Megan and Caleb allowed me to capitalize on a conference I had to attend in New Hampshire with some solo winter hiking and camping in the days just prior. I had to be in Manchester all-day on Tuesday so I figured why not head up to Franconia Notch to climb a few mountains on Saturday, Sunday and Monday?

I am posting this here, even though Caleb was not along for the trip, because I think he and I will take many of these types of trips in the future. Plus, I think three days of solitude in the mountains is important for a Dad. I thought about he and Megan a lot and was able to spend time doing something I love. I can’t wait to have him join me on a future winter trip, and he and I are already planning some spring and summer outings.

The weather was phenomenal, in my book, ranging from about 0˚ to 28˚ F depending on the time of day, with an added wind chill of anywhere from 10˚ down to -25˚ F on the exposed portions of the mountain. I only experienced the extreme end of those temperatures on my last day of hiking (on the approach and also on the summit of Mt. Tom) and otherwise had very nice hiking weather.

The evening temperatures were a bit on the cold side as I chose not to buy a new winter sleeping bag and instead brought my light-weight 25˚ bag (which, I have decided after this trip, is clearly a 35-40˚ bag). I made up the difference, as the temperature was between 0˚ and 10˚ each night (inside the tent), with a liner and by sleeping fully clothed, minus my shells. That meant that on my legs I had two pairs of socks, mid-weight long underwear, and my insulation pants (synthetic fill, and quite warm). On my torso, I had a wicking shirt, a mid-weight top, and my insulation jacket (same fill as the pants). I also wore my gloves, my hat, my fleece face mask, and the first night, my wind stopper balaclava as well. I wised up the second night and added a fleece to my torso, a third pair of socks (a liner + two mid weight pairs) and created a foot warmer with a Sigg full of boiling water (nestled in a sock) for the bottom portion of my bag. I left off the second balaclava, cinched myself in, and was more comfortable on the second night, despite a temperature of roughly 10˚ lower. It all worked out just fine, BUT, in the future, I’m bringing a 0˚ bag or warmer, and saving myself a lot of trouble and hassle.

On to the hiking. As I was on my own, and lacking in some key equipment (hmmmm, like winter boots, crampons, and snowshoes), I decided to stick to moderate summit attempts. My trail running shoes (yes, waterproof, but absent any kind of insulation or real support) performed perfectly, as did my trusty MicroSpikes. In short, I stuck to peaks that had minimal alpine zones and kept things simple. By Monday afternoon, I had managed to summit Mt. Liberty, the north peak of Mt. Kinsman, and Mt. Tom.

If you want to see some of the photos and read more about the trip, click on the image below.