1/30/21 Flume Gorge and the Kancamagus Highway

On Saturday morning we headed out to make the most of a pretty, but frigid, day. After a relaxed start we headed up to the Flume Gorge visitor center to go for a short hike. Though I have hiked Mt. Flume in the past, I have never really checked out the gorge itself. After climbing up the hill to the entrance to the gorge we were treated to an impressive array of ice with a number of ice climbers scrambling up the walls. We were not equipped to traverse the gorge, so we stuck with the overlook trail that led to the top.

Ice climbers enjoying the sheets of natural ice
The trail through the gorge was closed – and for good reason

With the photos taken, it was down the trail to the north to complete our loop. The trail was wide and extremely well maintained, so it was quick going. At the bottom of the hill we slowly navigated the trail down to the Sentinel Pine Bridge. It was quite an impressive sight perched high over the river below. It was very slow going through this section given the steep grades and our lack of traction.

Looking across the bridge

By the time we arrived back at the car we were pretty well frozen, so we decided to do the rest of our exploring by car. We decided to drive the length of the Kancamagus Highway and explore the overlooks and sights along the way. It is a very pretty section of road and definitely worth checking out. On the way back towards Lincoln for dinner we were treated to a nice sunset over the road.

The view out to Mt. Osceola
Sunset over the Pemi

1/29/21 Ice Castles

After spending so much time holed up in the house we decided to head up north to the White Mountains for a change of scenery. After a day of skiing we headed to the Ice Castles in Lincoln to see what all the fuss was about. It turned out to be a pretty interesting spot. As soon as we were in the gates it was clear that this was a large structure. There were impressive walls of icicles capped with a bit of snow. The interior of everything was lit up so that the entire place glowed.

Exploring one of the tunnels through the walls
A combination of ice snow and light

We spent some time exploring the main castle area and watching the many families take advantage of the slides, sleigh rides, and climbing structure.

The water in this fountain must have been heated – it was 5 degrees outside
A rainbow ice slide

One of the most interesting spots here was actually not an ice castle though. There was a short walk through the woods that had all kinds of light displays in various combinations. Hanging lights, lights on the ground, laser lights, and tree lights were scattered throughout the woods and kept on impressing us. It was also much quieter than the main attractions, which always makes things better for me.

Looking up at the suspended lights above the trail
Laser lights everywhere

At the end of the day this is quite a unique place, and I don’t think I can really sum it up in a few pictures. I’ll leave you with a couple ice sculptures that we passed along the way, both of which had some really excellent lighting. If you spend some time in Lincoln in the winter, I would definitely recommend checking this place out in person!

1/10/21 Mt Chocorua

Today’s post has a bit of a theme: Ice. I went up to Mt Chocorua on a beautiful Saturday to get a taste of real snow cover and solitude. I hiked up via the Champney falls trail so I could get a look at the frozen falls on the way, but I ended up seeing a lot more ice than I had expected. It started early with a couple of stream crossings right near the start of the trail.

The first stream was the most treacherous
The streams had all kinds of interesting shelves and crystals at the water’s edge

After some steady climbing I arrived at the falls I had been looking for. As expected, the small gorge had massive sheets of ice forming on the uphill side. In addition though there were an assortment of intricate ice formations across the area. I spent quite a while poking around in the early morning quiet to check them all out.

Ice curtains
The main view of the falls on the way in
These icicles somehow grew in multiple directions
Flat icicles

Eventually other people started to show up and I continued on up the mountain. Though most of the climb was not noteworthy, once I emerged onto the ridge between the summits, I was surrounded by incredible views. To the north was the heart of the pemi wildterness and presidential range, including a clear view of Mt. Washington. To the south were miles of hill country dotted with small lakes, many featuring some ice fishing. Most impressive though was the jagged summit of Chocorua which was clearly visible just over the ridge.

The summit of Mt Chocorua over and undisturbed layer of snow on the ridge
Some critter calls this spot home
A tree hanging on to the edge

I climbed to Middle Sister, one of the minor summits and then across the ridge to Chocorua itself. On the traverse I saw even more examples of different kinds of ice. It was definitely a photographic journey, with many stops along the way.

I thick sheet of ice on the trail marked with one large crack
A lone tiny ice chunk laying on fresh snow

After taking some time at the summit, it was back down the mountain along the same trail. The mountain continued to impress with more incredible views (and more ice formations) along the way, but much of it was familiar at this point. Though it certainly was not crowded, there were a number of people out on the trail this day. Clearly I was not the only one who came up this this idea. Great minds think alike.

Two people enjoying the view of Mt Washington from just below the summit
Some wild ice crystals hovering just above the water at one of the creek crossings on the way down

1/9/21 Ashland State Park

These photos are from a quick trip I took down to Ashland State Park. I had never been here before and decided to check it out. I ended up stopping at a small roadside dam along the way down and took a couple photos there.

The water looked smooth, but cold

Once at the park I started exploring the trails, and ended up hiking all of the way around the reservoir. It was a nice walk, even though I didn’t end up capturing too many photos of it. After that I took the long way home with a quick stop at Hopkinton State Park.