In mid-September 2013 three friends and I will be hiking Mt Katahdin in Maine’s Baxter State Park. Mt
Katahdin is the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. One of the trails leading to the summit is
known as The Knife Edge.
We expect this hike to
be between nine (9) and eleven (11) hours over very rough terrain. We must be physically fit. As preparation for this trip, our group has
been doing hikes of varying distances and difficulties. Each hike offers unique and beautiful
scenery of New Hampshire. Our focus was on endurance and distance.
We carried day packs containing similar contents as we will have in September. We had the same amount of water we will need for the Katahdin hike as well as gear (e.g. at least 48
ounces of water, rain coat, winter hat, first aid pack, whistle, map,
compass, camera, two light source headlamps, duct tape, two contractor 30 gal
bags for emergency shelter, bivy sack.)
We will follow the ten essentials for hiking http://www.outdoors.org/recreation/hiking/hiking-essentials.cfm.
In the past five weeks my
hiking partners and I have done a variety of training hikes:
- Mt
Sunapee’s Rim Trail to Lake Solitude – 3.5 hours
- Mt
Sunapee’s ski lift trail with a return on the Access Road. I did this route twice on two different
days - 3.5 hours
- The
7.5 mile round trip Pumpelly Trail of Mount Monadnock - 8 hours
- South Mountain of Uncanoonuc - 2.5 miles in 2.5 hours
- 4.5
mile Welch-Dickey Loop Trail described below via video - 4 .5 hours
I took the Welch-Dickey trail description from
the Hike New England web site: http://www.hikenewengland.com/WelchDickey030719.html
Mountains:
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Welch (2605') and Dickey (2734')
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Trail:
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Welch-Dickey Loop Trail
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Region:
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NH - Central East
White Mountain National Forest, Waterville Valley Exit 28 - Route 93 |
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Location:
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Thornton, NH
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Rating:
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Moderate/Difficult
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Route Summary
This is a loop hike across the summits of Welch and Dickey Mountains, providing many views along the way as the trail winds its way across open ledges. It follows the yellow-blazed Welch-Dickey Loop Trail all the way. The different branches of the loop are commonly referred to as Welch Mountain Trail (the right-hand fork which leads most directly to Welch); and Dickey Mountain Trail (the left-hand fork which goes directly to Dickey Mountain.)
- Start on
the Welch-Dickey Loop Trail which will fork after just 15 yards.
- Take the
right-hand branch to approach Welch Mountain first. (The return trip will
be via the opposite leg.)
- After 1.3
miles on the Welch-Dickey Loop Trail, you will reach the open ledges and
extensive views on the southern flank of Welch Mountain.
- Continue
following Welch-Dickey Loop Trail and you will reach the summit of Welch
Mountain 0.6 mile later where you will be treated to a 360-degree
panorama.
- Descend
the opposite side of the peak, continuing to follow the Welch-Dickey Loop
Trail in a northerly direction.
- You will
then need to do some uphill climbing before reaching the summit of Dickey
Mountain 0.5 mile from Welch's peak. Dickey Mountain offers views of
Franconia Ridge and Franconia Notch. Shortly before the summit, there will
be a poorly marked 0.2-mile spur path on the right leading to an open
ledge also with an outlook to the north.
- Still on
Welch-Dickey Loop Trail, descend from Dickey's peak in the opposite
direction from which you climbed it.
- After 2.1
miles, you will be back at the fork near the beginning of the loop. Bear
right to return to the parking lot.
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Steve’s latest book, Outdoor Play "Fun 4 4 Seasons" is available as an e-Book at Kindle and hard copy at Amazon.com.
