All quiet on the Mt. Moosilauke front!

Trip Details
Date: January 25^th, 2016
Total Distance: 12.54 mi (via Trimble Outdoors Navigator Pro on iPhone 4S. Approximately a 1/4 mile is missing due to the battery deciding it was too cold out. This distance also includes 1.6 miles each way for the road walk of Ravine Lodge Rd.)
Total Time: 5 hours 33 minutes
Total Elevation: 2941 ft gained
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The weather forecast looked excellent so BishopX and I decided to get some above the treeline winter hiking in. The last time we went above treeline it was quite a crazy adventure on Cannon. This time we were better prepared to deal with the elements and knew we could quickly get back into the trees if the summit was as windy as Mt. Moosilauke normally is. We decided on the Gorge Brook Trail because of it having the least amount of exposure while achieving the summit. This meant we would have to road walk 1.6 miles each way on Ravine Lodge Rd., but with winter hiking comes plenty of road walks. Thankfully, some more snow came down so we wore snowshoes all day.

The gate blocking Ravine Lodge Rd.

The actual trailhead starts at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge, which looks like a fun place to visit during the summer. After walking through the newly built and not even finished cabins, we started our trip up the Gorge Brook Trail that goes from the lodge all the way to the summit. The trail is in the woods and is relatively easy. Prior to getting above treeline the trail does offer a few lookouts. It was at the first one I noticed my iPhone 4S had turned off and the extra battery pack connected too it was not enough to kick it back on. Plugging in my extra external battery kicked it back on and kept it running the rest of the day.

Almost completed new cabin at Moosilauke Ravine Lodge.

Snow cover still is not perfect, but much better than two weeks ago.

Looking south from the first outlook along the Gorge Brook Trail.

Looking towards the Waterville Valley mountains from the second outlook.

The summit, Franconia Ridge, and the Presidentials come into view!

The White Mountains

Liberty, Flume (foreground); Bondcliff, Bond, West Bond (middle), Washington (background)

The Franconia Ridge

Right before we got out of the scruff and into the open we decided to layer up as we were anticipating some wind. As I changed my shirt that I had soaked through and sat there above 4000 feet shirtless in January I was actually quite comfortable. There was not a cloud in the sky and the sun was beating right on us. The biggest plus as there was no wind! We made quick work of the open area and were on the summit before we knew it. We had it to ourselves and again there was no wind even at the very top!

Looking up towards a sign near the edge of the scrub.

Looking past the sign near the edge of the scrub and seeing the summit sign in the distance.

Looking down the Kancamagus Highway and the White Mountains flanking it.

A shot from the summit this time of: Liberty, Flume (foreground); Bondcliff, Bond, West Bond (middle), and Washington (background)

The Franconia Ridge and Presidentials.

This sign only has a little melt on it now, but by the time we left a quarter of it was melted.

Looking towards Vermont.

Looking back down towards the Gorge Brook Trail.

Looking towards the Moosilauke Carriage Road.

After enjoying ourselves for a bit we made a game time decision and decided to stay above treeline longer and go down Moosilauke Carriage Road instead of returning via Gorge Brook Trail as was originally planned. The hope was that Carriage Road would offer a bit more butt sliding, but in hindsight we should have just stayed on Gorge Brook Trail. Carriage Road was even more gradual and besides some lame attempts to butt slide we did not really get anywhere. It did allow us to make a stop at the South Peak which offered some nice views. Sadly Vermont was in the clouds so we did not get infinite views, but it is tough to have a gripe on a day like today.

Looking back towards the summit from the South Peak.

Looking towards Vermont.

Looking south.

We hooked onto to the Hurricane Trail to make our way back to the lodge. The only traffic was a cross country skier and a bare booter. So, we broke trail for the mile or so. We thought we lost the trail when the cross country ski trails disappeared where the trail use to cross the Baker River so we doubled back but could not find a safe crossing as the river was not fully iced over. We followed the set of bare booting tracks and it was a good option as this was the actual trail. It just looked like the tracks were walking off into the woods.

The actual Moosilauke Ravine Lodge.

The road walk back was a bit grueling after all the mileage, but it eventually ended and we headed back south. It was an awesome day on top of Mt. Moosilauke that is extremely lucky as strong wind gusts are an everyday occurrence on this summit.

The mileage was only about a half of a mile off plus an additional quarter of a mile for when it was not recording our track.