| Description | ~9mi, 4000ft elevation. On Saturday, three groups headed to Franconia to hike the ridge at different times and paces. One group drove straight there on Friday night and camped, and two groups came from Camelot and hiked at different paces. It was around 30°F with low winds; the trails were icy below treeline but free of snow or ice above. Before gaining the Little Haystack summit, we made a detour to Shining rock to see the ice slabs. The earlier groups hiked in a cloud that covered the ridge that morning with high winds and low visibility; by afternoon the clouds had gone away and the later group got wonderful views since they were still on the ridge. Overall, it was an enjoyable, strenuous hike and a pleasant opportunity to meet MITOCers from veteran to new in the various groups. |