New Hampshire’s White Mountains
While on the South side of the Notch, we had booked one of the most epic hikes in The Whites – The Franconia Ridge Loop! Our adventure would include an overnight stay at the Greenleaf Hut, one of eight huts the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) have that are located along the AT (Appalachian Trail) in the heart of the White Mountains. This is a long-time bucket list experience for us.
Because you must book (or so we were told) the huts in advance, we were locked into a weather challenged day that started with a dense fog after a night of rain showers. We were confident the weather would clear as all of the weather apps predicted so we set off around 9AM.
We set out on this epic hike with a pep in our step….we would do the route up Falling Waters Trail to the summit of Little Haystack then traverse across Franconia Ridge reaching the summits of Mount Lincoln and Mount Lafayette. This is the second-highest range of peaks in the White Mountains, with climbs totalling an elevation gain of 3,809-feet. A pretty challenging climb for us; however the scenery and waterfalls made for welcome breaks to enjoy the spectacular beauty.
Falling Waters Trail
The Falling Waters Trail is an extremely popular trail to the summit of Little Haystack Mountain. It is 3.5-miles with a climb of 2,916-feet. With several waterfalls along the way, it’s a beautiful climb but not for the faint of heart as there are several rock scrambles.
The first falls you come to at 0.8-mile is Stairs Falls and typically it’s the least crowded because you must step off the trail a bit to see it best.
A few hundred feet above Stairs Falls is Swiftwater Falls; a 60-foot tall mix of cascades and small plunges.
The last waterfall, and by far the main attraction of this trail, is 80-foot Cloudland Falls, a picturesque fan-type horsetail.
SAFETY WARNING: There is always the danger of injury or death when climbing on or within the area of a waterfall. While we were staying in the area, among other rescues that had to be made, a fellow that fell from the top of the 80-foot Cloudland Falls while attempting a photograph. He lived to tell about it, with some injuries but not everyone is that lucky.
Top of Haystack
We knew we had almost reached the summit of Haystack because we could hear the wind, see the fog and feel the cold. It didn’t take fellow hikers coming from the top to tell us to layer up. We were definitely prepared and put on our jackets and cold weather gear.
We marveled at other hikers that stayed in shorts and t-shirts for the 1.7-mile trek across the top on this weather challenged day.
SAFETY WARNING: Even if you’re just planning a short hike remember to hike Safe! Severe weather or a wrong turn could become life threatening, and the weather in the White Mountains can be unpredictable. Read up on this link Safe Hiking in New Hampshire if you have any questions. There are rescues daily in the white mountains for unprepared adventurers, don’t be one of them.
Across the Ridge
While hiking the ridge we ran into very blustery winds and intermittent fog.
We were lucky that the wind was blowing the clouds away and we had moments of perfect views. The next minute we were following the trail from cairn to cairn.
The views continued to open up for us. The ridgeline had us awe inspired. We almost could not believe the experience we were having. We forgot all about the climb. We forgot all about the wind or the cold. The 1.4 miles across the ridge seemed to be over way too soon.
By the time we made it to Mount Lafayette the view was completely gone with dense fog settling in so we began our 1,000-foot, 1-mile descent to the Greenleaf Hut. We could see it and it looked so terribly far away.
Steep downs are challenging for me, personally, I prefer the steep ups but down we must go so ever so carefully as not to trip and stumble on the rock piles, we head down-down-down.
Greenleaf Hut
Without incident and weary, we arrived at the Hut around 5 pm. We were greeted by a Croo member who checked us in and told us there would only be a total of 5 guests that evening. She mentioned it was quite unusual but it was definitely good for us as we picked a set of bunks that seemed ideal.
Dinner was promptly at 6 pm which consisted of Split Pea Soup, Pad Thai, Roasted Corn, a Focaccia Bread and a Dessert of Gingerbread. Served with hot tea or water to drink.
There was interesting dinner conversation as we introduced ourselves to the other guests, Two ladies and a young gentleman all from the Boston area. Then us from Florida.
Afterwards, we all bundled up and went to a sunset spot not too far from the hut. It was a spectacular end to an eventful day.
Next Morning
I was awoken at 6:30 am to a spectacular day, a Dr Seuss poem and an announcement that breakfast would be served promptly at 7 am.
Mike was already up and taking sunrise photographs.
After a filling breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, oatmeal and brown sugar, pancakes and hot coffee and juice, we were on our way back UP Mount Lafayette,
Day Two – Summit Mount Lafayette – again
Because we missed the views from Mount Lafayette and we fueled up on a hearty breakfast, we headed up the 1,000-foot, 1-mile climb to the summit. There we found AMAZING views! While Mike photographed, I spoke with other of the hundreds of hikers summiting that morning. They were coming from all different trails just ecstatic to have such magnificent views for all their effort.
After a couple of hours, we began the descent to the Hut to continue the Old Bridal Path to our Subaru.
Old Bridal Path
Our descent from the top of Mount Lafayette was a steep 1-mile hike, as we continued on the Old Bridal Path from the Hut, it’s another 2.7-miles on a well worn trail only marked occasionally with faded yellow blazes. The first .55-mile is the very steepest with lots of rocks and boulders to maneuver around. The rest is a lot of down maneuvering around rocks and boulders. It wasn’t until the last little bit that it became a walking trail. There are a few viewpoints as you start the descent.
In Closing
This was an epic hike that we’d love to do again. Besides, we have to come back to the area to complete the other hikes I missed with my wrist.
If you decide this is a hike for you; our advice would be to:
- Prepare yourself physically,
- Pay close attention to the weather,
- Stay on the trail (besides practicing Leave No Trace, getting off-trail is dangerous),
- Pack the essentials as outlined in this article by the Appalachian Mountain Club. These are the 10 Essentials as insurance for a successful hike under most circumstances.
- Be prepared for crowds:
- Parking can be at a premium so its best to get there early
- Some of these crowds don’t have the best trail etiquette and may try and rush you, stay calm and don’t hurry if you are not comfortable with it. We wait until there is a safe place to step to the side without damaging vegetation to let them pass.
Remember, these White Mountains are unforgiving and even seasoned hikers get into trouble. Don’t be one of them….Hike Safe.
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