Cannon Mountain
Jul. 22nd, 2007 10:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eorWe got a late start on Friday morning and weren't in the best of moods due to the vagaries of weather and refrigeration.
We started North on the Pemi trail at just after 8am under a heavy overcast. We made good time on this section of the trail despite having to backtrack at one point and take the longer bike path due to flooding. We arrived at the parking lot at the base of Cannon mountain (about 2.5 miles distance) a little after 9am. After a little detour to the restrooms in the tramway terminal we were ready to start up the mountain at 9:30.
The Kinsman Ridge Trail which climbs Cannon starts out steep. After the almost level walking of the Pemi Trail, it was a shocking change of pace. After the first half hour we settled into our pace. The trail climbs steadily and the air was thick and warm during this part of the climb. About a third of the way to the top the occasional drop turned into a brief shower, but it only lasted long enough to actually get out the rain gear and put it on. We inadvertently took the left turn onto the trail to the top of the ledges (1.5 miles from the parking lot at Cannon). We realized our mistake when after a very short walk we came to the most rewarding view of the day. The clouds were passing swiftly through the Notch right by and under the ledges. The way the clouds were swirling in the updrafts and writhing this way and that was something movie special effects crews dream about. In a minute those clouds had passed through the Notch and the view was clear to the mountains on the other side.
We proceeded up the slope to the summit, reaching the top at 1pm (2 miles from the parking lot). Because the tram runs to the top there were many more people at the summit than on any of the trails. We took just enough time to walk to the top of the summit house, look around a bit, then continued down Kinsman Ridge Trail. This section of the trail was a fairly steep descent and we were both grumbling about our knees by the time we reached the turnoff to Lonesome Lake Trail (3.0 miles from the parking lot). I should mention, though, that there were some very pretty views across the farmland in the valley. The upper section of Lonesome Lake trail is a mixture of moderately steep descent and level areas. We were relieved to see the lake and walk the many log bridges leading around it, flatness is the friend of tired knees. After another break for munchies we continued down the final segment, which provided a moderate but steady descent to Lafayette Campground, our starting point. We arrived back at the camper at about 5pm.
Approximately 7.8 miles travelled and 2300 feet of vertical gain.
I really liked the shoes I was wearing, which are light hiking sneaker type things. I also liked the smaller camelbak pack, so two successful changes of equipment in one hike! It might have been nicer to have a day with less moisture (in the air, on the leaves, and falling from the sky), but then the trails would have been more crowded, so it wasn't a bad trade-off.
We started North on the Pemi trail at just after 8am under a heavy overcast. We made good time on this section of the trail despite having to backtrack at one point and take the longer bike path due to flooding. We arrived at the parking lot at the base of Cannon mountain (about 2.5 miles distance) a little after 9am. After a little detour to the restrooms in the tramway terminal we were ready to start up the mountain at 9:30.
The Kinsman Ridge Trail which climbs Cannon starts out steep. After the almost level walking of the Pemi Trail, it was a shocking change of pace. After the first half hour we settled into our pace. The trail climbs steadily and the air was thick and warm during this part of the climb. About a third of the way to the top the occasional drop turned into a brief shower, but it only lasted long enough to actually get out the rain gear and put it on. We inadvertently took the left turn onto the trail to the top of the ledges (1.5 miles from the parking lot at Cannon). We realized our mistake when after a very short walk we came to the most rewarding view of the day. The clouds were passing swiftly through the Notch right by and under the ledges. The way the clouds were swirling in the updrafts and writhing this way and that was something movie special effects crews dream about. In a minute those clouds had passed through the Notch and the view was clear to the mountains on the other side.
We proceeded up the slope to the summit, reaching the top at 1pm (2 miles from the parking lot). Because the tram runs to the top there were many more people at the summit than on any of the trails. We took just enough time to walk to the top of the summit house, look around a bit, then continued down Kinsman Ridge Trail. This section of the trail was a fairly steep descent and we were both grumbling about our knees by the time we reached the turnoff to Lonesome Lake Trail (3.0 miles from the parking lot). I should mention, though, that there were some very pretty views across the farmland in the valley. The upper section of Lonesome Lake trail is a mixture of moderately steep descent and level areas. We were relieved to see the lake and walk the many log bridges leading around it, flatness is the friend of tired knees. After another break for munchies we continued down the final segment, which provided a moderate but steady descent to Lafayette Campground, our starting point. We arrived back at the camper at about 5pm.
Approximately 7.8 miles travelled and 2300 feet of vertical gain.
I really liked the shoes I was wearing, which are light hiking sneaker type things. I also liked the smaller camelbak pack, so two successful changes of equipment in one hike! It might have been nicer to have a day with less moisture (in the air, on the leaves, and falling from the sky), but then the trails would have been more crowded, so it wasn't a bad trade-off.
