When to Say When: Cutting the Route on Mt. Hale

Climbing mountains is always an exercise in judgement. In order to reliably reach a peak one must first research the route, the terrain, and the hazards. Then one should always read the weather forecast and recent trip reports to estimate the trail conditions. All of that information is merely background for what one will find on any given outing. The critical skill for trips during the "serious seasons", between mid October and mid May, is using that information to make good choices. While fatal incidents occur every month of the year in the White Mountains, the margin for safety is much lower when snow or ice covers most trails and nights are below freezing.

heading up Hale Brook Trail

This is the first year that my two little mountain goats want to climb peaks during the serious seasons. They have been back country skiing on some very cold days in past winters. But traversing the higher mountains is a different endeavor. I have been drilling them for a few weeks on my serious season mantra: "coming home with your fingers and toes is required, reaching the peak is optional". The vital part is learning to evaluate options while out on a trek.

With winter conditions coming fast to the White Mountains I expect that the Forrest Service will be closing the seasonal roads soon. This means that access to certain trail heads is gated off, and the routes to those peaks are longer. I scanned my son's list of remaining peaks last week to check for possible road closures. Based on access to trail heads we decided to attempt the Hale and Zealand loop on Sunday. I realized that this is a long route, but I hoped that an extra hour of sleep would have the kids charged up for a 13 mile day.

Even with an extra hour of sleep we somehow got off to a late start. Partially it was coordinating to bring the girl's little sister along too. Partially it was my lack of packing the night before. We got going onto the trail an hour later than I had planned. We did bring a bike to be able to shuttle down the Zealand road to the car at the Hale Brook Trail parking at the end of the trip. But with stashing the bike, driving back down to the other trail head, and gearing up all 3 kids, we didn't get on the trail until 10:00 a.m.

Crossing Hale Brook

The initial mile of the Hale Brook Trail was easy enough. At the first water crossing however we became aware that this might be a more difficult day than I had planned. The heavy rain during the week had swollen every creek in the mountains. Options for easy stepping were limited by the rushing water. The adults shared their trekking poles with the kids for safety at the higher water crossings. While the view of the Mt Hale col can be intimidating I was looking forward to getting across the creek for the last time and onto the ridge. Once we got up to the ridge the trail was coated with snow & ice. We passed a woman hiking solo who stopped to put on her trail spikes. We chose to bare boot the climb since the snow as thin and the ice avoidable.

The summit of Mt. Hale was fully dressed in winter white. We took a few pictures, added some layers, and ate a quick snack. We kept to our plan to have lunch at the Zealand hut, but it was already 11:30 when we started down the Lend A Hand Trail. We also found the going on this trail slower than expected. The snow quickly dissolved into a mix of thin ice, slush, and mud. In several sections we rock hopped over standing water on the trail. Still the ice was too thin for trail spikes even though some slabs were coverd. We slid down the trail carefully, sometimes on snow, sometimes on mud, sometimes on both. The sea-saw of Twig Season trail conditions was in full effect.

a little of everything on Lend A Hand Trail

We got to the Zealand Hut at quarter past one, much later than I expected. While the girl's mother and I checked the next high water crossing the kids checked out the hut. As soon as we sat down to lunch I pulled out the map to double check the distance to the Zealand Peak. I figured that even if my two mountain goats & I went quickly, with no more difficult conditions, we'd end up spending an hour in the dark on the walk out. I shared my calculation with the kids and gave them a choice, we make a dash for the peak at maximum effort or call it a day and comeback for Zealand another time. The two looked at each other and said coming back another day would be fine. They honestly seemed more relieved than disappointed. While we finished our lunch I overheard a man describe the trail conditions up to Zealand peak to his wife who had waited at the hut. He said that it was a slushy mess in sections and icy in others. I was glad the kids made the choice they did.

We enjoyed much easier footing on the Twin Way back to the Zealand Road trail head. The snow/slush/mud subsided and the trail was mostly dry. The sky was clearing and we could spot a few peaks down the notch. The kids laughed and played as we passed by the ponds. I was happy to ride the bike back to my car in the daylight. Most importantly the kids learned a vital lesson in mountain climbing, sometimes your agenda is thwarted by the conditions. When the weather or incidents turn your plans upside down it is best to know when to say when.