It Ain't all Sunshine & Rainbows: A rainy day hike to the Osceola's

checking the trail map & notices at the kiosk

Committed outdoors folk accept poor weather as part of the life. Waiting for a perfect sunny day to get outside means waiting too long for most of us. The phrase among AT thru hikers is "you won't get to Maine if you don't walk in the rain". But trip leaders must keep an eye on the sky and have a flexible attitude. Younger & novice hikers may not have the physical or mental resources to enjoy a day out in drizzle. Day hikers can pick and choose more easily than thru hikers who are in it already. Still, one doesn't get to the top of 48 mountain peaks easily if you won't hike in the wet.

The forecast for this past Sunday was mixed, a slight chance of showers clearing to cloudy skies by mid morning. The reality was a bit more grim. Early morning rain subsided to drizzle, but it was still precipitation. We delayed our start to wait out the rain, but the weather did not cooperate. I checked and double checked that Nicholas still wanted to hike. He did. I dug out a set of size extra small gaiters from the barn. I found that my 15 year old Lowe Alpine gaiters had seen better days, the uppers were delaminating. Fortunately I had a spare set of gaiters, old guide habits die hard.

Gaitered up and ready for wet hiking

I decided to take the Osceola trail from Tripoli Road rather than start from the Kanc. I figured that a week of rain would make the Greely Pond Trail a swamp. We still expected to find mud and wet slabs on the higher trail. When we pulled into the trailhead parking at 11:45 a light rain was falling. Only one spot was left and several cars were parked on the road. This was the Waterville Valley "Denali Challenge" weekend, so plenty of folks were hiking despite the weather. A few soggy hikers were coming off the trail as we gathered our gear. I helped Nicholas fit his gaiters, I tightened up mine, and we headed up the trail at noon.

White Mountain hiking ain't smooth garden paths

The disadvantage of starting on a high trailhead in the White Mountains is the lack of "warm up". The Osceola trail is just that way, once over the packed gravel bridge across the brook the trail quickly goes into steep rocky terrain. Indeed the whole trail gets rockier until the top. Half an hour after starting our hike the rain stopped. Soon I was sweating in my jacket. I suggested to Nicholas that we take them off. Getting wet inside a rain shell is no way to stay warm or comfortable. Since low clouds & mist obscured the views we kept moving. The only break we took until the top of Osceola was for a quick lunch. The advantage of viewless day is that we talked about everything & nothing as we hiked at a steady clip.

top of Osceola without the view

down the slabs to East Osceola

When we reached the summit of Osceola the low clouds had yet to lift from the valley. The wonderful view of Waterville Valley and the Tripyramids was entirely covered. A group of 4-5 college age hikers were enjoying a sit down. They joked with us about the astounding views. After a snack on the fire tower pilings Nicholas & I continued to the next peak. The notorious section of this trail is the "chimney". It is a dicey scramble both directions. We took our time with the wet granite descent. In the middle of the traverse the trail was thick with mud puddles. We did our best to use the log bridges & stepping stones. But several hikers had walked on the edges of the trail which increases erosion. We stopped at the summit of East Osceola only long enough to enjoy a chocolate. I didn't even mention the view point knowing that it was fogged in. So we began the hike back out to Tripoli Road. After we passed the Osceola summit every trail section began to look the same. We were in a Ground Hog Day hike, where each quarter mile seems the same as the last quarter mile. 

sticking to the logs across the mud bogs

Up the Chimney back to Osceola

We made the miles go by continuing our conversation about Nicholas's choice of topics: Maglev trains, the Redwall series of books he is reading, and building tree houses. Eventually we reached the brook and sight of the trail head. Nicholas was happy to have mud on his gaiters and not on his pants or socks. I prepared a clean up kit just in case we did get sloppy and wanted to feel fresh before the ride home.

A body bucket for a clean ride home

Nicholas enjoyed his first marginal weather hike. I sometimes would rather hike on the foggy & cool days because then the crowds stay away from the trails. But this sort of weather requires some extra preparation. The old Swedish saying is "there is no bad weather, only poor clothing". While the right jacket, hat, boots, & gaiters make wet weather hiking possible, those things alone are not sufficient. One needs good judgement and a sunny attitude on any hike but especially when the sun is absent. Good chocolate at the summit helps too. Until the next blue bird day, happy hiking.