessment after a solo trek breaking trail up the ultra-popular Old Bridle Path to its ledgy outlooks on a cold, windy day. 

 

There was only one car in the parking lot when I pulled in late morning after bailing on a hike out towards the Hancocks due to an unplowed parking lot. I had my doubts as I sat in my wind-buffeted car, with a temperature of 8 degrees and the trees swaying overhead. I figured I'd strap on my snowshoes and give it a go, with the option to turn back at any point and head for a shorter, lower elevation hike.

 

As it turned out, I was breaking trail right from the start. Whoever was in the other car headed up Falling Waters Trail, and mostly used the old route of Old Bridle Path to reach the junction.  I quickly discovered that the old snowshoe track for OBP was almost completely obscured by the heavy, wind-drifted snow from the weekend's storm. With the exception of a few short stretches, the only way to stay atop the old track was to probe with a pole and feel for it.  

The wind was whipping through the hardwoods on the lower part as I slowly plodded my way upward.

There was a serious snowpack in the woods beside the trail. If I stepped atop the old track I would sink in a foot in most places; off the track it was more like two feet.

These drifted-in troughs were tedious to navigate due to hidden deep soft holes.

When I plunged into this hole about 0.8 mile up, I seriously considered turning back.

Drifting was the name of the game this day.

Drifting away.

Pretty good snow load.

One of the few spots where the old snowshoe track was discernible.

Slow and steady wins the day.

Where's the trail?

Are we there yet?

Site of a future short relocation of the trail.

 

On the last quarter-mile climb to the sharp left turn at 1.6 miles, the wind had packed the slope into a slanted sidehill. Here the snow varied from soft and deep to hard crust.

First glimpse up to Mt. Lincoln.

And Little Haystack.

The hardest breaking of the day was on the steep pitch leading up to the left turn.

 

The narrow traverse above that turn was a rather nasty sidehill.

On the steep ledgy pitch just above the traverse, the wind had scoured out an old buttslide trough, providing a brief hard-packed respite from  trail breaking.

Farther up, this ledgy pitch was sheathed in hard crust, offering good grip for my MSRs.

A blaze nearly swallowed by the snowpack.

 

Deep windpacked snow in the scrub offered great views up to the ridge well before I reached the ledge outlooks.

Though winds on Mt. Washington were gusting over 90 mph at the time I was up here mid-afternoon, the OBP ridge was sheltered from the blasts and the wind here was not bad at all. A good thing, as temperatures were likely in the low single numbers at 3400 ft.

Surf's up!

Arriving at the first of three ledgy outlooks on the brink of Walker Ravine. It had taken more than three hours to ascend two miles to this magnificent viewpoint.

The classic view of Mts. Lafayette and Lincoln and the two branches of Walker Ravine.

Looking over to the amphitheatre at the head of the Dry Brook Ravine, under Little Haystack. Shining Rock Cliff is on the far right.

A closer look at Lafayette and the north branch of Walker Ravine.

Zoom on Mt. Lincoln and the south branch of Walker Ravine, including the long, narrow slide leading up to "Lincoln's Throat," just to the right of center. All told, a dozen slides on the west side of Franconia Ridge can be seen from these viewpoints.

Heading up the ridge to two more outlooks.

A backlit view of the Kinsmans across the notch.

Looking back down the ridge and out to distant southwestern horizons.

Parting shot.

Descending a steep pitch off the crest of the ridge. The varied terrain and snow conditions up here made for interesting snowshoeing.

Looking back at the sidehill traverse.

With only one set of tracks in the heavy snow, even descending was fairly strenuous.

A wind sculpture down in the hardwoods.

 

Returning to an empty parking lot late in the day. It was surprising that I was the only trekker on Old Bridle Path this day, but it certainly made for a unique winter experience on this usually busy trail.