Lambert Ridge

Transitioning to spring mode, I headed down to the south side of Smarts Mountain in Lyme, hoping to find some bare ground hiking in this area on the SW fringe of the White Mountains. I foolishly thought I might be able to hike partway up the Ranger Trail and bushwhack to the slide on the steep south face of Smarts, but I was jumping the gun on snowmelt down in the valley. At the trailhead I could see that the low-lying Ranger Trail would be an unpleasant mix of ice, choppy frozen snow and likely wet stretches, and the rocks in Grant Brook, which I would have to cross, bore fresh ice caps that would make for very tricky footing.

The bare ground on the south-facing hardwoods of the lower Lambert Ridge Trail, a link in the Appalachian Trail, made my decision easy. I would head up that trail, one of my all-time favorites, and see if conditions would permit reasonable access to the great view of the Smarts Mountain summit up on Lambert Ridge, 1.8 miles away.

Bare ground for the steady switchbacking climb through hardwoods on the south end of the ridge. Yay!

Passing through a stone wall partway up the slope.

Steep pitch leading up to a rock staircase.

Ice formations.

At a left turn on the trail, a small view south to Winslow Ledge.

Bare ledges!

Why I love Lambert Ridge Trail. This trail was opened by the Dartmouth Outing Club in 1986 along a route laid out by Dartmouth grad Bob Averill (class of '72). Bob is known for his prolific editing and publishing of books about Mount Moosilauke and its environs. His Moosilauke History Series now features 13 (!) books.

At 0.8 mile the trail breaks out onto an open quatrtzite cliff, with a wide view east. Quartzite is a hard, erosion resistant bedrock that forms the crest of Lambert Ridge, as well as Mount Cube and Black Mountain to the north.

 

Snow flurries were fuzzing out the views.

Down-look.

Above the cliff the trail runs along a nice hardwood shoulder....

...and crosses a lovely ledgy meadow.

More ledges, with a glimpse back to Moose Mountain and Holts Ledge.

Had to skirt a few nasty ice flows on a steep climb through spruces. Regular spikes would not cut it on these flows. I was carrying them, but never used them.

A steep ledgy ascent gains the south end of the main crest of Lambert Ridge.

The next half-mile is a cool ridge walk, alternating between bare ledges...

...and mixed woods, with some spruce and some hardwood. In places there was a remnant monorail.

There were also some deeper patches of hardpacked snow, but easy enough to bareboot with careful foot placement.

Nice contrast here with bare trail and snowy hardwoods.

Made it to the Smarts view ledge!

The  view was fuzzy, so after a brief stop I continued 0.15 mile north to the high point of Lambert Ridge.

More cool quartzite outcrops.

A massive ledge with a partial view of Smarts.

This ledge is the 2489-ft. high point of Lambert Ridge. Beyond here the trail drops to a col before undertaking the rugged climb to the 3237-ft. summit of Smarts.

Returning to the main view ledge, I was pleased to see that the flurries had dissipated. I've always been impressed by this view of the massive summit of Smarts and its long southern spurs rising beyond the Grant Brook valley. In 1997, 4,000 acres on the south side of Smarts, east of the Appalachian Trail corridor, were protected through a combination of purchase and conservation easement by the USFS Forest Legacy Program.

Smarts dominates the countryside in west-central NH for miles around.

Three notable features of Smarts are the fire tower on the summit, the brushy, curving scar seen at the upper left, and the icy slide in the center.

This slide, which I have bushwhacked to several times, may have fallen in the November 1927 rainstorm or the September 1938 hurricane.

View south from the slide, with Reservoir Pond on the left and Lambert Ridge on the right.

Zoom on the brushy scar. I haven't been able to determine whether this is an old burn or the remnant of some massive ancient slide.

Tip-toeing around the ice flows on the descent.

 

 

 South and North Moose Mountain and Holts Ledge.

 

 

 

 

 

A clearer view down at the lower quartzite cliff.

 

Mount Cardigan dominates the view beyond part of Reservoir Pond.

Before heading home I drove a couple of miles east on the bumpy, gravel Dorchester Road to check out the Dartmouth Outing Club's Hinman Cabin on the shore of Reservoir Pond.

 

 

 

 

The shore offers a wonderful view of Lambert Ridge on the left and Smarts Mountain on the right.

Flurries had moved back in, but I still caught a glimpse of the south-facing slide.

 

Bickford & Scarface Mountains

On a drive through Franconia Notch after the prolonged thaw, I noted bare ground on the slopes of Bickford Mountain, the lowest northwestern spur of the Franconia Range. This SW-facing hardwood slope is one of the first places to melt out in spring. A familiar bare ground bushwhack was an enticing option at a time when many trails were ridden with treacherous frozen postholes.

 

I started off on the Skookumchuck Trail for a bit less than a half mile.

Sun and bare ground - quite a contrast with multiple feet of snow in Tuckerman Ravine a few days earlier.

Looked more like April than mid-March.

 

Wonderful!

 

I had figured the SW-facing slopes would be bare, but I was carrying snowshoes in anticipation of snowpack lingering on the flat ridge extending east from Bickford Mountain. I was shocked to discover that there was no snow up here, either.

There was some crunchy snow over on the north side, but it was just a few inches deep.

Beautiful glade near the indistinct 2380-ft. summit of Bickford Mountain (not to be confused with Big Bickford Mountain, a 3000-footer farther up the ridge).

I descended westward into more rugged terrain, seeking a small view ledge I had visited a few times in the past.

Cool rocks.

Found the ledge!

Nice view out to the north end of the Benton Range and Cooley & Cole Hills.

The Signal Mountain Range in Vermont beyond I-93.

Zoomed in to reveal Camel's Hump on the right.

Jumble of rocks below the outlook.

Nice profile of Cannon.

Spruces with long clinging branches.

I decided to head east across the ridge to climb 2802-ft. Scarface Mountain, seen here through the trees.

Interesting ledge on the way up Scarface.

A steep 400-foot climb through fairly open woods.

A bit of old snow near the top.

Open birch glade on the north side of Scarface.

 

 

A nice view out to Vermont's Northeast Kingdom.

 

Register jar at the spruce-wooded summit of Scarface.

First page of the register.

 

Last entry was in December.

On the way down through the hardwoods, a glimpse of North Lafayette.

Homeward bound.

Bickford and Scarface from the bridge near the Gallen Memorial.